Acacia Mining has been given the approval from the Tanzanian Ministry of Minerals to resume gold shipments from its North Mara gold mine.
The company received a letter from the ministry approving the shipments after it initiated an investigation at the mine on July 30-31. The ministry suspended the shipments on July 12 pending an investigation.
Acacia said the letter also stated that the ministry believed the company violated certain provisions of the Mining Regulations of 2010 and directed it to submit a feasibility study and current mine plan by August 16.
Acacia has had an ongoing issue with the government of Tanzania. It has been in negotiations with the government for the last two years over a $190 billion tax bill. Barrick Gold Corp., which owns a portion of Acacia, stepped in to try to reach an agreement with the government. Barrick said the government wasn’t prepared to enter into an agreement directly with Acacia. Since that time, Barrick has offered a takeover bid for the remaining shares of Acacia it does not currently own. After weeks of negotiation, Acacia agreed.
