Peru's PM Lerner: Government Reviewing Aspects Of Conga Mining Project
November 14 2011 - 8:47AM
Dow Jones News
Peru's government will respect contracts and agreements reached
with the company promoting the giant Conga copper and gold mine in
northern Peru, but is also reviewing various aspect of the
contested project, Prime Minister Salomon Lerner Ghitis said.
In a broadcast interview Monday, Lerner said that the government
will respect the "rule of law."
Protesters have demonstrated against the Conga project,
demanding that Minera Yanacocha SRL suspend work on it due to
concerns about water supplies.
The project is a test for the fledgling government of President
Ollanta Humala, and how it handles social unrest.
Peru is one of the world's largest producers of gold, copper,
zinc, silver and other minerals, but various projects have in the
past been delayed or stopped due to unrest tied to community
protests.
Minera Yanacocha SRL is 51.4% owned by Newmont Mining Corp.
(NEM), while Compania de Minas Buenaventura SAA (BVN, BUENAVC1.VL)
has a 43.7% stake. The International Finance Corp. owns the
remainder.
The government approved Conga's environmental impact study in
October 2010.
"There is a contract signed and the environmental impact study
was approved," Lerner said.
He said the government is evaluating various aspects, including
those tied to water and electricity, in order to ensure that "the
project will be emblematic of responsible mining."
Minas Conga will require an investment of $4 billion to $4.8
billion. Production at Conga is scheduled to begin in 2015, with
average output during the first five years of 580,000 ounces to
680,000 ounces of gold and 155 million to 235 million pounds of
copper.
-By Robert Kozak, Dow Jones Newswires; 51-1-99927 7269;
peru@dowjones.com