Photo by: Reuters
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – ASX- and JSE-listed Tawana Resources has awarded the environmental- and social-impact assessment (ESIA) contract for its Mofe Creek iron-ore project, in Liberia, to environmental and social consulting firm Earth Systems.
Earth Systems has partnered with local Liberian multidisciplinary consultancy group Earth Environmental Consultancy to undertake the assessment, on which work had already started.
“We are pleased to have awarded this key study deliverable to a company with proven expertise in the assessment of Liberian and West African iron-ore projects,” Tawana executive chairperson Wayne Richards commented.
Tawana added that the start of the ESIA, which followed on from the recently completed scoping study, was a significant step forward for the Mofe Creek project.
The ESIA would be carried out over the forthcoming year with the final report to be submitted to the Environmental Protection Authority, key stakeholders, the community and other relevant parties by mid-2015, the company said.
The assessment, combined with the signing of the company’s Mineral Development Agreement by key stakeholders in the Liberian government, would advance the longer-term requirements for the granting of a mining licence for the project.
“We look forward to this study confirming the project’s capacity to generate economic and social benefits at the national, regional and local levels through employment, royalties, infrastructure development, community development investment, and direct and indirect stimulation of local economic activity in an environmentally responsible manner,” Richards concluded.