Barrick Gold Announced Operations Restart at Porgera Gold Mine

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): An agreement has been signed with the government of New Papua New Guinea, Barrick Niugini Limited and New Porgera Limited towards resumption of operations at the Porgera gold mine.

The New Porgera Progress Agreement (NPPA) is a confirmation that all parties are committed to reopening the mine at the earliest opportunity, which will be in accordance with the terms of the Porgera Project Commencement Agreement and the New Porgera Limited Shareholders Agreement reached during the previous year. The project team will now file for a special mining lease. Also, it will ensure progress in the other conditions outlined in the Commencement Agreement towards reopening of the mine.

Speaking after the signing ceremony, Barrick president and chief executive Mark Bristow noted that there has been a strong support from all stakeholders to get Porgera reopened at the earliest. The reopening of the mine would mark another victory for its host-country partnership model, which it has successfully implemented in Tanzania and is now being pursued in Pakistan. Also, preference will be given to locals when sourcing goods and services and recruiting people for the project.

It must be noted that Porgera was placed on temporary care and maintenance on April 25, 2020.