Barrick Targets 2028 for First Production from Reko Diq
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Jan. 16, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD)(TSX:ABX) – Barrick president and chief executive Mark Bristow has advised the Pakistan federal and Balochistan provincial government that, following the completion of the legal processes and definitive transaction agreements last month, the company plans to finish the Reko Diq feasibility study update by the end of 2024, with 2028 targeted for first production from the giant copper-gold mine in the country’s Balochistan province.
- Reko Diq will be operated by Barrick, which owns 50% of the project, with Balochistan holding 25% and three Pakistani state-owned enterprises sharing the remaining 25%.
- The shareholding structure is in line with Barrick’s policy of benefit-sharing partnerships with its host countries.
- Barrick is working to set up community development committees to identify priority projects focused on food security, environmental management and access to education, healthcare and potable water.
- The minister welcomed the Reko Diq project as the type of long-term, employment-creating investment by a leading multinational that the country needed more of and that could help in the reform of the Pakistan and Balochistan economies.