PNG transfers remaining BCL shares

Carmella Gware | Loop PNG | March 13, 2020

The PNG Government has fully transferred its entire 36.4 percent share in the Bougainville Copper Ltd to the Autonomous Bougainville Government.

This was one of the resolutions reached during the first, and possibly the final, post-referendum Joint Supervisory Body meeting held on Thursday, the 12th of March, at Port Moresby’s APEC Haus.

It was the first Joint Supervisory Body, or JSB, meeting to be held since the referendum last year. It is also the last JSB as its name has been changed to Joint Consultative Body, and this body will continue to provide oversight to the post referendum consultation processes.

During the JSB, teams from the PNG and Autonomous Bougainville governments, including President John Momis and Prime Minister James Marape, sat together to decide a future for Bougainville.

The sixth out of the 13 agendas discussed and passed included the transfer of Bougainville Copper Ltd shares.

The JSB noted that in 2017, the National Executive Council made a decision for the National Government to transfer 17.4 percent from its 36.4 percent shares to the landowners of Panguna. Following that, on the 13th of December, 2019, at the joint announcement of the Bougainville Referendum results, Prime Minister Marape further announced that the National Government will transfer to ABG its remaining 19 percent of the BCL shares.

“This JSB affirmed that the entire shares of Bougainville Copper be passed to Bougainville Mining Ltd – the Bougainville Government and Bougainville people’s subsidiary company,” the PM, flanked by the ABG President and members of their technical teams, told media after a full day of meeting.

Rio Tinto and the ABG both own 36.4 percent each while public shareholders hold the remaining portion of the share capital.

Apart from BCL shares, the PNG Government has made it clear that the constitutional Restoration and Development Grant (RDG) will be given to support the budget on Bougainville while the National Planning Ministry has been directed to clearly define the K100 million commitment and report back in the next Joint Consultative Body meeting this year.

The JSB has also acknowledged and accepted the democratic choice of the Bougainville people for Independence.

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The Horse Breeder, the Novelist and the $60 Billion Panguna Mine

Panguna. RNZ/Johnny Blades.

Aaron Clark | Bloomberg News | January 27, 2020

John Kuhns has been many things: an investment banker, a silicon smelter operator in China and a novelist. His sights are now set on an abandoned mine with an estimated $60 billion of gold and copper.

Kuhns is among a handful of people exploring for minerals and courting landowners on the Pacific island of Bougainville. His rivals include an Arabian-horse breeder, a hedge fund investment manager who keeps wallabies on his estate and a former Australian defense minister.

The involvement of such an eclectic mix of entrepreneurs is a reflection of the fact that this is no ordinary mineral reserve. Rio Tinto Group operated the Paguna mine for 17 years through subsidiary Bougainville Copper Ltd. The global mining behemoth shut it in 1989 as local protests over mine revenue degenerated into a civil war that killed as many as 20,000 people.

The mine has been in limbo ever since. But that may be about to change as the Autonomous Region of Bougainville moves toward independence from Papua New Guinea after a referendum showed an overwhelming majority of the population on the small group of islands wants to establish a new nation.

While the political uncertainty may deter major mining companies from making an immediate investment, the mine’s riches attract entrepreneurs hoping to develop the asset to a point where they can deliver it to a big operator for a fee, said Peter O’Connor, a Sydney-based analyst at Shaw and Partners Ltd. “They have to create a story with a vision,” he said.

Success will depend on earning the trust of thousands of poor, customary landholders, many of whom remember the civil war that was triggered by communities demanding greater compensation from the mine.

“The landowners want to reopen the mine but they are divided by the interested developers,” said Sam Akoitai, a member of the island’s parliament who represents central Bougainville, an area that includes Panguna. “It’s really up to the landowners to come together to understand that the land belongs to the clan and not to some individuals.”

Bougainville Copper, which is no longer associated with Rio, has estimated it would take seven to eight years and $5 billion to $6 billion to rebuild the mine and resume full operations. The company is blamed by many locals for contamination attributed to the mine.

“We retain strong levels of support among customary landowners within the project area,” Bougainville Copper said in a statement. “We have a trusted local team on the ground that continues to engage with project area communities.”

