Higher supplies to the UK lift Swiss October gold exports
Supplies from Switzerland to Britain in October reached the highest level since June 2021.
Latin American blogs reported on Sunday exit roads from the regional capital remained blocked and anger was mounting over Newmont Mining’s proposed $4.8 billion Conga gold mine in northern Peru as protests entered its fourth day.
Schools and business had closed and police used teargas against marchers since protests began Thursday. Residents led by the Maoist president of the Cajamarca region, say Conga will destroy the environment by transforming four high Andean lakes into reservoirs for mining operations and on Saturday formed the ‘Front for the Defence of the Interests of Cajamarca’. Conga would be the biggest investment ever in Peru mining and is a crucial test for newly installed president Ollanta Humala (pictured) who has on many occasions publicly backed the project.
Terra reports on Saturday at a meeting attended by leaders from 13 provinces and 100 municipalities in Cajamarca, a city of 200,000, the ‘Front for the Defence of the Interests of Cajamarca’ was created to fight the project which is close to South America’s largest gold mine Yanacocha, also operated by Newmont.
A blogger for the Cajamarca Green Network has photos of the blockades and reports regional president Gregorio Santos has threatened more protests if President Humala does not personally visit the region.
There also appears to be some tension about Conga within the government – the environment minister this week issued a report that said two of the lakes could suffer permanent damage and suggested government monitoring over the 25-year mine life. Residents say the lakes also provide ground water for agriculture and for raising livestock. The LA Times reports royalties and taxes to the government from Conga, which would also produce copper, could total $800 million per year and operation is scheduled to start in 2014.
Environment and community leaders also did the rounds on Peruvian Sunday morning talk shows against the project. The Age reported on Friday one of the protesters carried signs that read: ”Without gold you can live; without water you can die” and ”The water belongs to the people, not the mining companies”.
Nearly 500 years ago in Cajamarca the Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro captured the Inca emperor, Atahualpa, and as a ransom demanded a room full of gold and two rooms of silver. The Incas handed over the precious metals but Pizarro killed Atahualpa anyway. Reuters quoted on Friday Jorge Rimarachin, a lawmaker from Cajamarca: “Everybody in Cajamarca knows the history of Pizarro. It’s very present in the minds of the people.”
At least 200 communities nationwide in Peru have organized to stop mining or oil projects, usually over environmental concerns or to demand direct economic benefits in rural towns according to Reuters.
In October, Newmont (NYSE:NEM) was forced to briefly shut down Yanacocha, a joint venture with South American precious metals company Buenaventura over the Conga protests. Yanacocha represents almost 25% of Newmont’s total daily gold output.
Image of Ollanta Humala campaigning in traditional dress courtesy of Visionshare.
2 Comments
Serminesincusa
What does peruvians expect: If you promised to the less educated social class of peruvians las “Perlas de la Virgen”…..Mr. Humala??, just to get elected , so now YOU risk the future economic development of Peru to come for many years!!. GO FIX IT NOW PERU NEEDS JOBS
To develop a MINE you need another mountain of MONEY!!!!. I can testify to that in today mining bussiness NO company wants to kill nobody. So let demagogues, agitator dictate the destiny of PERU
Booger
These huge mining concerns go down there, take the mineral wealth for the sake of the bottom line of the companies rather than for the well being of the people who are true the owners, namely the Serranos. After depleting the mineral wealth and corrupting the pristine environment with their pollution, they disappear and leave behind the destruction they have created……… and they take the jobs with them.
The legacy this kind of mining leaves is a diseased environment and high unemployment.