Mineral resources insiders have decried claims of ‘lack of understanding’ over ‘permitting processes’ where Mercurius Mineral Resources Limited is concerned.
Industry insiders likened the government’s comment to applying lipstick on a pig.
Yesterday, Mineral Resources Department’s director mineral development Apete Soro broke his silence more than a month after the industry was rocked by revelations that the unknown Chinese-backed company had designs to carry out mineral exploration in half the Ba province.
Mr Soro denounced objections that suggested the government had broken the law to allow unknown Mercurius to bid for the largest parcel of land on record for any exploration exercise in the country.
“Those (saying) MRD broke the law to allow mineral exploration in such a big parcel of land are again ill-advised,” he said.
This as the department takes two months to respond to seven objections it received against CX877, a special prospecting licensed area in Narewa, West of the mainland.
“According to objections received so far, it is evident that there remains a lack of understanding by the public towards the permitting processes involved in mineral exploration,” Mr Soro said.
“The department is coordinating its efforts through public awareness – newspaper articles, radio talkback shows and television programmes – for such purposes.”
Public awareness
Last weekend, the department paid for a full page advertisement in this newspaper, where it outlined the difference between special prospecting licences and special mining licences.
The advertisement under Mr Soro’s name said the department’s role extended to oversee compliance by investors in the Department of Environment’s environmental impact assessment (EIA), to ensure that mining activities were carried out ‘responsibly and sustainably’.
“A key contributor to the initiation of processes is the MRD Community Unit, who consult and collaborate with our landowners,” Mr Soro said.
In 2021, Vatukoula Gold Mines was awarded a special prospecting licence for Mt Kasi.
While the company still holds the licence, it continues to meet with mounting opposition from landowners who are openly averse to Chinese investment.
“There is a lot of misconception about exploration of minerals and mining,” Mr Soro said in the advertisement.
“Under the Mining Act 1965, special prospecting licences are granted by the director mines’ for areas exceeding 1300 hectares, where the investor has met all requirements of the licence application.
“Fiji and the global mining industry have been around for centuries, being a crucial component to any national development – providing employment, economic stability and providing necessary raw materials used in the developing world, in construction and energy.
“Understanding the differences between a special prospecting licence and special mining licence is essential for our landowners awareness.
“We continue to uphold the values of transparency and accountability to harness Fiji’s mineral wealth responsibly, and provide economic development benefiting all stakeholders.”
Mercurius Mineral Resources
Mr Soro said the announcement to grant a special prospecting license to Mercurius Mineral Resources was ‘subject to the fulfillment of all requirements set out under the exploration permitting process.’
The department has a two-month period within which it is to respond to objections, after a 30-day objection period, Mr Soro said.
In May, the department advertised an objection period over its intention to award Mercurius an annual lease of the real estate property titled CX877.
“MRD is working on the response to the seven objections it received during the 30 days notification for objections from the general public,” Mr Soro said.
“According to the objections received so far, it is evident that there remains a lack of understanding by the general public, towards the permitting processes involved in mineral exploration.
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