The Bougainville Mining Act 2015 strengthened landowner control and was designed to increase compensation to local communities and the island’s government from future mining to avoid a repeat of the bloodshed of the 1980s and 1990s. The government also decided not to renew Bougainville Copper’s exploration license, which the company is challenging in court.

In June 2019, Kuhns flew several landowners to the U.S. to meet potential investors, including representatives from Barrick Gold Corp. At the Harvard Club in Midtown Manhattan, where stuffed moose, bison and even an elephant head adorn the rooms, the landowners heard Kuhns deliver a PowerPoint presentation introducing potential investors to Bougainville.

Barrick declined to comment.

“Panguna mine can be rejuvenated and can be resuscitated for a couple of billion dollars,” said Kuhns in a follow up phone interview. “It’s going to take a major to do that.”

Among those also interested in Panguna is Jeff McGlinn, who made his fortune in mining and construction services through Western Australia-based NRW Holdings Ltd., which he co-founded. McGlinn, who resigned from NRW in 2010, is part of the glamorous world of Arabian horse breeding, mixing with models and celebrities at parties on the French Riviera and promoting luxury brands. He once gave an Arabian colt to Italian opera singer Andrea Bocelli.

McGlinn’s roots in mining give him valuable experience for Panguna — one of NRW’s businesses was constructing dams that hold mining waste. He’s also linked to a recent effort by the island’s government to kick start development, when it created Bougainville Advance Mining. The government’s Executive Council proposed last year an amendment to the 2015 mining act that would give all available mining rights to the new company, in which McGlinn’s Caballus Mining would hold a stake.

That amendment drew criticism from landowners, as well as Bougainville Copper, the former mine operator, which says the proposal undermines its rights to mine Panguna. The bill was later shelved. A representative of Caballus said McGlinn was unavailable to comment.

Another interested party is Richard Hains, son of the Australian billionaire David Hains. Richard, famous for keeping wallabies on his Gloucestershire estate, has helped develop mines in some of the world’s most difficult places. He’s the largest shareholder of RTG Mining Inc., whose management team has financed, built and operated mines across Africa and Asia, including the Boroo gold mine in Mongolia.

“Some of the best opportunities in the mining business in the 21st century are now in the more difficult commercial environments,” Hains said in a phone interview.

RTG believes it can restart production at Panguna through a staged process in as little as 18 months for about $800 million.

“It’s far smarter to start with a smaller footprint,” said RTG Chairman Michael Carrick. “Then in consultation with the community, we can turn up the mine’s operation.”

RTG operates a joint venture with the Special Mining Lease Osikaiyang Landowners Association, a Panguna landowners group. The JV employs 15 people, including Philip Miriori, the chairman of the landowners group.

There are bigger fish too. Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. said in an emailed statement it has sent representatives to Bougainville to learn about the region and potential opportunities, confirming earlier reports. Founder Andrew Forrest is Australia’s second-richest person with a $10.2 billion fortune, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Shaw and Partners’ O’Connor said Chinese miners may also have a chance of redeveloping Panguna because they have a greater risk appetite and access to cheap financing.

But the Panguna landowners group Chairman Miriori said the people he represents aren’t interested in working with Chinese developers because of their poor environmental track record.

If anyone wins the right to develop Panguna or other parts of the autonomous region they will need to do so cautiously. Violence remains a constant threat in a community that is still fiercely divided.

A geologist working for Perth-based Kalia Ltd. was killed and seven others were injured in an attack in northern Bougainville in December, according to the local government and the company, whose chairman is former Australia Minister for Defence David Johnston. Authorities subsequently suspended Kalia’s exploration expeditions and geological field work.

There’s also a moratorium on work at Panguna because of sensitivity to restarting the mine, said Raymond Masono, Bougainville’s vice president and minister for mineral and energy resources.

“We are no longer talking with any investors about Panguna until the moratorium is lifted, and we don’t know when” that will be, he said by phone. “The government is treading very carefully on this particular mine.”

But prospects for restarting Panguna and allowing for the development of new mines are bolstered by the idea that Bougainville would need revenue to have any chance of financing an independent state. Many hope the mineral wealth could ultimately help reduce poverty for the region’s 300,000 people where estimated per capita GDP is only about $1,100.

