With small- and medium-scale gold miners delivering 67% of the total gold production, Guyana has seen a record declaration of 641, 668 ounces for 2016, which is 16.6% above the target.
Making his contribution to the 2017 budget debate, Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman on Thursday said that while the Ministry had projected a target of 550,000 ounces, which itself was a 21.8% increase from 2015, the declaration for this year has surpassed the target and currently stands at “an unprecedented 641,668 ounces.”
“This is a remarkable achievement for our country–the highest gold declaration figure in a calendar year… thus far,” Trotman said, while pointing out that the declared amount was able to garner US$730,915, 229.
Out of the total amount of gold that was produced, the small and medium scale miners delivered 429,188 ounces and large-scale miners Guyana Goldfields and Troy Resources delivered 145,236 and 67,244 ounces, respectively.
“This means that the small-scale and medium-scale miners delivered close to 70% of the total and today I pause to congratulate them on behalf of His Excellency President David Granger and to assure them that the APNU+AFC government will neither abandon nor undermine their efforts,” Trotman said, while acknowledging the efforts of the Board and staff of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) and the Guyana Gold Board in overseeing the “mammoth declaration.” He also pointed out that the target for 2017 has been set at 694,000 ounces and while it is a difficult task, it is not an impossible target to reach.
For most of this year, the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) has been at odds with the government, charging that small- and medium-scale miners were under threat. The GGDMA had accused the government of not following through on a range of promised concessions and not making mineral-bearing lands available. The GGDMA had recently also said that the government was planning to pay it a lower price per ounce of gold to cover refining costs. After the presentation of the 2017 budget, the miners continued their complaints and said the planned Value-Added Tax on equipment was another key impediment to their operations.
Trotman also pointed out on Thursday that so far 109,651 metric carats of diamonds were declared, which earned the government some $73,277,347 in fees and royalties.
Trotman also pointed out that there were three inquiries into the deaths of seven persons in mines and the inquiries have all recommended that the GGMC institutionalise a framework to decrease the number of accidents. With respect to that recommendation, Trotman said that they will be reviewing the regulations and will ensure that sanctions on errant miners become effective.
“Mr. Speaker, the Ministry through the Compliance Division and the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission has implemented a series of measures thus far to address issues of mines safety but there is still a very strong need for our miners to be aware that they have to bear some of the responsibility as well. We will help to cultivate a culture of self-regulation in the sector as collaboration is essential to tackle this issue,” he said.
Additionally, he pointed out that the Ministry will be collaborating with the University of Guyana to restructure the Mining School and Training Centre to update the curriculum in order to integrate biodiversity management, petroleum exploration and production and to emphasise mining safety and occupational health and safety. $76M is expected to be spent to support the training programmes of the Mining School. These programmes would benefit the mining industry as a whole, as training and certification are intended for both the GGMC’s staff and employees within the industry, including general managers of small- and medium-scale operations.
An additional $26.9M is expected to be spent for technical support to miners, which would see on-site advice to general managers, miners and Amerindian Council representatives on improved mining practices with respect to better recovery methods and tailings management.
