MGB orders halt to Surigao gold miner’s operations

MANILA, Philippines - The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) has ordered the temporary stoppaged of the mineral processing operations of a Surigao del Norte gold miner after a tension crack was discovered in its tailings storage facility.

MGB Director Leo Jasareno imposed on June 6 a cease-and-desist order (CDO) on the operations of Greenstone Resources Corp. after the MGB Regional Office XIII reported that a tension crack was found along the embankment of the tailings storage facility (TSF) of Greenstone’s mine in the municipality of Tubod.

Because of the imminent danger posed by the situation, the MGB ordered Greenstone to immediately stop gold ore mineral processing in the contract area, under the Mineral Production and Sharing Agreement (MPSA) No. 184-2002-XIII, until remedial measures have been instituted.

The corrective measures should be certified by a third party expert and validated by the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB).

The company must submit a report on the remedial measures undertaken within three days of receipt of the order and every week thereafter until the stability and integrity of TSF No. 4 is restored.

Greenstone Resources operate the Sianna Gold project which comprises the municipalities of Mainit and Tubod.

Red 5 Ltd. of Australia holds a 90-percent beneficial interest in the project through Greenstone Resources.

The Siana gold project, which was commissioned last year, is expected to produce a minimum of 849,000 ounces of gold at a cost of $400 per ounce over a 10-year life.

Jasareno said the exact cause of the tension crack is yet to be determined but the bureau has imposed a CDO as a preventive measure to prevent the TSF from further damage.