Newcrest Mining (ASX: NCM) and Harmony Gold (JESE: HAR) (NYSE: HMY) scored a win on Tuesday after Papua New Guinea’s national court dismissed a stay order on work relating to their Wafi-Golpu gold-copper project, which allow the partners resume permitting talks with the government.
The proceeding had
been requested by the governor of the Morobe province, where the project is
located. He alleged he should have been consulted during the negotiation of the
joint venture deal setting out the terms on which the mine would be built.
Such agreement hit its first roadblock
in September, when PNG demanded to keep 40% of gold produced from Wafi-Golpu.
The government then withdrew support for the memorandum of understanding,
citing delays caused by legal proceedings.
Newcrest and Harmony had been
hoping to secure a mining lease for the $5.4 billion deposit early
last year, before a new administration brought delays in the permitting process.
The 50-50 partners said they were looking
forward to re-engaging with national authorities and progressing on discussions
about the special mining licence.
“The Wafi-Golpu Joint Venture is well placed to resume discussions with the PNG Government, given the constructive progress already made on the various agreements required for completion,” Harmony Gold chief executive, Peter Steenkamp, said in a separate statement.
Located near the port city of
Lae, in the Morobe province, Wafi-Golpu is expected to take about five
years from the grant of the mining lease to the time it generates its first
ore.
At peak production, the mine is
forecast to churn out 320,000 ounces of gold and 150,000 tonnes of copper a
year.