EMG-MRT Ilimanu, Lda. publicly unveiled the Ilimanu Integrated Stone Platform for Timor-Leste and ASEAN for the first time at the Timor-Leste National Mining Promotion Session of the 2026 China (Guangxi)–ASEAN Mining Cooperation Forum and Exhibition. Following the presentation, EMG-MRT signed a framework cooperation agreement with the Guangxi Calcium Carbonate Industry Association.
Invited to participate as a Timor-Leste mineral licence holder, EMG-MRT was represented by Chairman and CEO Victor Lei. In his presentation, A New Origin A Shared Future, Victor outlined how the Ilimanu Marble Project in Manatuto could support a wider stone industry in Timor-Leste. The proposed platform links quarry development with a planned coastal industrial park for local stone processing and skills development, while building partnerships to bring Timor-Leste stone products to ASEAN markets.
The agreement identifies the Ilimanu Marble Project as the first demonstration project under the cooperation framework. It provides for collaboration on geological and material assessment, stone processing and calcium carbonate applications, industrial park planning, and technical training. It also opens the way for joint work on using marble offcuts and other processing residues in downstream products.
Timor-Leste’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources witnessed the signing alongside representatives of the National Minerals Authority (ANM), the Institute of Geosciences of Timor-Leste (IGTL), Murak Rai Timor (MRT), and Chinese industry partners.
