Crystallex International

Companies as Rusoro Mining assures that it is a hard blow, but that in spite of this will continue investing in the country. In Minerven they are contentments with the measurement.

Natalie Garci'a
ngarcia@correodelcaroni.com
Photo William Urdaneta

The new norm that it establishes to offer of obligatory way of the 60 percent of the production of gold to the Central bank of Venezuela (BCV) favors to CVG Minerven, that sells more than 80 percent of production to the BCV, that uses to maintain it as well the reserves international, as it would already review months back in this same newspaper.

With regard to this the president of Minerven, Luis Herrera, explained to Mail of the Caroní that the company leaves beneficiary because a 30 percent of their production could be commercialized in the outside, obtaining you divide fresh to continue sustaining the company. “It is a prize to which we have done”, he indicated.

It affirms Herrera that the rest 10 percent will be offered to the internal transforming sector, reason why the production of gold will be distributed in better conditions to they came as it doing, since Minerven sold almost exclusively to the BCV and the others sold in the outside removing to him more starting off for the mineral.

All this complements the policy of mining reordering that has been coming realising the Ministry from the Popular Power for the Basic Industries and Mining (Mibam), from the arrival of minister Rodolfo Sanz, for more of a year.

Benefits
Luis Herrera, who until recently was also national director of control of mines, assures that this equality of conditions will allow a healthier internal competition between the different auriferous companies. It indicated that “what one became was to clear us the moralismo, because Minerven will be able then to sell in the outside and not to condemn to a single client”.

It said that the new norm must be accompanied with “more aggressive” policies, for the control of the companies and thus to avoid that the gold leaves the country violating the regulation.

Also, it affirmed that the Mibam follows occupied in the mining reordering and the revision of the expired concessions and those that are not fulfilling the legal established thing within the framework.

It informed in addition, in relation to recent protests in Minerven, that already standardized the situation in the plant and everything is in sequence. It commented that at no moment there was repression against the workers, as would leave reviewed in some regional mass media.

It is possible to remember that Minerven little by little has been recovering certain mining spaces, among them the Tomi Mine, Victory, the Remevin plant and the plant before administered by Jin Yang, into the hands of Chinese investors until recently.

Other operations
In another order of ideas, the Cristinas, located in the Claritas follows in the arena the destiny of the deposit, to the south of the state Bolivar. The auriferous project has a total of 31 million proven ounces of gold. The transnational company Crystallex has a part of that deposit and still it is about to define his permanence or not in him.

Minister Rodolfo Sanz back announced months in Venezuelan of Television that many of the concessions will stop at the hands of the Venezuelan State. Also one has said that the group Rusoro Mining could be the beneficiary after the exit of Crystallex, that at any moment has denied that the Government him has informed some into those measures.

Unofficially he knows himself that yes there will be agreement with a Russian company but this one will not be Rusoro, but another one with capital 100 percent of the Russian State.

Separating this great deposit with the norm from the sale of 60 percent for the BCV, 10 for the internal market and 30 percent for the international market, they will be affected the small drug dealers of gold, who will have to sell the majority of the metal to the official dollar.

Evaluating scenes
Jose Manuel Rodriguez, general manager of the group Rusoro Mining in Venezuela and of the Agapov group, informed in an interview that “we are in a process of situation analysis, of the scenes. By all means that the law does not fall to us by surprise because they already came it announcing, but he strikes to us very many”.

He added that the norm “net affects the investments and the production costs, but still we have a pending meeting with the BCV where an explanation comes from which are the additional advantages that the BCV with this new decree is offering. Apparently a bond emission will come from gold, and that is what we are analyzing”.

It added that “that pays as much to the companies of the government like which is the small mining. That limits to us because the BCV will pay to dollar official net to us and the price of outside - outer he is more commercial and it is not regulated and is a very great differential”.

In spite of this scene, Rodriguez said that the company does not think to go away of the country and less considering than they are breaking production records, around 16 thousand ounces of gold to the month. Soon the production will raise 20 thousand ounces per month with the operation of a new deposit.

Approval

Aside from the mining scene, Rusoro Mining is working in the project of City of the Ceramics, that for more of a month was approved. So complex industrialist around kaolin - very pure clay that serves to make porcelains will be located in Macapaima, in the Monagas state.

At first one considered that the company, that will group about 5 thousand uses, would be in the state Bolivar, but the feasibility studies gave like ideal site Macapaima, where they have soothes companies like Masisa.

The plant of kaolin refinement, located in kilometer 88 could be ready in a matter of months. The works have been delayed a little because of certain union conflicts, that they have had to be solving.