Barrick reiterates 2028 first production for Reko Diq project in Pakistan

Barrick Gold (NYSE: GOLD) (TSX: ABX) said on Tuesday that with the updated feasibility study on the giant Reko Diq copper-gold project in Pakistan making progress, the company is aiming to start production in 2028.

In December 2022, Barrick announced plans to invest $10 billion as part of its intent to go ahead with the construction of Reko Diq following approval from Pakistan’s top court. The project has been over a decade in the making and is said to boast world’s largest undeveloped copper-gold deposits.

The gold miner owns 50% of Reko Diq, with 25% owned by three federal state-owned enterprises, 15% by the Balochistan government on a fully funded basis, and 10% by Balochistan on a free-carried basis.

Speaking at the inaugural session of Pakistan’s first Minerals Summit, Barrick CEO Mark Bristow said the signing of the New Reko Diq agreement last year was a landmark event in the development of a mining industry in Pakistan, a process which will be accelerated by the Minerals Summit.

“I hope the momentum created by this event will be sustained by successive efforts to unlock this sector’s full potential and build its capacity by attracting other foreign investors to follow Barrick, to the lasting benefit of Pakistan and its people,” he said in a statement.

“There is a growing demand for metals and minerals, especially copper, and the challenge for mining companies and their host governments is to ensure that these resources are extracted in a responsible and equitable manner,” Bristow said.

Reko Diq is expected to have a life of at least 40 years as an open pit operation with processing facilities capable of producing high-quality copper-gold concentrates in the amount of 80 million tonnes annually.