SUGAR LAND, TX -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 09/16/11 -- Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas) -- The international commodities boom, fueled by Asia's growing economies, has caused a mining rush to Western Africa -- a modern-day equivalent of the California gold rush of the 1800s. Many mining companies are looking to Western Africa, where there is still an abundance of undeveloped natural resources, such as gold, uranium, bauxite, iron ore and mineral sands, to obtain exploration and production contracts.