-for Oko West Gold project
Canada-based mining company, G Mining Ventures Corporation (GMIN), says it has received an Interim Environmental Permit (IEP) from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in response to its Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) submissions (jointly, ESIA), made in November 2024 for the corporation’s Oko West Gold project.
A GMIN release yesterday also informed that the IEP is valid for one year and, together with the No Objection letter received from the Guyana Forestry Commission, GMIN has fulfilled the requirements to initiate early works construction activities.
Subsequently, the company will now engage in early works including: a barge landing facility, main access road and internal roads, airstrip, permanent camp facility, water and sewage treatment plants, and power generation and communication tower.
GMIN President and Chief Executive Officer, Louis-Pierre Gignac, noted that the approval of the Interim Environmental Permit represents an important step in reaching a construction decision for the Oko West Project. “The receipt of this permit supports a collaborative engagement between Guyana’s EPA, Forestry Commission and nearby communities in Region Seven, ensuring alignment with GMIN’s mine development activities in country. We are excited to have the opportunity to commence early works activities ahead of schedule and to grow the local team in preparation for the main construction phase.”
Following a 60-day comment period, EPA review of the submission, disclosure meetings, and publication of the final ESIA report, the EPA will reach a decision with respect to the granting of the final environmental permit for Oko West.
According to the release, for the near future, additional development catalysts at Oko West will include: commencement of early works (Q1-2025), feasibility study publication (Q2-2025), full permit (Q2-2025), formal construction decision (H2-2025), continuation of detailed engineering (2025), and greenfield and brownfield exploration (2025).
The public can access the Oko EIA and EIS submissions in the National Library, University Library, the Regional Democratic Council Region Seven office, and on GMI’s website (www.gmin.gold), the release added.
GMIN on November 6th last year announced it will pay an average 6.5% in royalty from the 350,000 ounces it projects to produce annually from around 2028.
With a development capital expenditure pegged at US$936 million over its projected 13-year span for the US$1.5 billion project, the company also said that it will create 1,500 jobs while building capacity and training in the region in collaboration with the Board of Industrial Training.
“We anticipate the production of over 350,000 ounces a year, the ripple effect which will be the creation of 1,500 jobs, which will focus on local employment and capacity building. Transparency is a core value for us and it drives everything we do,” Country Manager Guyana, Bjourn Jeune, told an information forum hosted by the company at the Pegasus Corporate Suites in Kingston, Georgetown.