Travel Guide Mefis

10 km from Merzouga. Mefis is an abandoned village dating from the political system of the French protectorate. The presence of the French was explained by multiple reasons: first, the strategic reasons of control of the trans-Saharan tracks, of protection of the commercial routes, but also by the existence of fossiliferous deposits as well as copper and lead mines. These are now almost abandoned, a small activity remains, but you can visit them. Barite, a highly prized chemical compound, was mined here. It is used to densify oil and gas, but also to produce plastic.