One of the next major hurdles in Barrick Mining Corp.’s saga in Mali will be renewing a key gold mining license, after the state temporarily took over the vast Loulo-Gounkoto complex this week.
The permit for Loulo, where processing facilities are located, expires in February, shortly after the period of provisional administration is supposed to end. Barrick filed a renewal request four months ago, a spokesperson for the company said, adding that a separate license for Gounkoto runs for another 17 years.
Barrick’s woes in the West African nation experienced a dramatic escalation on Monday when a Malian court ruled that management of one of the Canadian miner’s biggest operations should be handed over to a state-appointed accountant and former health minister for six months.
A dispute over mining proceeds has already seen Mali detain four Barrick employees and block gold exports from the mine, which the company shuttered in January. The standoff means the world’s No. 2 gold producer has been unable to fully capitalize on bullion’s record-breaking rally, after only its flagship Carlin mine in Nevada contributed more output and income than Loulo-Gounkoto in 2024.
A spokesperson for Mali’s Mines Ministry didn’t respond to questions about whether the government plans to extend the Loulo license. The Barrick spokesperson said the company is yet to receive any feedback from the government.
Finance Minister Alousseni Sanou raised the possibility of letting the license lapse in a letter sent in October to Barrick chief executive Mark Bristow during discussions over a settlement that’s so far remained elusive. He wrote that Mali “reserves the right not to renew” the permit.
Barrick said on June 16 it remains committed to negotiating a “mutually acceptable solution” with the government, while condemning the state’s interventions as unlawful. The company has filed an appeal against this week’s court order, the spokesperson said.
The owners of other gold mines in the country, including B2Gold Corp. and Allied Gold Corp., have reached settlements with authorities.
The current troubles began in 2023 when Mali revised mining legislation and audited the sector. The government subsequently demanded foreign investors make payments for alleged back taxes and adhere to the new law granting the government higher royalties and bigger stakes in joint ventures.
Barrick has initiated international arbitration proceedings, asking a tribunal to declare that its local subsidiaries possess binding conventions which are “not subject to any legislative or regulatory changes under Malian law.”
Mali, however, alleges that Loulo’s convention – fixing a stable fiscal regime for a specified period – expired in April 2023 and therefore the updated legislation should apply to the mine.
(By William Clowes)
