Barrick (Niugini) Ltd (BNL) has clarified that Porgera Mine remains in Care and Maintenance and the limited rehiring of skilled workforce is only to assist with ongoing maintenance work at the mine.
A protest was held in Porgera on Friday claiming that BNL’s current recruitment process was improperly overlooking unemployed locals within the Special Mining Lease area.
BNL completely rejects these inaccurate claims.
BNL in a media statement said since the mine was placed into Care and Maintenance in April 2020, BNL has invested more than K1 billion kina in good faith in the hope and expectation that the various contractual and regulatory conditions for the reopening of the Porgera mine can be satisfied to allow for the restart to occur.
While those conditions have not yet been satisfied, in preparation for restart, BNL has approved limited maintenance work on plant infrastructure, repair of mobile equipment, and rehabilitation work on the open pit and underground areas.
BNL said the ongoing maintenance at site requires highly skilled and experienced personnel to ensure operational readiness is maintained.
BNL’s recruitment policy is based on transparency and best practice and gives first preference to skilled and experienced workers with a good track record who are based in Porgera.
“Due to the limited pool of local workers that meet the necessary requirements for the current ongoing work, however, we have had to rehire a small number of skilled workers from beyond Porgera, within Enga and PNG. These workers are on short-term contracts,” stated BNL.
BNL is aware that certain individuals have been creating false expectations of employment by unskilled Porgeran youth and spreading baseless claims of inappropriate hiring practices by BNL. No evidence has been put forward by those making these claims.
“BNL will always seek to recruit first locally as it is the best business option for New Porgera and in our interest to do so.
“The current maintenance work, however, requires specific skillsets so that safety and other requirements are properly complied with. As with any other professional organization, BNL will not recruit persons with an unsatisfactory employment or community history.”
According to BNL, once the mine restarts, New Porgera will recommence the historically successful Job Ready Program (JRP) for the benefit of Porgeran youth. JRP provides the best avenue for inexperienced local youth to enter the mine workforce and has produced skilled miners who are now employed at Porgera, as well as at other mines in PNG and overseas.
BNL stated that it is also incumbent on local leaders to work with Government and other stakeholders to invest in training and other opportunities for Porgeran youth.
More generally, restoration of law and order should be the priority for all Porgera stakeholders to ensure Government services are restored and businesses, including Porgera mine, can operate safely and profitably.
New Porgera provides an opportunity to build a new thriving and sustainable economy for Porgera that will outlive the life of the mine and benefit the community long into the future.
BNL urges all stakeholders of New Porgera, especially landowners, to work cooperatively to enable that future to become a reality.