Newmont to end gold ore processing in Minahasa
Wednesday, August 18 2004 - 03:02 AM WIB
PT Newmont Minahasa Raya (NMR), a subsidiary of the American gold giant Newmont, will end its gold ore processing activities in its Minahasa gold mine in North Sulawesi within the next two weeks, Kompas reported on Tuesday.
NMR's director Rich Ness said on Monday that the company which stopped its exploration activities Minahasa in 2001 due to the depletion of its gold reserves in the area had received a permit from the ministry and energy and mineral resources to end the processing activities on Aug 31.
Ness said that the closing of the gold ore processing plant would be followed with activities related to environmental management to ensure that the mining closure would meet the standards set by the government.
Ness said that the company would continue to stay in the area for almost three years to carry out reclamation works, monitoring and environmental management despite the termination of the processing activities.
The announcement came amid a growing controversy over the negative impact of its underwater tailing dumping ground in Buyat bay.
The operation of NMR's submarine dumping ground in the Buyat had been under the public's spotlight after a number of residents living near the disposal area were reported to have suffered ailment syndrome similar to the deadly Minamata diseases suffered by Japanese people living near the heavily polluted Minamata bay.
Meanwhile Director General of Geology and Mineral Resources of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Simon Felix Sembiring said that the closing of NMR?s processing activities had nothing to do with the Buyat case.
According to him, the closing would be made according to the schedules proposed by the company. Simon, however, said that the closing of the processing activities would not free from legal action, if the company was later found to have violated the regulations.
State Minister of Environment Nabiel Makriem also said that NMR would be taken to court if the company were proven to have caused pollution in Buyat bay. "If the company was proven wrong, it would be taken to court. Don't say that we are reluctant to take a legal action against the company," he said. (*)