Copper company to stay in P.N.G.

Press, 13 April 1989, Page 24

Copper company to stay in P.N.G.

NZPA-AAP Melbourne Bougainville Copper said yesterday it was determined to stay in Papua New Guinea, in spite of recent violence in that country. Clashes in the North Solomons province have left six people dead and twice closed the giant Bougainville copper mine late last year. Bougainville Copper’s chairman, Mr Don Carruthers, said the company had not had a change of heart about its future at Bougainville because of “recent setbacks,” and it was keen to renegotiate its mining agreement with the PNG Government to make sure it was fair. The company would do all it could to help the Government keep law and order, he said.

Some of the latest violence has been the result of inter-ethnic struggles, and a push for independence for Bougainville by local groups. But tension over several months has been fuelled by landowners demanding higher compensation payouts from Bougainville Copper. Villagers claiming compensation for land use twice closed the mine last year by using stolen explosives to cut power. The company was ready to start a review of the Bougainville Copper agreement with the PNG Government, as soon as the Government wanted to begin discussions, Mr Carruthers said. The agreement was now 15 years old, and the company wanted to be

sure it ran fairly. Bougainville Copper would also press again for an end to the moratorium on mineral exploration in the North Solomons province. Bougainville is one of the largest open-cut mines in the world, producing about sAustl.9O million (SNZ2.SM) worth of copper, gold, and silver a day. The company is the single biggest contributor to the PNG budget, accounting for 16 per cent of the country’s internal revenue. Its 1988 year profit was 108.6 million kina — about sAustlsB.99M (SNZ2IOM). It is 53.6 per cent owned by CRA, and 20.2 per cent by the Papua New Guinea Government.