Goldcorp subsidiary, Minera Peñasquito, settled with the Cerro Gordo Ejido in a legal dispute related to surface land rights to 600 hectares (approximately 1,483 acres) of land located within the confines of the Peñasquito mine site.
Minera Peñasquito negotiated an agreement for use of the land prior to the construction of the mine, however, in 2009, the Cerro Gordo Ejido commenced an action against Peñasquito in Mexico’s agrarian courts challenging the land use agreement. On June 18, 2013, the courts ruled that the land use agreement was null and ordered the land to be returned to the Cerro Gordo Ejido. The settlement reached fully resolves the dispute. Concurrently, Minera Peñasquito and the Cerro Gordo Ejido entered into a new 30-year surface land use agreement on commercial terms for the 600 hectares.
“We are pleased to have reached a resolution to this issue and wish to thank the Mexican government, in particular the Secretariats of Economy, of the Interior and of Agrarian, Territorial and Urban Development, and the state government of Zacatecas for their efforts to help bring these negotiations to a successful conclusion,” said Joe Dick, Goldcorp senior vice president, Latin America.
Peñasquito is the largest gold producer in Mexico with gold production expected to be between 700,000 and 750,000 oz in 2015.
