[espabamar]

Collingwood: If you're going to dislike my post at least have the decency of stating a position...Are you telling me the money generated from the vast amounts of gold we have in Cotui is creating riches there? Have you been to Cotui lately?

[cypedembeda]

I have got nothing to do with the Barrick company here... but I thought they employed around 8,000 locals here. And rental properties owners all over the country are very happy with Barrick....

Unless this info is wrong, please enlighten me why this is not a good thing (except for us expats trying to rent a place )

BelgianK

[espabamar]

BelgianK: First let's do some simple math. As of 2008 the total PROVEN gold reserves in the Pueblo Viejo mine was about 22 million ounces. If we multiply this by a very low price of about 1500 USD per ounce (current price is about 1560) gives us a nice chunk of change...about 22,500,000,000 worth. On top of that there are proven reserves of 107 million ounces of silver, 424 million pounds of copper, etc...altogether estimated at about 35 billion+ at current prices. Of that money the DR government will most likely see a big fat zero or very little as the contract that was negotiated states that Barrick only has to give some money back to The DR government IF and when they recoup ALL of their investments (they put it at about 3 billion...experts say it is only about 1.2 billion) and once they recoup that investment they only have to pay any taxes over and above any NET profits they make over 10%.

Yes there has been some economic impact in Cotui and surrounding area as the result of the build up where they had to employ about 3,500 or so mostly temporary employees, but that's going down dramatically by the end of this year when they start production. Once that happens they plan to operate with less than 1,000 full time employees of which most are NOT from Cotui and actually many of them are not even Dominicans (Cotui looks like a little Peruvian town right now...there's even a little Peruvian restaurant). So while there's some temporary benefits in the end what Cotui will get is a pittance and of course I expect that we'll be left holding the bag in the end with contaminated land, rivers, etc...

[Drugsonl]

BelgianK: First let's do some simple math. As of 2008 the total PROVEN gold reserves in the Pueblo Viejo mine was about 22 million ounces. If we multiply this by a very low price of about 1500 USD per ounce (current price is about 1560) gives us a nice chunk of change...about 22,500,000,000 worth. On top of that there are proven reserves of 107 million ounces of silver, 424 million pounds of copper, etc...altogether estimated at about 35 billion+ at current prices. Of that money the DR government will most likely see a big fat zero or very little as the contract that was negotiated states that Barrick only has to give some money back to The DR government IF and when they recoup ALL of their investments (they put it at about 3 billion...experts say it is only about 1.2 billion) and once they recoup that investment they only have to pay any taxes over and above any NET profits they make over 10%.

Yes there has been some economic impact in Cotui and surrounding area as the result of the build up where they had to employ about 3,500 or so mostly temporary employees, but that's going down dramatically by the end of this year when they start production. Once that happens they plan to operate with less than 1,000 full time employees of which most are NOT from Cotui and actually many of them are not even Dominicans (Cotui looks like a little Peruvian town right now...there's even a little Peruvian restaurant). So while there's some temporary benefits in the end what Cotui will get is a pittance and of course I expect that we'll be left holding the bag in the end with contaminated land, rivers, etc...

That's about right....the Barrick Gold contract situation is shame...

[Dertrioz]

That's about right....the Barrick Gold contract situation is shame...

Not to mention the Environmental impact, I'm sure they are abiding by the most "Greenest" of processes.....NOT...The only green being dollars I would imagine

[Elitiachirl]

Collingwood: If you're going to dislike my post at least have the decency of stating a position...Are you telling me the money generated from the vast amounts of gold we have in Cotui is creating riches there? Have you been to Cotui lately?

Suarazen, I was not aware that I was obliged to provide justification for liking or disliking a post? If you are that fragile take some pills or see a therapist....you are hanging on too tight!

[Plulpangepler]

There are always pros and cons. Would it be better for the DR if the mining sector did not exist??

I dont think so. As Pi2 might say.

Mining is good, it brings jobs and new infrastructure that all can benefit.

