Gold behemoth Barrick Gold (TSX:ABX) and the Government of Mali have agreed to find a resolution to the existing claims and disputes between the government and the gold giant’s Loulo and Gounkoto mining companies.
Details of the agreement are yet to be finalised, however Barrick CEO Mark Bristow says the company’s mutually beneficial relationship with Malian governments has endured for 30 years and “occasional differences with successive regimes had always been amicably resolved”.
“The current negotiations have proved challenging but we’re encouraged by the government’s recognition of the importance of securing the long-term viability of the Loulo-Gounkoto complex as a substantial contributor to the Malian economy. We look forward to working with the government to normalise our long-standing partnership,” Bristow says.
Barrick shareholders will also be encouraged by the latest developments and support any agreement to resolve the embattled company’s troubles at some of its operations.
Late last month, Mali’s military-led authorities arrested four senior employees of the Canadian mining giant for alleged ‘financial crimes’. The move came amid increasing pressure on global mining companies by the Malian junta, which took power in 2020 and is seeking to increase government revenue from local gold production.
It also follows an olive branch in July, when Bristow said the need to guarantee the long-term viability of the Loulo-Gounkoto gold mining complex to ensure the Malian mining industry’s sustainability and maintain its substantial contribution to the country’s economy.
Speaking to local media and stakeholders at the time, Barrick’s CEO noted that over the past 29 years the company had invested more than US$10 billion ($14.46 billion) in the Malian economy, with its mines accounting for between 5% and 10% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) annually.
In the past year alone, Barrick has contributed more than US$1 billion to the Malian economy, he said.
Bristow also cautioned that the current economic and political climate in Mali had caused exploration companies to curtail or suspend their operations in the country, which would impact gold production in the long run.
Based in Toronto, Barrick is one of the world’s largest mining companies. The C$47.15 billion ($50.4 billion) mining behemoth has operations spanning 14 countries across four continents.
The company has also been facing unrest at its Porgera mine in Papua New Guinea’s central highlands which has endured ongoing tribal violence, as reported by Mining.com.au.
Local police say the unrest there started in August when ‘illegal miners’ inflicted life-threatening injuries on a landowner in the Porgera Valley, as reported.
In the months that followed, shootouts between rival tribes have reportedly left between 20 and 50 people dead and authorities subsequently given emergency powers — including the use of ‘lethal force’ — to bring the unrest under control.
Barrick’s projects in the region produced 4 million ounces of gold and 420 million pounds of copper in 2023, generating almost US$11.4 billion in revenue and more than US$1.2 billion in net earnings.
Write to Adam Orlando at Mining.com.au
Images: Barrick Gold
