(3 Minutes Read)
The gold seizure, valued at around USD 180 million, is part of the dispute over revenues owed to the state.
Mali’s military government has started seizing gold stocks of the Canadian mining company Barrick as part of a legal battle over the share of revenue owed to the West African state. Some reports say that Barrick was awaiting official confirmation of the proper receipt by the Malian Solidarity Bank.
The seizure follows a warning letter to Barrick earlier this month from Mali’s senior investigating judge, Boubacar Moussa Diarra, saying three tons of gold would be seized. On condition of anonymity, a senior Barrick manager confirmed that three tons had been seized by the military government and placed in the capital, Bamako. According to the senior manager, the gold was taken from a mine near Kayes in the west and transported by plane and truck to the capital late Saturday.
The gold seizure, valued at around USD 180 million, is part of the dispute over revenues owed to the state. In December, Mali issued an arrest warrant for Bristow on charges of money laundering without giving evidence and ordered the seizure of Barrick’s gold reserves. The company has offered to pay USD 370 million. Mali’s military government previously arrested four senior executives of the Canadian mining company as part of the dispute. They are still being held.
Read Also:
https://trendsnafrica.com/mali-issues-arrest-warrant-against-barrick-gold-ceo/
In November, the CEO of Australian company Resolute Mining and two employees were arrested in Bamako. They were released after the company paid USD 80 million to Malian authorities to resolve a tax dispute and promised to pay a further USD 80 million in the coming months.
