Reko Diq: Barrick Gold pays $3 million to Balochistan government

Barrick Gold Corporation has paid the first payment of $3 million (about Rs750 million) to the government of Balochistan as part of the Reko Diq Partnership, a press statement on Tuesday announced.

Secretary of the Mines and Minerals Development Department, Saidal Khan Luni, received a $3 million check from Reko Diq Pakistan Country Manager Ali Rind.

Barrick Gold and the government of Balochistan reached an agreement on a schedule for the distribution of promised monies to the region. The project is anticipated to employ over 7,500 individuals and after it begins production, it will add about 4,000 long-term employment, according to the statement.

The local economy will benefit from Barrick’s goal of prioritizing local jobs and suppliers, the firm claimed. Reko Diq is planned to be a typical open pit and milling operation that will yield a premium copper-gold concentrate.

The project will be finished in two phases, beginning with a facility that can process about 40 million tonnes of ore annually with the potential to increase that capacity in five years after phase one’s first output, according to a press statement.

The Reko Diq mine will last at least 40 years thanks to its exceptional mix of enormous scale, low strip, and outstanding grade.

Mark Bristow, the chief executive officer of Barrick Gold Corporation, stated on January 16 that the firm has selected 2028 as the target year for beginning production at the massive copper-gold mine in Reko Diq, Balochistan.

By the end of 2024, the business also intends to finish an updated Reko Diq feasibility assessment, according to Mark Bristow in a news release on Monday.

The chief executive’s remarks were made against a backdrop of the legal procedures and final transaction agreements being completed last month.