Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:ABX) is evaluating a revised sanction linked to the firm’s Pascua-Lama assignment issued on January 17, 2018 by Chile’s SMA. The Pascua-Lama assignment is currently functioning under a temporary closure program in Chile. During this period, the firm has continued to manage all parts of the assignment in a responsible manner.
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The sanction marks as a vital part of a re-evaluation procedure ordered by the nation’s Environmental Court in 2014. It links to historical compliance subjects at the Pascua-Lama assignment. The revised sanction comprises a decline of the original administrative fine laid by the SMA in 2013, from around $16 million to $11.5 million. Depending on a preliminary assessment of the resolution, the SMA has not withdrew Pascua-Lama’s RC) but has ordered the shutting of current facilities on the Chilean part of the project, besides certain monitoring activities. The firm will close detailed assessments of these requirements and will issue further details in imminent period.
The closure of current surface facilities in Chile is at par with the firm’s plan to develop a prefeasibility trial for an underground mining assignment at Pascua-Lama, which would resolve a number of community issues by lowering the overall environmental impact of the assignment. In order to conclude the prefeasibility study, Barrick Gold is currently undertaking several optimization studies.
Last week, the company reported that preliminary full year gold production came at 5.32 million ounces for this year, in line with Barrick’s adjusted projection of 5.30 to 5.50 million ounces. Preliminary Q4 gold production came at 1.34 million ounces, while preliminary Q4 quarter gold sales stood at 1.37 million ounces. Average market price for gold in Q4 was $1,275 per ounce.
In the last trading session, the stock price of Barrick Gold gained 0.63% to close the day at $14.37. The market cap of firm was noted at 16.80 billion.
