The Independent State of Papua New Guinea, Barrick Niugini Limited and New Porgera Limited has signed an agreement to progress with the operations of the mine.
The New Porgera Progress Agreement signed on Friday confirms that all parties are committed to reopening the mine at the earliest opportunity.
The signing ceremony at the government house was witnessed by Prime Minister James Marape, Deputy Prime Minister John Rosso, Barrick Gold CEO Mark Bristow, ministers of the state, and other stake holders.
After the signing Ceremony, Prime Minister James Marape addressed the media, saying this is a huge step closer to the reopening of the Porgera mine.
The Prime Minster further shared his appreciation to the State Negotiation Team and all stake holders for their patience, and hard work behind the scene, which allowed them to go through the due processes.
Marape said there has been a lot of delay in the processes, however these are all steps to ensure the new porgera is a fruitful venture.
Barrick CEO Mark Bristow further explained that the next steps are to transfer the exploration license from old Porgera to new Porgera, and make the application for the special Mining license, and that will open the doors to starting up the mine.
“We have a number of people to employ between now and the startup. We have started, and we will continue to employ people.” Bristow said.
He said they are committed to start producing gold within this year.
The CEO also appealed to the people of Porgera to end all violence and work together for a better place in Enga province.
Under the New Porgera agreement, economic benefits will be shared 53% by the PNG stakeholders and 47% by Barrick Niugini Limited.
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