That would depend not only on clearing the way to restart production, but a government able to make sure that enough of the proceeds are used to fund development. “Given the failure of mining in PNG to deliver really anything like sustainable development, those hopes may end up being disappointed,” said Luke Fletcher, executive director of Jubilee Australia, a group that has tracked the effect of resource extraction.

But the lure of riches mean miners aren’t likely to give up.

“Bougainville had almost no exploration for nearly 40 years,” said Mike Johnston, executive director of Kalia. “There’s no other place like it on the planet.”

Bougainville president accuses mining company of lying to Australian stock exchange

Bougainville’s Panguna mine, for which RTG Mining is seeking an exploration licence.

John Momis says his government ‘will not rest’ until Australian-linked miner seeking licence for Panguna mine is banned for life from Bougainville and PNG

Kate Lyons | The Guardian | 24 January 2020

The president of the autonomous Bougainville government has accused an Australian-linked mining company of lying to the Australian Securities Exchange over its plans to reopen one of the world’s largest copper mines.

In a scathing statement, John Momis, the president of the autonomous Bougainville region, accused the Australian-linked RTG Mining of “lies and deceptions” and said his government “will not rest until all RTG and their executives are banned for life from Bougainville and Papua New Guinea”.

Momis was referring to a statement issued by RTG Mining to the ASX on Tuesday in which the company sought to clarify recent press reports, which have alleged that RTG staff are banned from entering Papua New Guinea.

In December, after the results of a referendum that saw almost 98% of Bougainvilleans vote in favour of independence from PNG, Momis issued a warning banning people affiliated with certain foreign mining companies, including six from RTG and one from Kalia Group, from entering Bougainville. Momis said they were creating “disharmony” in the region and that he had sought the assistance of the PNG prime minister and office of immigration and border security to assist with keeping them out of Bougainville.

However, RTG clarified in its statement to the ASX that its executives were “not banned from travel to Papua New Guinea” and emphasised that “the national government currently [have] constitutional authority over border control for the country”.

RTG is seeking to secure an exploration licence at the Panguna mine in Bougainville. The Panguna mine was at the heart of the brutal civil war in the region that saw an estimated 20,000 people killed between 1988 and 1997. The mine, which once provided 45% of Papua New Guinea’s export income, has been mothballed since the conflict began, but there has been talk about reopening it.

Among the companies in talks about resuming mining in Bougainville are RTG, which is listed on the Canadian and Australian stock exchanges, ASX-listed Kalia, Bougainville Copper Limited, a former subsidiary of Rio Tinto that ran the Panguna mine in the 1970s and 1980s, and Caballus Mining.

Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest has also expressed interest in mining in Bougainville, with the Sydney Morning Herald reporting that representatives of his mining company, Fortescue, travelled there in 2019 to explore “potential opportunities”.

There are disputes over land rights at the Panguna mine site, but RTG is the joint venture partner of the Special Mining Lease Osikaiyang Landowners Association (SMLOLA). RTG wrote in their statement to the ASX that the members of the SMLOLA “are the customary landowners who own the minerals at the Panguna Mine under the Bougainville Mining Act”.

However, Momis said the SMLOLA was established under an old system and that the autonomous Bougainville government considered its claims over the mine “illegal, null and void”.

There are concerns that disputes over land rights at the mine site might reignite tensions in the region. The Bougainville government enacted an indefinite moratorium on renewing the licence of BCL, a controversial mining company, in January 2018 over fears it could reignite violent civil conflict. However, since then, the government has shown signs that it was in favour of restarting mining in the region.

Despite voting for independence from PNG, the question of how an independent Bougainville would support itself hangs over the vote, with some experts saying it is impossible for Bougainville to become financially independent without a strong mining industry and that it would take much longer for other mining projects to be established and become profitable than it would take to reopen Panguna.

The autonomous Bougainville government and RTG Mining were contacted for comment.

ABG President refutes RTG claims

Autonomous Bougainville Government President John Momis.

One PNG | 22 January 2020

I refer to RTG Mining Inc.’s most recent announcement to the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) dated 21st January 2020 whereby RTG deliberately made false claims to mislead their shareholders, the general public and the ASX.

