After a bitter standoff with the Mali military, Canada’s biggest gold producer is pulling the plug on one of its most lucrative projects.
What happened: Toronto’s Barrick Gold has suspended operations at its mine in Mali after the country’s military junta seized around $245 million worth of gold from the company’s complex — hardly your average squabble with a government tax agency.
- Malian officials, who claim Barrick owes them US$417 million, had already begun blocking the company’s gold exports as part of a long-running tax dispute.
- Several Barrick managers have been detained and are still in Malian prisons, while the junta even issued an arrest warrant for Barrick’s CEO.
Why it’s happening: After several successful military coups in West African countries over the last few years, new regimes in places like Mali and Burkina Faso have started demanding higher tax payments and larger ownership stakes in Western mining operations.
Why it matters: Roughly two-thirds of the total value of Canadian mining assets were located abroad as of 2022. With military pressure tactics becoming more common in hubs like Mali, the industry’s grip on these lucrative foreign mines appears to be loosening.—LA