Mining is close behind tourism and agriculture, for economic drivers.
Mining in the Dominican Republic: Exploring the potential economic benefits of Pueblo Viejo

[Arximedus]

Gold Diggers in the DR? Two points of view .....

Dominican Gold: For all or for some people? - YouTube
New Dominican Republic Gold Mining Project Transforms Industry - YouTube

[Arximedus]

And ... for Gold Diggers in Haiti .....

Haiti’s new prime minister says new mining legislation being drafted to benefit country - The Washington Post

[espabamar]

Suarazen, I was not aware that I was obliged to provide justification for liking or disliking a post? If you are that fragile take some pills or see a therapist....you are hanging on too tight!

You're not obliged, but I would think common courtesy would dictate so. Not that I care that much if someone likes or dislikes my posts, but Yes I admit I find it irritating that someone like you who hasn't contributed not even one post to the thread would come in here and give my post a thumb down just for the heck of it. Is it petty? Maybe, but typically people have something to say about what they thought of a post or thread. You apparently can't come up with anything.

EDIT: I don't know who you are, but after looking at some of your posts I see you're either a geologist or working with geologists, so I see you have a vested interest (probably being paid by Barrick) in keeping these discussions down to a minimum.

[carletoxtrs]

these gold mines are a scam. 20 million gold ounce equivalents i work for some of these junior miners here in canada and it is all a scam. barrick will not be the people doing the mining. it will all start off as a penny stock and go from there. this is stock market greed at its finest. i have been playing junior gold stocks for years and have made some pretty good coin and lost some pretty good coin. some of these supposed gold mines are just a wash for iranian cash to get it into the US. follow the money. the only thing haiti will get out of this is a big giant hole in the ground. i'm holding a stock right now in a mexican gold mine that has been trading for 10 years now and still hasn't produced an ounce of gold but the price keeps going up and down depending on which german investor puts a tonne of cash into it. if you watch the volumes, you can see when a new sucker/inverstor jumps on board and with a high volume ussually come a drop in price as everyone takes their cut of the german guys cash

[CaseyFronczekHomie]

Cleaned up a bit - come on guys, try to keep on topic..... por favor!

[espabamar]

BTW anybody can prospect for gold in The DR. You can get a whopping 1600 PESOS per ounce found. ¡ Oro! - ElNacional.com.do

El que no sabe es como es que no ve...

[Siffidiolla]

What's ironic to say the least is that historically Haiti has rejected most form of foreign investment which has been based on the fear that they would deprive Haiti of it's natural resources and destroy the environment while conveniently ignoring the glaring fact that they've already devastated the environment in the developed areas. I wonder if sometimes I'm the only one who can see this.

[TeapseTic]

Haiti has always been corrupt. I don't see regular civilians making any real money out of this.

[Ekzamenov]

If gold is found it would only bring on more greed and coruption. Sad but true.

[deethythitoth]

Saw this on MSNBC.

Gold! Haiti eyes potential $20 billion boom - World news - Americas - msnbc.com

[Agehoobionibe]

if they start taking a good amount of gold out of the ground i want to be the guy selling the AK -47's because someone is going to fight for this. it's happening in Africa with the gold and diamond mines, in Columbia there are still a lot of armed guerillas in and around any gold mines. show me a gold mine and i'll show you a revolution. maybe just maybe the Hiatians will finally stand up and fight for something.

[Kennypor]

From the article:

"If the mining companies are honest and if Haiti has a good government, then here is a way for this country to move forward," said Bureau of Mines Director Dieuseul Anglade.

[espabamar]

Wind: I had the same exact reaction when I saw that line. So many ifs...We're going through that same situation in Cotui right now where Barrick is going to take out a huge amount of gold and The DR in general will see very little of that money and Cotui even less...and this is The DR where at least there is some semblance of rules and regulations...imagine Haiti where the company can just pay off some people and not even have to worry about extracting it in a somewhat environmentally responsible way. It's a darn shame that the riches of the people don't normally provide for those same people...