Tuke praises Era Resources investment in copper project

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Mining Minister Johnson Tuke welcomed Era Resources Inc (ERI) officials to his office yesterday and praised them for their US$240 million (K767 million)  investment in the Yandera Copper Project.
ERI director Sir Rabbie Namaliu visited the minister yesterday to give an update on the Yandera Copper Project in Madang.
“I appreciate your presentation today and I am very much in support of the Yandera Copper Project getting off the ground,” Tuke told the officials.
“So far, you have invested over K200 million already and, therefore, I can see how determined you are for this project to be successful.”
Tuke said that to have senior citizens with credentials like Sir Rabbie and Sam Akoitai on the Yandera mine board was a reassuring factor because they could not go wrong when it came to issues of environmental impact and the livelihood of the communities in the mine corridor.
Tuke reassured those present that he had not taken any overseas trips because he would rather give priority to all mining-sector issues in the country before venturing out.
“I have not taken any overseas trips because I would rather visit all the mining operations in my own backyard (Papua New Guinea) and get myself embraced with what’s happening,” he said.
“I will make it my business to visit every mine site in PNG and I would like to get the people’s concerns, all stakeholders’ concerns so that when I make decisions, these decisions will be in harmony with the industry, the people and the government.”
ERI has been in the country since 2006 and its Yandera project will be, apart from 85 per cent copper concentrate, also mining molybdenum and gold in an open-pit truck-and-shovel operation.