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Business |
Barrick seeking new gold mine in country
BARRICK Gold Corp, the world’s
largest gold miner, is seeking new mines in Papua New Guinea,
Indonesia, and Australia to add to its Asian production, according
to a Boomberg report.
The gold giant is the operator and majority owner of the massive
Porgera gold mine in Enga province.
Countries in the so-called Ring of Fire region, including
Indonesia and PNG are ``very prospective’’, Joc O’Rourke,
president of Barrick Australia Pacific, said yesterday in an
interview in Perth.
Barrick last March bought Placer Dome Inc to become the largest
gold miner. The Toronto-based company been seeking to add to its
mines in Australia, South Africa, Tanzania and Nevada as prices of
bullion more than doubled in the past five years
“There are some fantastic minerals resources in Papua New Guinea
and Indonesia, and the Philippines has some,’’ O’Rourke said.
There’s a also a big opportunity in South Australia where some
early discoveries suggest similar geology to the BHP Billiton
Ltd’s Olympic Dam mine, he said.
The Olympic Dam mine in South Australia has the world’s
sixth-largest copper and tenth-largest gold deposits, according to
BHP Billiton, the world’s largest mining company.
Barrick last November signed an agreement with Integra Mining Ltd,
allowing it to take an 80% stake in the Oodnadatta gold and copper
project in South Australia for A$3 million (K7.4 million).
 
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