Wednesday, 31st May 2006 (1310 views)

Gold miner Barrick Gold has said that the final details of the Pascua Lama gold project are on track for approval by the Chilean government, despite opposition.

Speaking at a world mining conference in the Chilean capital Santiago, the firm's president Igor Gonzales admitted that the biggest challenges faced by Barrick were "social in nature", referring to the opposition to the proposed mine from environmental and community groups.

Pascua Lama is controversial because of its potential environmental impact. Barrick Gold intends to remove a certain amount of ice from glaciers that lie on top of the gold fields, at 4,500 metres above sea level.

However, Mr Gonzales was confident that final approval for the remaining details would be approved by the government of Chile, having already received preliminary approval in February.

Mr Gonzales also highlighted the importance of Barrick investments in South America. The $1.5 billion Pascua Lama project will, assuming it is granted approval, involve an open-pit mine that will be operational for 20 years.

Barrick is the world's biggest gold mining firm.

 

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