Fiji Army Takes Over Emperor's Goldmine
Sydney Morning Herald
Tuesday January 9, 2007
THE Fijian military has taken control of the Vatukoula goldmine one month after Emperor Mines halted production at the loss-making operation.
Emperor placed the mine, which had been operating since 1933, on care and maintenance after announcing its closure on the same day as Fiji's bloodless coup last month. The company said the timing was coincidental and attributed the closure to the inability to economically mine the remaining gold at the high-grade underground deposit.On Saturday evening, the Fijian army moved into parts of the mining complex, which remained staffed by more than 100 Emperor employees while on care and maintenance."Our company position has been to withdraw all [seven] of our expatriate employees to Australia," Emperor spokesman Patrick Bindon said. "We've done that for safety reasons. We don't think it's acceptable for our employees to work under armed duress."Last month, the Fijian government, led by military commander Commodore Frank Bainimarama, said it would conduct an army-led investigation into the validity of Emperor's decision to close the mine.Military spokesman Major Neumi Leweni was not available for comment yesterday. On Sunday, he told the Fiji Times the Vatukoula complex had been invaded to safeguard documents and data which would help the committee carry out its investigation. He said the soldiers would remain until the investigation was completed.Emperor chief executive Brad Gordon was travelling to the Fijian capital, Suva, yesterday to meet senior military commanders."At those meetings, we're hoping we can clarify just what the military's intentions are," Mr Bindon said. Emperor had been negotiating to explore the area around the Vatukoula mine in hopes of finding an economic deposit before the military occupied the site.Emperor had planned to produce about 115,000 ounces from Vatukoula this year. The company, which lost $27 million last year, had been working to finalise a corporate finance facility to relieve cash-flow issues resulting from the closure of Vatukoula and a temporary production halt at its part-owned Porgera mine in Papua New Guinea last month. Its shares have been suspended since December 27 so it could complete the financing.When asked if the military occupation of Vatukoula could affect Emperor's chances of obtaining the finance, Mr Bindon said: "It may do. We're yet to fully work through the implications."
© 2007 Sydney Morning Herald