Akobo said it made the application, in close dialogue with the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum, after more than 10 years of exploration.

Segele has an inferred 78,000 tonne resource grading 20.9g/t and Akobo CEO Jorgen Evjen said key economic metrics would be "released shortly" in a scoping study.

"We still believe that Akobo Minerals will be a leading player in the Ethiopian mining sector for many years to come, and that we are about to open up a new region for exploration and mining in Ethiopia," he said.

Ethiopia is looking to invigorate its mining sector and gold major Barrick Gold was among the companies recently awarded exploration licences after participating in an international bid round last year.

In a joint statement, Ethiopia's mines minister Takele Uma said they were "cooperating with Etno Mining/Akobo Minerals to finalise the mining licence next week, the first week of the Ethiopian new year".

Etno is Akobo's wholly-owned Ethiopian subsidiary.

The company reported a loss of SEK5.6 million for the first half of 2021.

It raised NOK50 million in June at NOK7.50 per share.

Akobo (OSLO: AKOBO) closed down 0.7% yesterday to NOK6.85, valuing it at NOK282 million (US$32 million).