Newmont CEO Tom Palmer
US-based gold miner Newmont Goldcorp has reached a “pivotal point” at Peñasquito, in Mexico, CEO Tom Palmer said on Friday, announcing that the mine and one of the 25 nearby communities had agreed on a water infrastructure solution.
The 30-year agreement with the San Juan de Cedros community, in Zacatecas, was hailed as an “important step in the ongoing negotiations between the parties”.
“Our water agreement with the Cedros community represents a meaningful turning point towards a long-term partnership anchored in our common purpose to create value and improve lives,” said Palmer.
“Having reached agreement on this pivotal issue, we look forward to continuing our good-faith dialogue to resolve the remaining issues so we can move from confrontation to cooperation.”
The plan includes additional water wells and infrastructure that will supplement the 600 000 l/d reverse osmosis drinking water plant and wells the company built in 2018 and continues to operate.
As part of the agreement, the municipality will participate in the operation of the new water facilities to be built by Peñasquito as the public water system and the distribution networks will ultimately be owned by the municipality.
The agreement was developed and signed under the auspices of the ‘Dialogue Table’ sponsored by Mexico’s Federal Department of the Interior and representatives of the state government of Zacatecas.
Operations at Peñasquito came to a halt in September, owing to community conflict, which resulted in an illegal blockade.