Sudjana to probe Canadian contracts<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Mines and Energy I.B. Sudjana said
\nthe government would thoroughly investigate Canadian mining
\ncontractors who have applied for seventh generation contracts of
\nwork (COWs) in order to prevent such scams like the Busang
\nscandal.<\/p>\n
Sudjana said he would also conduct on-site inspections of the
\ncompanies during his visit to Canada to attend the Energy
\nMinisterial Meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation's
\n(APEC) in Vancouver.<\/p>\n
The ministerial meeting will be held during the APEC summit,
\nwhich is scheduled for November in Canada.<\/p>\n
\"We don't want the (Canadian) companies to come here in name
\nonly. We want to ensure that they will bring in big investment,\"
\nSudjana said after a meeting with President Soeharto.<\/p>\n
He added that Canadian companies accounted for 75 percent or
\n124 of the 164 mining firms which applied for seventh generation
\nCOWs.<\/p>\n
Sudjana said he would seek information on the companies from
\nthe Canadian government during his stay in Vancouver.<\/p>\n
Aside from Canadian companies, other applicants for the COWs
\ncome from Singapore, Australia, the United States, South Korea
\nand Panama.<\/p>\n
They mostly plan to prospect for gold in Kalimantan, Sumatra,
\nSulawesi, Nusa Tenggara and Irian Jaya.<\/p>\n
Canada's Yamana Resources Inc. is the largest applicant in
\nterms of the number of applications, with 12 contracts covering
\n2.7 million hectares in Kutai and Bulungan district, East
\nKalimantan.<\/p>\n
Other Canadian companies which have made several applications
\ninclude Corsair Exploration Inc., Barrick Gold Corp.,
\nInternational Pursuit Corp., Ivanhoe Capital, Minorca Resources
\nInc., Teck Mining Ltd., Ingold Holding Indonesia Inc., Indomin
\nResources Ltd., Olympic Resources Ltd., Northernera Diamonds and
\nothers.<\/p>\n
House members and the public have urged the government to
\ncarefully examine the capability of mining contractors following
\nthe Busang gold field scandal in East Kalimantan which involved
\nCanadian firm Bre-X Minerals.<\/p>\n
Bre-X claimed to have found the world's largest gold resource
\nin Busang, prompting many giant companies as well as some eminent
\nIndonesians to vie for claims in the mine.<\/p>\n
But an independent study showed the Busang gold deposit to be
\ninsignificant. (jsk)<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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