Locals to be without jobs

The National Main Stories

ABOUT 2,650 local employees of the Porgera gold mine in Enga will be without a job by the end of next month, Barrick Niugini Ltd (BNL) says.
The miner said 116 of its expatriate workers had been retrenched.
The cost to Barrick for the retrenchment is more than US$51 million (K176.47 million).
In a statement yesterday, Barrick said it had informed its workforce that most of them would be retrenched over the coming weeks.
Following the Government’s decision not to extend BNL’s special mining lease, announced on April 24, BNL was forced to place Porgera on care and maintenance as mining operations were no longer allowed under the PNG law.
However, the company continued to employ the Porgera workforce on a temporary basis in the hope that the dispute over the decision could be resolved.
The government’s decision is the subject of an ongoing judicial review in the PNG National Court.
Barrick Gold Corporation president and chief executive Mark Bristow said yesterday that the Government had repeatedly refused to enter into meaningful discussions about the issue and the fact that the mine was not operating.
And, therefore, not producing revenue, had created a financially untenable situation for the company.
“In these circumstances, BNL has regretfully been forced to end the employment of the majority of its workers,” Bristow said.

11 comments

  • FOREIGN TACTIC will not work here, Mr. Managing director. Thousands of us PNGeans went without jobs since beginning of the covid-19 and we managed to survive(continue to do so) we have families and friends we can depend on to get us by unlike other countries.
    All these employees (both Nationals & Expats) will be re-employed the sooner our government (KMHL) takes over this mine. YOU HAVE DAMAGED OUR RIVER SYSTEM (NO DREDGING WHATSOEVER, YOU HAVE BEEN TAKING SIDES WITH CERTAIN LO GROUPS, MANIPULATED THEIR GRIEVANCES WHEN THEY CRIED FAUL BY PROMOTING DIVISIONS TACTICALLY USING SENIOR EMPLOYED CITIZENS OF ENGA.
    We are educated and we know that taxes from these employees will not be going to the government’s account for over 3-6 months. You, your business partners, sympathizers and other investments crook who wish to play this sort of games should be made TO VACATE THE COUNTRY IMMEDIATELY.
    YOU THINK WONEM, MIPLA LONLON YET NA BAI YOU CONTINUE LON YUSIM KAIN TACTIC LON MIPELA. SORRY! MIPLA INO HALFBACKED OLSEM BIPO. OUR GOVERNMENT HAD MADE ITS POSITION KNOWN UNRESERVEDLY AND NOW ALIGNING ITSELF TO MAKE THIS TAKEOVER BID BECOME A REALITY.

    MATE! THERE ARE PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITIES IN PNG FOR YOU TO PARTICIPATE IN AND MAKE MONEY ‘BUT’, WITH RESPECT OF OUR SOVEREIGNTY.

    You support us and together we can make our shareholders happy! OR you simply pack up and leave with everything including your other investments! 🙂

    GOD BLESS PNG!

  • The Foreign investors must listen us and abide to our laws. They are just reaping us good and proper.

  • Mines are going to treat us like this all the time. Let’s get away from mining and invest in agriculture and tourism. We can still feed on our home grown food like we’ve been before. If mines are to operate, give land owners (as we own land) a fair go. Thank you.

  • Your billions is not compensation enough for the environmental damage that will be with us for generations to come.

  • Your times of playing hide and seek game is over. PNG feels that you have gained more than enough so its about time leave us and go else where. Good bye.

  • If you cannot be fair with us in harvesting our God-given resources for 30 years on our own land, you deserve to leave when your term is up.

  • Wonder if Mr Mailin one of the ‘gang of 4 on ‘secret’ rule breaking flight has anything to tell PM and Ministers about Canadian Barrick Mining
    According to http://www.chinawatchcanadablogsite He has Canadian Permanent Residency with a 17,000 sq ft Italianate mansion in Point Grey, Vancouver that cost him US$39 million and he is new owner of the 213-room Metropolitan Hotel Vancouver

  • We will be fine. Barrick you can pack up and leave, you have been harvesting our resources for so long and giving very less, nearly nothing compared to what you are taking. So just pack up and leave, we will manage it ourselves.

  • tell them to leave, we don’t need them, we are living in a very resources country where full everything.

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