…as miners, GGMC face off ahead of week-long festivities
Adamantium Holdings has been named the top gold producer of 2015 when the Natural Resources Ministry in concert with the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) held an award ceremony at the Guyana Pegasus on Sunday to kick off the week-long festivities of Mining Week 2016.
Adamantium declared 13,399 ounces of gold for 2015 making the company the top local producer for the year.
The mining company had been prominent in the news this past week when it was discovered that both Adamantium and Atlantic Fuels Inc shared several close connections including Directors – one such being Managing Director of the Guyana Water Inc (GWI,) Dr Richard Van West-Charles.
The two companies also share the same Kingston, Georgetown address, with Atlantic Fuels Inc securing an import/wholesale licence for fuel to supply, in part, the mining operations.
Ronaldo Alphonso of Adamantium Holdings receives the award from Business Minister Domonic Gaskin for the top gold producer of 2015 (Photo: Marceano Narine)
Other top awardees recognised on Sunday evening included Mohamed’s Enterprises, which was the top gold dealer.
Bosai and RUSAL—both bauxite mining companies—were also awarded for their stellar performances in that extractive sector, while Toolsie Persaud was recognised as the country’s top quarrying entity .
Guyana Goldfields was recognised for its safety track record at its Aurora Mines.
Other special awardees included industry pioneers Edward Shields, Dick Manning and Cyrilda De Jesus.
Special awards were also handed out to media representatives who would have been providing coverage for the sector, including Clifford Stanley of the Guyana Chronicle, Gaulbert Sutherland of Stabroek News and Jarryl Bryan of Kaieteur News.
Face-off
The pleasantries, smiles and recognition were preceded however by a ‘laying down of the gauntlet’ by both industry representatives and GGMC Commissioner (ag), Newell Dennison.
There were calls for greater inclusion and drastic changes to be implemented, not just in the extractive fields but in the relationship between the two bodies.
Guyana Women Miners’ Organisation (GWMO) President Ulrica Primus, in her brief remarks to the gathering, said, “Mining is a machine driven by numerous parts; if we only seek to re-organise, enforce and take a firmer stance on just miners, we are only addressing half of the problems.”
She submits that in order to create realistic changes, “the input and respect for every player is needed”.
Her sentiments were echoed by Andron Alphonso, who, speaking on behalf of the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA), said he was looking for a greater level of commitment on the part of the GGMC not just in its enforcement measures, but along the lines of actually assisting miners.
He spoke of the need for the introduction of greater support services to the mining sector, such as extension services used in the agriculture sector. Mining, he said, needs similar assistance.
800,000 ounces possible
Alphonso spoke too of the impending ban on the use of mercury in the mining industry and the impact it could have on an ill-prepared sector.
He opined that with the impending ban, efforts at improving recovery techniques needed to be stepped up ten-fold.
He spoke to the fact that techniques currently employed in the sector only saw a 20 to 30 per cent recovery rate for gold.
Better technology, he said, can more than double this. The GGDMA Vice President suggested that while Guyana saw record gold declarations last year, if better recovery techniques were used, gold declaration could have possibly eclipsed 800,000 ounces as against the 400,000 plus ounces that were declared in 2015.
The GGDMA Vice President observed too that while there were high hopes and expectations in the industry, these could only become a reality through continued collaboration.
Rome was not built in a day, he recalled, and added that building a world-class mining sector locally would take time.
Mammoth contribution
Turning his attention to the Mining Week activities, Alphonso used the opportunity to encourage all and sundry to participate.
He suggested that the time be used to garner an unbiased knowledge of the industry, since it would have been portrayed negatively in recent times.
Gold production, spearheaded mainly by the work of small miners, must be applauded for its mammoth contribution to the economy, according to Alphonso.
Acting GGMC Commissioner Dennison sought to impress on the mining representatives the importance of safety and the need for a paradigm shift in the recovery methods employed.
Extracting minerals with the application of appropriate techniques and technology, obviating the use of mercury is of utmost importance, according to Dennison.
He said those in the industry should consider these changes inevitable since the industry will soon demand more mechanical and chemical collecting methods.
Dennison also sought to assure miners that while the GGMC was looking to embrace bringing educational awareness to the sector, it would not let up on its role as an enforcement body.
He spoke too to the importance of practising on-site safety at mining operations, saying that there needed to be an attitudinal change where common sense and common decency were common goals for the broader development of the industry.
This, he said, requires serious commitment to partnership and collaboration “first with each other as citizens” and with institutions like the GGMC, which, according to Dennison, is “here to serve and guide”.
Incentives/penalties
Espousing the importance of safety and more efficient mining practices, he spoke about the impact of mining on the environment and the role of those who would have caused the damage—miners.
He spoke to the unwillingness on the part of some miners to reclaim mined-out areas since some find the exercise too costly or their operations would have been illegal, among a host of other reasons.
Dennison said regardless of the excuses, this was an issue that had to be confronted head on both by the mining community and the GGMC. He noted that incentives or penalties were available tools in order to achieve the objective.
He used the opportunity to also lament some of the shortcomings of the GGMC itself and pointed to its human resource and other operational constraints.
Dennison said while not wanting to make excuses for the GGMC, half of the entity’s staff has about five years’ service with the regulatory body and advocated training as the first approach towards remedying the situation.
Restored standards
Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman, in his brief contribution to mark the commencement of the annual activity, reminded of Government’s commitment to restoring the standards that it has set for the industry.
He too shared his views on the importance of safety. Trotman also used the occasion to announce that in future there will be a greater presence by the GGMC and officials from the Guyana Revenue Authority, the Environmental Protection Agency and other related agencies at several of the larger mining operations locally.
Trotman was among a slew of Government representatives at the forum led by Head of State, David Granger, Vice President Carl Greenidge and Business Minister Dominic Gaskin. The Private Sector was also represented through Private Sector Commission (PSC) Chairperson Eddie Boyer.
