Santiago – Canadian miner Barrick Gold has come to an initial agreement with local indigenous peoples who have opposed its stalled Pascua-Lama mining project in South America, the lawyer for the communities said on Wednesday.

Barrick, the world’s largest gold miner, halted the gold and copper project on the Chilean-Argentineborder last year after investing $5 billion into it.

The mine, which the local Diaguita people had strongly opposed, had been frozen by environmental regulators in Chile over demands that infrastructure to prevent water pollution needed to be built.

But a memorandum of understanding between the communities and Barrick has been struck, an initial step towards bringing the two sides together, Lorenzo Soto, the lawyer for the Diaguita, toldChile’s Bio-Bio radio.

Newspaper La Tercera earlier reported 15 of the 18 local communities were involved in the deal.

The agreement will last six months during which Barrick will provide project details to the community for corroboration with experts, a process that will be funded by the Toronto-basedmining company.

Should that process be successful, Barrick will enter a dialogue phase that could last “two or three years”, Soto said. That phase may involve international observers and include the payment of an “indigenous royalty.”

Barrick would not be able to restart construction until the dialogue phase was complete.

Soto also warned that “the communities have not renounced any legal action.”

Barrick recently indicated to the Chilean mining ministry that it wanted to proceed with Pascua-Lama, the country’s mining minister told Reuters last week.

Barrick declined to comment on the report when contacted by Reuters. (Reporting by Fabian Cambero, Writing by Rosalba O’Brien; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Paul Simao)

———————————————

Barrick putting Pascua Lama back on track

Cecilia Jamasmie – http://www.mining.com/barrick-sees-light-at-end-of-tunnel-for-pascua-lam...

28 May 2014

Barrick Gold stopped work at the project on the Chilean-Argentine border in October, after investing $5 billion in it.

Canada’s Barrick Gold has reached an initial agreement with local communities from the north of Chile, which have opposed its stalled $8.5 billion Pascua-Lama gold and silver project in South America, the lawyer for the communities told La Tercera (in Spanish).

The deal between the world’s largest gold miner and Chile’s Diaguita community is, to say the least, unique, considering that the indigenous group represented by attorneys Alex Quevedo and Lorenzo Soto was the one that managed to halt the project in April last year. They also were the ones who originally requested the miner’s environmental permit for Pascua Lama to be revoked.

The Toronto-based company, which is the subject of a number of class-action lawsuits over the project, stopped work at the project on the Chilean-Argentine border in October, after investing $5 billion in it, saying it will restart it when “conditions improve.”

Sources close to the ongoing negotiations told MINING.com the agreement reached today could be seen as a first step for the company to obtain the coveted “social license” for Pascua Lama.

Sources close to the ongoing negotiations told MINING.com the agreement reached today could be seen as a first step for the company to obtain the coveted “social license” for Pascua Lama.

The memorandum of understanding establishes that negotiations will last six months during which Barrick will provide project details to the community for corroboration with experts. The process, to be funded by the Canadian company, will follow international standards, the sources added.

The not binding agreement does not force communities to relinquish their right to pursue further legal actions.

Pascua Lama is expected to produce around 850,000 ounces of gold and 35 million ounces of silver in its first five years. Production, scheduled to begin this year, has now been delayed until mid-2016.

Barrick’s sahres were down 2.2% this morn ing in Toronto hitting $16.92 at 11:43 am ET.