 Looking out across the lower half of the Porgera processing plant, and down into the Porgera valley | |
| Location | |
|---|---|
  Porgera Gold Mine Location in Papua New Guinea | |
| Province | Enga |
| Country | Papua New Guinea |
| Coordinates | 5°27′53″S 143°06′17″E / 5.4646°S 143.1048°E |
| Production | |
| Products | Gold, Silver |
| Production | 572,600 ounces gold, 94,764 ounces silver |
| Financial year | 2009 |
| History | |
| Opened | 1990 |
| Owner | |
| Company | Porgera Joint Venture (PJV): 95% Barrick Gold, 5% Mineral Resources Enga (MRE) |
| Website | Barrick Gold Corp Website |
The Porgera Gold Mine is a large gold and silver mining operation near Porgera, Enga province, Papua New Guinea (PNG). Located at the head of the Porgera Valley, The mine is situated in the rain forest covered highlands at an altitude of 2,200 to 2,700 m, in a region of high rainfall, landslides, and frequent earthquakes.[1]
The Porgera Gold Mine closed in April 2020, following the end of its special mining lease. Extensive negotiations for a new special mining lease were concluded in 2023 and the reopening of the mine was announced in December 2023, with first production expected in the first quarter of 2024.[2]
The new special mining lease was finally issued to New Porgera Limited, an entity 51% owned by PNG stakeholders (including state-owned Kumul Minerals Holdings Limited, local landowners and the Enga provincial government), and 49% by Barrick Niugini Limited (BNL), itself a joint venture between Barrick Gold and Zijin Mining of China.[3]
Porgera Gold Mine is the second largest mine in Papua New Guinea and is regarded as one of the world's top ten producing gold mines. In 2009, it produced 572,595 ounces of gold and 94,764 ounces of silver and had 2,500 employees and 500 contractors. Since it began operating, the mine has produced more than 16 million ounces of gold and almost 3 million ounces of silver, accounting for about 12 percent of Papua New Guinea's total exports. The mine's proven and probable mineral reserves as of 2009 amount to 8.1 million ounces of gold.
Porgera Gold Mine has consistently been criticized for environmental and human rights issues. Its internal investigations have revealed that killings, brutal gang rapes, and beatings have been carried out by mine security personnel.[citation needed]
- ^ "Mining for the Future. Appendix I: Porgera Riverine Disposal Case Study" (PDF). Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development, International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). April 2002. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-10-01. Retrieved 19 April 2011.
- ^ "Porgera community eager to sign mine deal". Archived from the original on 2022-08-17. Retrieved 2023-02-01.
- ^ "New Porgera Chairman announces reopening date for gold mine". Business Advantage PNG. 2023-12-12. Retrieved 2024-02-05.