New Porgera Limited Country Manager, Karo Lelai (left) handing over the second donation of
relief supplies from the mine to Dorothy Kukum of Enga Provincial Government at the Mulitaka
Health Center recently. PICTURE SUPPLIED
Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD) (TSX:ABX) – The Barrick-operated Porgera gold mine continues to help communities in Enga province in Papua New Guinea in the wake of a landslide in the Mulitaka area that has claimed an estimated 600 lives.
In support of New Porgera Limited, Barrick announced yesterday that it would contribute US$500,000 (Kina 1.9 million) to help communities in the affected areas to recover from the devastation of the landslide. Together with another US$500,000 from Zijin, the two companies will contribute US$1 million (Kina 3.8 million) through New Porgera Limited (NPL).
A team of senior Barrick executives has spent the week in PNG visiting the disaster site and working with the provincial and national governments and officials from the United Nations, the Asian Development Bank, Australia, New Zealand, and the United States to coordinate relief and recovery activities.
In addition to monetary and in-kind contributions, NPL is supporting the Enga Provincial Government with manpower at the disaster operations center in Wabag. Five NPL employees have been seconded to advise and assist the operations center with logistics, inventory, community relations and media.
The mine delivered its second donation of relief supplies to the Mulitaka disaster site last Friday, including food, medical items and tarpaulins for temporary shelter. It has also sourced eight shipping containers to store relief supplies and dispatched construction personnel to scope the installation of additional structures and water tanks.
NPL has mobilized an excavator and a bulldozer to assist with clearing operations and has converted a truck to be capable of pulling a float to help transport equipment. The mine is also looking at the viability of using a radar that is available to deploy to the slip site to help with monitoring.
NPL is also working with the Enga Provincial Government on temporary measures to bring much needed food and fuel to the Porgera valley communities, which depend on the Highlands Highway for essential supplies.
Barrick president and chief executive Mark Bristow says NPL is working closely with the Enga Provincial Government to continue the relief efforts on the ground with key stakeholders from the donor agencies, government and other resource companies. “Porgera stands ready to provide additional relief and assistance to support impacted families and communities during this time of need.”