Firstly, the Special Mining Lease Osikaiyang Landowners Association (SMLOLA) was an entity established under the controversial Bougainville Copper Limited (BCL) regime, which mistakenly placed landowners into individual blocks. This is in fact inconsistent with the traditional land inheritance system whereby land is owned by clans and families. The ABG has started the process to rectify this grave past mistake with the rejection of BCL’s licence over Panguna, thereby deeming all current mine affected landowner associations, including SMLOLA illegal, null and void.

So while it is true that RTG are the joint venture partner of SMLOLA as they have confirmed, I would like to confirm SMLOLA have no legal rights over Panguna and cannot enter into any legally binding agreements relating to Panguna. I am happy to advise however that the ABG will be assisting the true and genuine landowners to ensure proper social mapping is carried out in order to establish new legal landowner associations and entities.

Secondly, as per a media statement released from my Office on the 23rd December 2019, I would like to re-confirm and reiterate that the below RTG executives currently still have a travel ban on them, preventing them from entering Bougainville:

1. Mr Michael J Carrick – Chairman of RTG Mining
2. Ms Justine A Magee – CEO and Executive Director of RTG Mining
3. Mr Mark Turner – COO of RTG Mining
4. Mr Robert N Smith – Non-Executive Director of RTG Mining
5. Mr Phillip C Lockyer – Non-Executive Director of RTG Mining

I also re-confirm and reiterate that this travel ban will not be uplifted under any circumstance. Whilst there was a travel ban into Papua New Guinea, it has recently been uplifted due to RTG’s lies and deceptions to the PNG government and immigration department about their purported involvement in the Mt Kare project – a project that the world knows it will not succeed. It is therefore concluded that RTG have taken advantage of the fact that both the PNG and ABG operate independently of each other and do not always consult each other on foreign companies, and that RTG’s interest in the Mt Kare project is merely an expensive ploy and deceptive tactic to be able to have a presence in PNG and access to their only real interest – the financial rewards of the Panguna pit.

RTG and their executives should be totally and utterly ashamed of themselves for their corrupt, disruptive and divisive behaviour. They have tried to take advantage of our landowners and people and have shown a complete lack of respect for government authorities. RTG have completely misled the markets for their own financial gain and convenience. The ABG will not rest until all RTG and their executives are banned for life from Bougainville and Papua New Guinea.

As it is my duty to protect the people of Bougainville from immoral charlatans, I appeal to the ASX, TSX and OTCQB, as your duty to protect current and potential shareholders, that you perform a full investigation into RTG Mining and their executives and their misconduct. My Government would be more than happy to assist you with any enquiries relating to RTG and their activities whilst in Bougainville.

For current and potential shareholders and financial markets, I hope that this clears up any confusion or misunderstanding on RTG Mining’s position in Papua New Guinea, Bougainville and Panguna.

Panguna Landowners Question Mining Law Changes

Post Courier | January 6, 2020

The Panguna landowners have called for consultation ahead of renewed push to amend Bougainville’s Mining Laws. In a recent interview with Reuters, Bougainville vice-president and Mining Minister Raymond Masono said, in reference to his determination to push through with highly controversial amendment of mining legislation at all costs, that “the revolution is ongoing”.

Philip Miriori, the chairman of the Special Mining Lease Osikaiyang Landowners Association (“SMLOLA”) said; “There has been no consultation by the Mining Department with landowners post the rejection of amending legislation by the Bougainville Parliamentary legislative committee – none.”

“This legislation is opposed by each and every Panguna Landowner Association, local government bodies and all sections of the community. It will be a disaster for the mining industry in Bougainville and will ensure Panguna is never reopened.”

“Both the Autonomous Bougainville Government and the national government want Panguna to be reopened, so that it can reduce the dependency of Bougainville on the PNG national budget and enable us to deliver fiscal self-reliance for all Bougainvilleans,”

Lawrence Daveona said, “The Panguna landowners have written to Prime Minister James Marape, drawing his attention to this offensive and destructive attack on all Bougainville landowner’s hard-won legal rights being removed with the stroke of the pen, to allow the illegal transfer of the Panguna mine together with a near monopoly over all future large scale mining on Bougainville, to an unknown shelf company in the British Virgin Islands, based on a plan which can never work. PNG knows better than we do that, we must attract high quality foreign investment to grow and that means bringing in reputable development partners and allowing them to work with us to make Panguna and Bougainville a success.”

