Panama’s President blames previous gov’t for First Quantum mine crisis
The Cobre Panama mine paid the price for the accumulated national discontent, said President José Raúl Mulino.
The mining-to-rail conglomerate controlled by Mexican billionaire German Larrea once again finds itself under pressure to extend restoration efforts after a mine spill nine years ago.
On Friday, a group of activists, miners, academics and residents are scheduled to attempt to block roads to push Larrea’s Grupo Mexico to do more more to repair damage from one of the country’s worst ecological disasters.
That follows accusations from government officials earlier this month that the 2014 toxic spill into a river in Sonora state was caused by negligence, with restoration efforts falling short.
The company says the remediation was successful and supported by scientific studies and authorities, with the supposed findings of tests presented by the government “lacking any causal link with the event that occurred in 2014.” The Company declined to comment further when contacted by Bloomberg.
It’s the latest twist in Larrea’s tense relationship with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, which has included the seizure of railway lines in a move that rattled business confidence.
But just as Grupo Mexico later received a rail concession extension in an easing of tensions, AMLO, as the president is known, said Wednesday that the company would be able to keep its mining licenses if it agreed to clean up the contamination and care for victims. Speaking to reporters, AMLO said the firm had requested dialog with the government.
In the meantime, protesters will block roads and take over facilities at the Buena Vista del Cobre mine site on Friday as a way to pressure authorities, union leader Heriberto Verdugo told reporters on Wednesday.
(By James Attwood)
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