Australian miner Kingsgate to restart Thai gold mine operations
Australian miner Kingsgate to restart Thai gold mine operations
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Australian miner Kingsgate to restart Thai gold mine operations
Government seeks to end dispute through arbitration as critics cry foul
Australian miner Kingsgate was forced to halt operations at the Chatree gold mine in Thailand on Jan 1, 2017 after the junta ordered the mine to close, citing environmental concerns. © Reuters
APORNRATH PHOONPHONGPHIPHAT, Nikkei staff writerNovember 12, 2021 13:02 JST
BANGKOK -- After a four-year dispute, operations at the Chatree gold mine in Thailand, run by Australia's Kingsgate Consolidated, are scheduled to resume early next year once arbitration talks between the Thai government and the mining company are concluded.
Talks to resolve the dispute, taking place under the terms of the Thailand-Australia Free Trade Agreement (TAFTA), are due to conclude on Jan. 31, 2022, after being postponed several times. Kingsgate has expressed confidence that it will be able to restart operations at Chatree soon after the arbitrator reaches a final decision.
By the end of this year, Kingsgate should be ready to begin refurbishing the mine, with activation of its Metallurgical Processing License and renewal of its lease, Ross Smyth-Kirk, executive chairman of Kingsgate, said in a statement in late October.
Although the outcome of the negotiations remains unclear, Kingsgate is considering a number of options, including refurbishing the mine to access low-grade ore stockpiles for processing. The mine has around 6.6 million tons of ore and is estimated to contain 73,000 ounces of gold and 780,000 ounces of silver, according to Kingsgate.
Korbchai Sungsitthisawad, permanent secretary of the Thai Industry Ministry, acknowledged that the two sides are negotiating under the TAFTA dispute-settlement process.
Opposition parties and other critics accuse the government of caving in to Kingsgate after it realized it had little chance of prevailing, and of using the negotiation process to avoid being forced to pay massive compensation if it lost in the case.
The Chatree gold mine is operated by Akara Mining, a Thai subsidiary wholly owned by Australian miner Kingsgate, produces silver and gold. © Reuters
Jiraporn Sindhuprai, an opposition member of parliament said that Prime Mister Prayuth Chan-ocha's order to close down Chatree was unfair and unlawful, and that the government's move put it at a disadvantage when Kingsgate brought the case to TAFTA's dispute-settlement mechanism.
"The closure of the mine immediately forced villagers and workers out of their jobs, negatively affected the reputation of Thailand and required the country to spend hundreds of millions baht from the budget during the fight," Jiraporn told reporters.
The government is believed to have spent around 600 million baht ($18 million) during the arbitral tribunal process and would likely have been forced to pay up to 25.3 billion baht if it lost the case, according to Jiraporn.
The dispute began in December 2016, when Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who was then the leader of the military government, invoked a legal provision called "Section 44" to close the Chatree mine in the northern province of Pichit, citing environmental and health concerns.
Section 44, which was enacted by the junta, allows the prime minister, as head of the National Council for Peace and Order, as the junta is officially known, to take whatever measures it deems necessary to prevent actions that may subvert peace and order.
Kingsgate had operated the Chatree mine since 2001 under Akara Resources, a Thai subsidiary wholly owned by Kingsgate. It had a valid mining license through 2028.
Kingsgate, which was forced to halt operations at the mine on Jan. 1, 2017, disputed the government's decision, saying toxic substances found in the area could have come from pesticides used by farmers nearby, and brought the matter to the TAFTA dispute-settlement body.
Opposition legislators said Thailand was unlikely to win the case, as Section 44 was seen as inapplicable to a private foreign company, and that the government's evidence was unclear.
"That's why the Thai government has never revealed any progress during the fight, and just came up with a negotiation, which is likely to benefit Kingsgate," Jiraporn said.
Australian miner Kingsgate to restart Thai gold mine operations
Government seeks to end dispute through arbitration as critics cry foul
Australian miner Kingsgate was forced to halt operations at the Chatree gold mine in Thailand on Jan 1, 2017 after the junta ordered the mine to close, citing environmental concerns. © Reuters
APORNRATH PHOONPHONGPHIPHAT, Nikkei staff writerNovember 12, 2021 13:02 JST
BANGKOK -- After a four-year dispute, operations at the Chatree gold mine in Thailand, run by Australia's Kingsgate Consolidated, are scheduled to resume early next year once arbitration talks between the Thai government and the mining company are concluded.
Talks to resolve the dispute, taking place under the terms of the Thailand-Australia Free Trade Agreement (TAFTA), are due to conclude on Jan. 31, 2022, after being postponed several times. Kingsgate has expressed confidence that it will be able to restart operations at Chatree soon after the arbitrator reaches a final decision.
By the end of this year, Kingsgate should be ready to begin refurbishing the mine, with activation of its Metallurgical Processing License and renewal of its lease, Ross Smyth-Kirk, executive chairman of Kingsgate, said in a statement in late October.
Although the outcome of the negotiations remains unclear, Kingsgate is considering a number of options, including refurbishing the mine to access low-grade ore stockpiles for processing. The mine has around 6.6 million tons of ore and is estimated to contain 73,000 ounces of gold and 780,000 ounces of silver, according to Kingsgate.
Korbchai Sungsitthisawad, permanent secretary of the Thai Industry Ministry, acknowledged that the two sides are negotiating under the TAFTA dispute-settlement process.
Opposition parties and other critics accuse the government of caving in to Kingsgate after it realized it had little chance of prevailing, and of using the negotiation process to avoid being forced to pay massive compensation if it lost in the case.
The Chatree gold mine is operated by Akara Mining, a Thai subsidiary wholly owned by Australian miner Kingsgate, produces silver and gold. © Reuters
Jiraporn Sindhuprai, an opposition member of parliament said that Prime Mister Prayuth Chan-ocha's order to close down Chatree was unfair and unlawful, and that the government's move put it at a disadvantage when Kingsgate brought the case to TAFTA's dispute-settlement mechanism.
"The closure of the mine immediately forced villagers and workers out of their jobs, negatively affected the reputation of Thailand and required the country to spend hundreds of millions baht from the budget during the fight," Jiraporn told reporters.
The government is believed to have spent around 600 million baht ($18 million) during the arbitral tribunal process and would likely have been forced to pay up to 25.3 billion baht if it lost the case, according to Jiraporn.
The dispute began in December 2016, when Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who was then the leader of the military government, invoked a legal provision called "Section 44" to close the Chatree mine in the northern province of Pichit, citing environmental and health concerns.
Section 44, which was enacted by the junta, allows the prime minister, as head of the National Council for Peace and Order, as the junta is officially known, to take whatever measures it deems necessary to prevent actions that may subvert peace and order.
Kingsgate had operated the Chatree mine since 2001 under Akara Resources, a Thai subsidiary wholly owned by Kingsgate. It had a valid mining license through 2028.
Kingsgate, which was forced to halt operations at the mine on Jan. 1, 2017, disputed the government's decision, saying toxic substances found in the area could have come from pesticides used by farmers nearby, and brought the matter to the TAFTA dispute-settlement body.
Opposition legislators said Thailand was unlikely to win the case, as Section 44 was seen as inapplicable to a private foreign company, and that the government's evidence was unclear.
"That's why the Thai government has never revealed any progress during the fight, and just came up with a negotiation, which is likely to benefit Kingsgate," Jiraporn said.
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