“This is the time for us all to pull together on the back of a very successful and peaceful Referendum. The revolution is done – a proposal like this will only create disharmony again and pit customary landowners against the mining department which is not necessary – we are here to work together co-operatively, to find a fair and equitable solution for everyone.”

The SMLOLA was established by the Autonomous Bougainville Government September 7 2011 with its Constitution being drafted by the ABG Mining Department.

The SMLOLA was established uniquely for and on behalf of all the customary landowners who own land contained within the area covered by the special mining lease at Panguna and now the subject of the expired EL 01, including the land used for the Panguna gold and copper mine pit, industrial processing areas, Panguna township and the areas around the mine within the area contained in EL 01.

The stated purposes of the SMLOLA pursuant to its Constitution is set out in detail in clauses 1.2 (a) – (h), and includes amongst other things, the duty to maximise the commercial benefits of their members in the Panguna Mine and promote peace, unity and co-operation amongst landowners in a sustainable manner.

The customary landowners and their families are members of the SMLOLA by right of birth within the 7 named villages, in accordance with the Naisoi custom, and as set out in clause 2.1.1(a) of the SMLOLA constitution.

The SMLOLA has in excess of 3,500 members.

The governing body of the SMLOLA is democratically elected every three years as required by clause 4.3.3 of the constitution, by the members so that its structure and board is truly representative of the owners. The current board was elected on 21 December 2018.

Section 8 of the Bougainville Mining Act states that “all minerals existing on, in or below the surface of customary land in Bougainville are the property of the owners of the customary land.

This is exactly the same as our unwritten customary law on minerals ownership that has been in effect for millennia.

Bougainville landowners seek help from PNG prime minister

Panguna. RNZ/Johnny Blades.

Radio New Zealand | 3 January 2020 

A landowner group at the site of the Panguna Mine has asked the Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape to intervene in its dispute with the Bougainville Mining Department.

The group, the Special Mining Lease Osikaiyang Landowners, or SMLOLA, has written to the prime minister detailing its concerns that it is being shut out of involvement in any re-opening of the mine.

A resumption of mining at Panguna, closed by the civil war, has been touted by several groups as the way for Bougainville to develop a viable economy.

SMLOLA said since Raymond Masono became Mining Minister two years ago it has been shut out of any talks, despite it being one of the groups which own the minerals under the Bougainville Government’s Mining Act.

It said it feared the Mining Department was driving secret, controversial changes to this measure without the support of the wider Bougainville Government.

And it said a call for a travel ban on executives from its Australian partner, RTG, was disrespectful.

SMLOLA said the claims from the Bougainville Government about these executives causing disharmony by disrespecting local custom are “misleading and without factual substance”.

Attempts by RNZ Pacific to reach Raymond Masono for comment have been unsuccessful.

ABG President Momis bans several Foreign Company Executives from Entering Bougainville

President of the autonomous Bougainville government, John Momis. Photo: RNZI

Press Statement | PNG Today | December 22, 2019  

It has been brought to the attention of the ABG that certain foreign company executives and shareholders who have a travel ban imposed on them are still continuing to disrespect our customs and laws, and causing disharmony amongst our people at such a critical time in Bougainville’s history.

As such the ABG has had no choice but request the assistance of the Prime Minister of the National Government, Hon. James Marape MP and the Office of Immigration and Border Security, to impose a travel ban on the below individuals from entering PNG and Bougainville:

Mr Michael J Carrick – Chairman of RTG Mining

Ms Justine A Magee – CEO and Executive Director of RTG Mining

Mr Mark Turner – COO of RTG Mining

Mr Robert N Smith – Non-Executive Director of RTG Mining

Mr Phillip C Lockyer – Non-Executive Director of RTG Mining

Mr Renzie Duncan – Shareholder Central Exploration Pty Ltd.

Mr Nikolajs (Nik) Zuks – Shareholder of Kalia Group

I confirm this travel ban was put in place on 3rd October 2018, and now again on 24th September 2019. This travel ban will not be uplifted under any circumstance.

I hope this clears up any confusion or misunderstanding for anyone currently interacting with these individuals on the false hope of future business partnerships in PNG and Bougainville.

Australian miner admits workers attacked in Bougainville

Radio New Zealand | 20 December 2019 

The Australian-owned miner, Kalia, has revised its account of how its geologist, Terry Wyn Kilya, died in north Bougainville.

Mr Kilya, from Enga Province, was an employee of Kalia/Toremana Joint Venture Ltd, which has been conducting mineral exploration in a disputed area.

Last week, the company announced he had died “in a fall”, but the Bougainville government has said Mr Kilya was killed in a clash with a group it called “criminal thugs.”

However, Kalia yesterday advised the Australian Stock Exchange that Mr Kilya and seven other staff were attacked by “an outside group,” during which the geologist had a fatal fall.

It said the other staff were left with stab wounds, lacerations and soft tissue injuries.

The government in the PNG autonomous region earlier said the company was out of order to be encroaching on disputed land but the company said it had the permission of the landowners.

‘The company has miserably failed’

Bougainville’s President John Momis has linked the death to criminal elements in an area, where tensions exist due to unresolved social problems related to the mining exploration work.

He said it was deeply regrettable that a talented and experienced geologist, who came to the region to share his skills and expertise, had been killed.

“Bougainvilleans have spoken in the referendum vote that we want to be liberated and free to charter our new path ahead, but this sort of unnecessary incident is disheartening,” Mr Momis said in a statement.

Mr Momis extended an apology and his condolences to Mr Kilya’s family and the people of Enga Province on behalf of the people and government of Bougainville.

A reconciliation payment or ‘bel kol’ of $US28,633 has been paid to the victim’s family to help with funeral arrangements.

“In our Melanesian way and culture, we want to truly say sorry to the people of Enga and the family of the late Terry Win Kilya by extending our ‘bel kol’ assistance to late Terry’s family,” he said.

Mr Momis had ordered the indefinite suspension of the company’s exploration licence and called for it to explain why such an avoidable tragedy was allowed to occur.

“The company has miserably failed to address its social issues and to fulfil its corporate social responsibility as a client of the ABG,” he said.

An independent Bougainville could mean Panguna’s rebirth, a mine with a Grasberg scale potential

BCL via International Mining | 11 December 2019

Talk to any Australasian mining manager “over a certain age” and it is likely they or one of their compatriots from mining school spent some halcyon days working at the Panguna copper-gold mine in Bougainville, which in its heyday was one of the largest mines in the world, and on paper still is in terms of potential. Tales of high salaries, escapades during time off in Rabaul…you get the picture. After the deposit was discovered in the 1960s, the open pit mine in Panguna was opened by in 1972 by Bougainville Copper Ltd, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, through its Melbourne arm Conzinc Rio Tinto, opened in 1972, with Rio only selling its BCL stake in 2016.

Back to the 1970s and Panguna soon provided 44% of Papua New Guinea’s export income and in the 17 years prior to 1989, the mine produced concentrate containing 3 Mt of copper, 306 t of gold and 784 t of silver. But it all came to an end in 1989 when production abruptly halted following separatist militant activity by the Bougainville Revolutionary Army fighting against the PNG army, mainly over issues caused by a large influx of PNG migrants that did not sit well with Bougainvillians.

And much of the equipment is still there, overgrown by tropical jungle and unused. Bougainville Copper also trained some 12,000 employees, including approximately 1,000 completing full trade apprenticeships and some 400 completing graduate and post-graduate studies that resulted in considerable progress in the localisation of the company’s employees and significantly added to the number of skilled workers elsewhere in the country’s workforce.  

On 1 July 2016, BCL’s major shareholder, Rio Tinto, transferred its 53.8% shareholding for distribution to the Autonomous Bougainville Government, for the benefit of Panguna landowners and the people of Bougainville, and to the Independent State of Papua New Guinea. 

Fast forward to December 2019 and an independence vote by the people of Bougainville (98% in favour) means the likelihood of Panguna mine returning to production, and joining the likes of Grasberg, Lihir, Porgera and OK Tedi in the region’s hugely important mining industry, have just got much higher. The referendum was approved by the Papua New Guinea government, but the result is non-binding. That said, it puts a lot of international pressure on PNG to grant Bougainville independence. The islands have a population of around 300,000, and 206,731 people enrolled to vote in the referendum.

Panguna is the single obvious route to a vast and relatively quick revenue source for any new sovereign nation of Bougainville. BCL is already majority owned by the people of PNG and Bougainville. And it would come at a good time mining wise, as it would be in a position to use the latest technologies available to maximise productivity and efficiency from automation to digitalisation, though this would have to be balanced with supplying large numbers of badly needed skilled jobs in the country. And of course the mine could support a vast industry of other businesses that come with mining from catering to cleaning to logistics to accommodation, which all where possible should be locally owned.

BCL’s task has been made more challenging with a decision in January 2018 by the Autonomous Bougainville Government not to grant an extension of the company’s exploration licence (EL1) – which Bougainville Copper believes was legally and procedurally flawed. This decision is subject to an ongoing Judicial Review in the PNG National Court.

Regardless, the company believes BCL presents the best value proposition to redevelop Panguna – particularly given the strong majority ownership stake that the people of PNG and Bougainville have in the company – and continues to work towards this eventuality.

‘The revolution is ongoing’: Bougainville to revive radical mining proposal

Heavy trucks sit rusting on the edges of Panguna copper mine, closed in 1989 as a result of sabotage. CREDIT: FRIEDRICH STARK / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

* Bougainville mining proposal to go before parliament in December

* Plan gives a 60% share of mines to Bougainville

* Bougainville is currently voting on independence from PNG

* Proposal was shelved ahead of independence referendum (Adds BCL share price, quotes, context)

Jonathan Barrett | Reuters | 28 November 2019

Bougainville Vice President Raymond Masono said he will revive a plan to overhaul the region’s mining laws after its ongoing independence referendum, which could strip the former operator of the Panguna gold and copper project of its interests.

The proposed changes, which have been criticised by Panguna landowners, would also erase an interest in the project held by the Papua New Guinea government, potentially complicating negotiations between the two governments after the referendum.

Under the proposed mining law amendments, Bougainville would take a 60% share in all projects and retain all mining licences, leaving a 40% share that investors can bid for.

“Panguna is the most likely project that can bankroll Bougainville’s independence from Papua New Guinea,” Masono, who is also Bougainville’s mining minister, told Reuters by telephone from the town of Buka.

“They don’t own the licence and the mine, we own it – they come on our terms. The revolution is ongoing.”

He said companies like former Panguna operator Bougainville Copper Ltd (BCL), which counts the PNG government as a major shareholder and claims exploration rights at Panguna, would not get “special treatment”.

“They can only come in through the new framework. If they have money they can invest as will other investors.”

BCL declined to comment. The PNG government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Masono said he would push for the plan to go through Bougainville’s parliament in December, after it was shelved in the lead-up to the referendum amid a backlash from some landowners and government members.

Once the economic engine room of PNG, Bougainville has fallen to the bottom of almost every financial indicator, despite boasting mineral riches, fertile volcanic soil and stunning geography.

The autonomous region is now grappling over how best to re-establish a mining industry while maintaining peace, 20 years after the last shots were fired in a bloody conflict between Bougainville rebel fighters and PNG forces, killing 20,000 people.

As part of the peace agreement, Bougainville is holding a non-binding vote on independence that ends on Dec. 7, with the results to go before the PNG parliament and be subject to negotiation.

BCL is one of at least two companies, alongside a group including explorer RTG Mining Inc , that claims the rights to develop Panguna, with the dispute currently being tested in the PNG courts.

BCL shares had been on a bull run since the start of last week, rising almost five-fold to hit A$0.49 on Nov. 26, underpinned by positive sentiment flowing out of the independence vote.

BCL shares have since retreated to trade just under A$0.30 on Thursday.

Another Australian company, Kalia Ltd, is exploring for gold and copper on land located northwest of Panguna.

The mining law amendments, which have previously been backed by Bougainville President John Momis, were put on hold before the referendum amid concerns that landowner rights would be eroded, with control over assets being handed to the Bougainville government.

“It is totally unacceptable to be trying to steal Panguna from the customary owners,” Panguna landowner, Lawrence Daveona, said in a statement in June.

A Bougainville parliamentary committee was also heavily critical of the proposed changes, and noted that there had been a lack of consultation.