A representative of Canadian gold giant Barrick Gold (TSX, NYSE:ABX) told the Globe & Mail today that the company’s Saudi operations are not affected by the current diplomatic dispute between Ottawa and Riyadh.
In an email to the newspaper, spokesman Andy Lloyd said that Barrick has a strong relationship with Ma’aden (TADAWUL:1211), the 50-per-cent state-owned company with which the miner operates the Jabal Sayid copper mine, located 350 kilometers north-east of Jeddah, in the western part of the country.
“We expect that partnership will continue to deepen over time,” Lloyd told the news outlet. The Toronto-based firm gained the Jabal Sayid project when it acquired copper miner Equinox in 2011 for $6.8 billion.
Most of the construction at the asset had been complete for a while, but output was delayed over permit problems related to safety issues and legacy matters over mining license.
Later on, in 2014, Ma’aden paid $210-million to acquire its 50-per-cent stake in Jabal Sayid. Two years later, the mine started commercial activities.
For the rest of this article: http://www.mining.com/barrick-says-copper-operation-saudi-arabia-not-affected-diplomatic-dispute/