Barrick Gold said a Chilean appeals court has ruled the water management system at its Pascua-Lama project requires further environmental compliance before construction may resume. The Copiapo Apellate Court upheld a constitutional protection filed in Q2 2012 on behalf of four indigenous communities.
The world’s No. 1 gold company originally planned for a Q4 2014 completion date, after which officials planned to resume remaining construction on the site straddling the Argentine border high in the Andes. Amid projected capital expenditure reductions up to $1.8 billion, full production was previously expected by Q3 2016. In its first five years, Barrick had forecast up to 850,000 gold oz of annual production.
