- Argentina’s parliament passed a law to protect all glaciers on national territory.
- The Pascua Lama project involves the removal, or repositioning (or whatever word Barrick uses) of a glacier way up there to get at the gold mineral body.
- Therefore, the law as passed would have scuppered the planned mine once and for all (I think…most of the site is on the Chilean side of the border. I honestly don’t know if it could go ahead in a reduced form only on the Chilean side, but I highly doubt it).
- So Klishtina decided to veto the law and did so on October 22nd. This means Barrick can still build its mine.
I can hear those Argentine politicos rubbing their hands right now! That’s because they have the fate of a multimillion, nay billion, dollar project at their mercy, the stuff dreams are made of in their circles, quite frankly. Also, worth adding into the mix that ABX is a worldly-wise company and understands….hmmmm, how shall we say this?……understands the power of effective lobbying.
Therefore Otto makes the following prediction: The vote to reinstall the glacier protection law will get through the lower house. It will then get a majority in the Senate but will fall short of the 2/3rds needed. This proposed law will get nowhere and Barrick successfully negotiates another hurdle in its “build a mine at Pascua Lama” marathon
Related Post
Barrick, Pascua Lama, Argentina, Chile