For the first time in 2015, Sierra Rutile managed to surpass its dismal production record in the last quarter of 2014.

West Africa's biggest mineral sands miner produced 12,803 tonnes of ilmenite for the first quarter of 2015, which is 86 percent higher than its production record year-on-year. In 2014, the company produced only 6,868 tonnes of ilmenite due to several Ebola-related issues.

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However, its zircon and rutile output remained low, decreasing 63 percent year-on-year to 318 tonnes and 17 percent year-on-year to 23,432 tonnes, respectively.

John Sisay, CEO of Sierra Rutile, said that he is confident the company is now capable of meeting its 2015 target, citing the sharp decline of Ebola cases in the country as a major driving force to its impending rebound. 

Encouraged by the country's strong stance on rebuilding the nation's economy and health system, employees have now returned to their respective posts. The company is now focused on accelerating maintenance plans and hitting production targets.  

In 2014, the Ebola outbreak that hit the entire Sierra Leone forced many companies to either trim down or completely shut down operations.

Sisay also admitted that choosing the former was as hard as opting for the latter, because shutting down the company would only make things worse. This meant that the families depending on the company would end up jobless, making their situation more difficult as the country was suffering from the Ebola outbreak.

"We have to make people understand that we are still in business. We cannot blame problems on Ebola. There is going to be a massive impact on the economy. It is very important for companies like ours to go through and come out the other side," Sisaytold the Financial Times.

The Ebola scare has already subsided, but Sierra Rutile still has to deal with its many repercussions.

Factors such as extended maintenance shutdowns, sluggish commissioning of its mineral separation plant upgrade, as well as prevailing negative perception on Ebola-stricken countries are stopping the company from regaining momentum, paving the way for a dismal all-year-round performance.

In 2013, the country's third largest quarterly production failed to surpass its target result of 31,025 tonnes.

The weakening African rutile market has also affected the entire global commerce. However, the sudden decrease of supplies from the region encouraged many explorations firms to help alleviate the ailing supply segment.

One company that plans to step in is U.S. company White Mountain Titanium Corporation (OTCQB:WMTM) which has discovered a rutile-replete area several miles west from Vallenar City in the Atacama of Northern Chile. Called Cerro Blanco, the area consists of 41 registered mining exploitation concessions and 34 mining exploration concessions, covering an area of approximately 17,041 hectares.

In 2006, Singapore-based, unlisted explorations company Asia Mining Limiteddiscovered a promising rutile resource on the coastlines of Andaman Sea. Since then, the company did all it could to convince the government of Myanmar to explore the area, which only came to fruition in 2014.

At that time, Myanmar had little contact with the outside world, and no Western businesses were operating in the country. AML is said to be the first of the few to penetrate its untouched market.

The eight-year crusade resulted to a license approval from the government, which led to the discovery of the $2 billion-worth of titanium resources.

Tagsrutile, titanium dioxide, Rutile mining sector is back on its feet, Chile mining sector, Ebola outbreak gone, Sierra Rutile, Ebola outbreak affects rutile mining industry, White Mountain Titanium, Asia Mining Limited, Myanmar, Cerro Blanco