Miners are being offered a range of cash incentives to prospect for the highly valued platinum, emeralds and other minerals.
Acting Commissioner of Mines William Woolford told the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Associa-tion on Thursday that while mining for gold and diamonds there are other minerals such as platinum and those in the platinum group which could be of value. He suggested that upper to middle Mazaruni miners could find and export such minerals while noting that he has information that a particular site there had as much platinum as gold.
The Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) is offering an incentive of $500,000 to those who bring in minerals that lead to the discovery of such deposits and improves the commission’s knowledge of any particular ore. Officials at the GGMC feel that these minerals would offer more value than traditional minerals. There may be, he said, emeralds, precious stones and rocks that miners are not familiar with.
The discovery of rocks such as limestone or dolomite would attract an incentive of $2M. He said one of his staff members was told of such a deposit by a local miner.
The point was reiterated when he said that the commission is prepared to grant funds up to $2M for proposals geared toward the exploration for minerals outside of the traditional ones. The GGMC is also making up to $2M available for those who mine non-traditional minerals commercially. Additionally some $500,000 would be made available to the miner who finds a market for such products.
He said they are encouraging miners to do better in recovery systems so the first ten operators to use jigs would get some $200,000. The same amount of money would be given to the top ten miners for tailings management and attention to safety issues as well.
Turning attention back to the traditional minerals, Woolford said geologists have opined that there are primary diamond deposits in Guyana. The collection of unusual looking material could reveal that they are working close to a diamond pipe. He said geologists in like manner found leads to mineral deposits in French Guiana and feel they may be able to do the same in Guyana.
Woolford in addressing the miners said that the gold and diamond mining industries were enjoying a period of re-awakening. He said it is the biggest boom the industry has had in Guyana. He pointed out that in the past there were surges in gold and diamond output but not simultaneously. This time around the surge has been double-barrelled with both minerals being produced in higher numbers.
Collectively, the acting Commis-sioner said, small to medium-scale establishments have made capital investments in the industry of between $3.5B – $4B. Such values indicated how large the industry was, he said.
As a result of the industry’s performance Woolford told the association international miners are taking note with establishments such as Newmont Mining Corporation one of the world’s largest mining establishments, and BHP Billiton expressing interest in the industry here, while Rio Tinto Mining is expected to be here in March.
The commission is seeking to ensure more efficiency in the mining sector as a result of claims becoming saturated, said Woolford. Competition is growing for acreage in the sector while the available land shrinks. Therefore miners are asked to prepare the necessary documentation to clearly establish their authority to mine a particular claim.
Woolford added in the same vein that they have not been seeing enough exploration to improve on the efficiency of mining. So, he said, it was important that miners lay out their claims and find more ore.
He commended the industry’s growth pointing out that it didn’t have to rely too much on geologists and other such experts and noted the industry provides direct employment for some 9,700 persons. Additionally there are the spin-off benefits that go to aircraft, trucking, and supplies providers.
The Commissioner also highlighted the increase in state-of-the-art equipment such as crushers and dredges. He mentioned that this could be attributed to the performance of the industry. There was also, he said, a spurt in underground mining in 2005, which was stunted by deaths. Woolford also urged that miners regularly keep tabs on health issues.
It was also noted at the meeting, attended by GGDMA’s President Alfro Alphonso, Vice President Norman McLean and Executive Director Edward Shields, that the association was reviewing Value Added Tax (VAT) issues on behalf of miners. The approach being employed suggested that the miners were attempting to have VAT removed from certain pieces of equipment to boost their production. (Christopher Yaw)
