The Barrick Gold Corporation has negotiated a deal to end the dispute between its subsidiary Acacia Mining and the Tanzanian government. Under terms of the deal, Barrick will pay Tanzania $300 million (USD). As part of another deal reached previously, Tanzania gets a 16 percent stake in three gold mines the company operates in the country.
“Nothing will change on the previous agreements that were led by Barrick Executive Chairman, Professor Thornton in October 2017,” said Barrick Gold Executive Secretary in Eastern Africa, Dr. Willem Jacobs. That previous agreement will also see Tanzania collect 50 percent of the revenues from each of Barrick’s three gold mines. Dr. Jacobs thanked and commended Tanzania president John Magufuli’s “high performance” in ensuring that Tanzania’s natural resources are serving the betterment of Tanzanian citizens and their development.
Barrick Gold’s dispute with Tanzania dates back to March 2017, when the country banned the export of concentrates. At the time, Barrick subsidiary, Acacia derived 30 percent of its revenue from concentrates. Tanzania also hit the company with US$190 billion in fines and allegedly unpaid taxes in July 2017, stemming from a presidential committee’s findings that alleged Acacia owed the government for under-reporting gold and copper levels in its concentrate exports. Barrick Gold’s board of directors and Tanzanian leaders must first approve the new deal before it is finalized. Tanzania is Africa’s fourth-largest gold producer and according to Mining Africa, Barrick Gold is the continent’s fourth-largest mining company.
Source: CGTN