Govt told 2028 set for production from Reko Diq

ISLAMABAD: Barrick Gold Corporation has envisaged a deadline of 2028 for achieving the first production target from a giant gold-copper mine. 

According to the company’s statement issued here on Monday, Barrick Gold Corporation’s President and Chief Executive Mark Bristow has advised federal and Balochistan governments 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.Reko Diq will be operated by Barrick, which owns 50 percent of the project, with Balochistan holding 25 percent and three Pakistani state-owned enterprises sharing the remaining 25 percent. The shareholding structure is in line with Barrick’s policy of benefit-sharing partnerships with its host countries.

As part of a three-day project review that started in Quetta, Bristow, accompanied by senior Barrick executives, met with Balochistan’s chief minister, Abdul Quddus Bizenjo, and other provincial leaders to brief them on the extensive social and economic development opportunities that would be generated by the mine, which is expected to have a life of at least 40 years. The meeting was attended by a wide spectrum of provincial stakeholders and leaders, including opposition leader Malik Sikandar Khan (JUIF) and leaders of the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), and the Awami National Party (ANP).

After the meeting, Bristow and the chief minister signed a memorandum of agreement that specifies the timetable for the disbursement of committed funds to the province, including advance royalties and social development funds, ensuring that the people of Balochistan start earning benefits from the project well before the mine goes into production. The agreement provides for an initial payment of $3 million this month.

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.

Bristow met with Minister of State (Petroleum Division) Musadik Masood Malik in Islamabad and reaffirmed Barrick’s commitment to be a long-term partner in Pakistan, contributing meaningfully to the development of the country’s promising mining sector.

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.