News
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Balochistan govt refuses TCC mining licenceBy Mohammad Zafar
QUETTA: The government of Balochistan refused to grant a mining licence to TCC, thus preventing the firm from conducting mining operations for copper and gold in Chagai district of Balochistan.
According to sources, the chief minister rejected a summary of the provincial government from the Mines and Mineral Department to grant a mining license to the TCC to resume work on the project.
According to information, the Mines and Mineral Department of the grovincial government had presented the chief minister with several options with their pros and cons in the proposal. The TCC took the stand that it had spent hundreds of millions of dollars on exploration of copper and gold and said that they had the first right to get the mining licence. The TCC may use international arbitration to obtain a mining licence from the Balochistan government. The Balochistan government had earmarked Rs 8.5 billion in the provincial budget for mining copper and gold reserves and intends to establish a mining complex at Reko Dik and set up a refinery for the separation of gold from copper. Earlier, it was reported that the government of Balochistan was seeking help from Iran for setting up the refinery.
The provincial parliament of Balochistan also endorsed the decision of the chief minister on the issue of the Reko Dik project. TCC is based in Islamabad and is a joint venture by Canadian mining giant Barrick Gold and the Chilean mining company, Antofagasta, which had applied for a mining licence in February 2011 after having found a substantial amount of minerals at its exploration site.
The two companies, which control the $3.3 billion project, say that Reko Dik can produce 190,000 tonnes of copper and 270,000 ounces of gold a year during the first five years of operation.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk