An international arbitration court has imposed a penalty of $5.976 billion on Pakistan — one of the biggest in its history — for the unlawful denial of a mining lease to a company in 2011, the Express Tribune reported.
The Tethyan Copper Company (TCC) — a joint venture between Chilean mining company Antofagasta and Canada’s Barrick Gold Corporation — had filed claims for international arbitration before the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) in 2012 after the Balochistan Government rejected a leasing request from the company for the Reko Diq project.
The case between the Pakistan government and the company continued for seven years. In its 700-page ruling against Pakistan, the tribunal on Friday awarded a $4.08 billion penalty and $1.87 billion in interests, Dawn reported. The company had claimed $11.43 billion in damages.
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday issued orders for the formation of a commission to investigate and fix responsibility for the massive loss borne by Pakistan in the Reko Diq case.
Reko Diq is a small town in Chagai district in Balochistan, close to the border with Iran and Afghanistan. The Reko Diq mine is famous for its vast gold and copper reserves and is believed to have the world’s fifth largest gold deposit.
The TCC completed an extensive and detailed bankable feasibility study establishing the basis for mine development at Reko Diq during August 2010 and submitted a mining lease application in February 2011, along with an environmental and social impact assessment report, the paper said. (UNI)
