Further Supplementary Submission to the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee on the Overseas Investment Amendment Bill 2017

Transcription

1 Further Supplementary Submission to the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee on the Overseas Investment Amendment Bill 2017 OUR VALUES: RESPECT INTEGRITY TEAMWORK INNOVATION ACTION ACCOUNTABILITY

2 Submission to the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee on the Overseas Investment Amendment Bill 2017 Submitted by: OceanaGold Corporation / Oceana Gold (New Zealand) Limited 28 March Contacts: Alison Paul, Corporate Affairs and Legal Manager Jackie St John, Land and Consenting Lawyer 22 Maclaggan Street, Dunedin 9016 Phone: Page 2 of 4

3 Submission to the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee on the Overseas Investment Amendment Bill 2017 Announcement of New Project Martha at Waihi 1 OceanaGold Waihi has today announced the commencement of the resource consenting process to construct and operate a new mine, named Martha Underground, and a small cutback along the North Wall of the existing Martha open pit at Waihi. The company has announced that the new mining project could commence in 2020 and extend the current mine life at Waihi by at least 10 years. 2 The announcement refers to the Hauraki District Council s 2017 Economic Profile, which demonstrated that mining is a significant contributor to the Hauraki district, larger than farming, fishing and forestry combined. The new Project Martha would continue to support this contribution, delivering a similar production rate to current operations, with a peak of around 420 jobs, and an average of 350 full time jobs each year over the 10-year period. Relevance to the Overseas Investment Amendment Bill Project Martha will comprise: A small expansion to the existing open pit; A whole new set of underground workings under the pit; and A whole new set of underground workings to the South of the pit, running under 21 homes and a variety of other properties. 4 These workings are all contained within the same Mining Permit (issued under the Crown Minerals Act) as that currently being mined at Waihi (the Favona Mining Permit). This and neighbouring exploration permits ( Waihi West and Waihi North ) are expected to host future mine development centred on the township of Waihi (although future discoveries outside current minerals permit boundaries cannot be ruled out). 5 Resource consent boundaries, on the other hand, are not co-extensive with the minerals permits. None of the new mine footprints announced today are covered by the current consents issued under the Resource Management Act for the Waihi underground operations (named CEPA and SUPA ). These existing resource consents have defined footprints under the town to the North-East of the pit as shown in yellow and white respectively below: Page 3 of 4

4 Submission to the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee on the Overseas Investment Amendment Bill Project Martha, announced today, will require new resource consents to cover unconsented footprints beneath the pit ( Martha Underground ) and to the South-East of the pit ( Rex ). The two sets of workings are shown below in blue (depicting blocks of ore that will be excavated out then back-filled). Rex is the large slab of blue shown beneath the rugby grounds: 7 Legislation that cleared the way under the current Bill to continue operating under existing resource consents would only allow operations within the CEPA and SUPA footprints, with production currently scheduled to end when the ore is fully depleted in After that time, new resource consents would be required to allow mining to continue through development of the Martha Underground and Rex discoveries, for which the start of the resource consenting process was announced today. It is highly likely that these consents, if granted (a process that is expected to take about 18 months) would include conditions similar to those of the CEPA and SUPA consents, requiring OceanaGold to purchase residential properties above the underground workings if asked to do so by the propertyowners. As noted above, that would affect about 21 properties in total and would not be covered by legislation linked to the existing CEPA and SUPA consents. 8 In summary, therefore, the requirement for new resource consent applications as the footprint of the underground operations expands into new areas makes a route through the overseas investment legislation for future discoveries or as yet unconsented development essential, if operations at Waihi are to continue. Any such legislation would leave the resource consenting process to follow its natural course, with public benefit, environmental effects and land use issues fully canvassed as part of the resource consenting process. Page 4 of 4

5 MEDIA RELEASE 28 March 2018 OCEANAGOLD COMMENCES CONSENTING FOR MARTHA UNDERGROUND (MELBOURNE) OceanaGold Corporation (TSX/ASX: OGC) (the Company ) is pleased to announce the commencement of the resource consenting process to construct and operate the new Martha Underground mine and a small cutback along the North Wall of the existing Martha open pit. OceanaGold Waihi General Manager, Bernie O Leary, said exploration identified an underground mine beneath the Martha open pit. Mining activity under the open pit could commence in 2020 and extend our current mine life by at least 10 years, meaning we would continue to deliver significant benefits to our community here in Waihi and the broader region, Mr O Leary added. We would also mine a small ore body under residential properties here in Waihi over two years, following a year of development, he said. Within the open pit we plan to complete remediation of the North Wall which will give us access to the ore at the bottom of the pit and then use this material to backfill the stopes we plan to mine, and some of the old stopes from pre-1952 mining activities. he said. Mr O Leary said the Hauraki District Council s 2017 Economic Profile demonstrated mining is a significant contributor to the Hauraki district, larger than farming, fishing and forestry combined. Project Martha would continue to support this contribution, delivering a similar production rate to current operations, with a peak of around 420 jobs, and an average of 350 full time jobs each year over the 10-year period, Mr O Leary said. And it means we can continue to partner in a meaningful way with our community, including our schools, over the next 10 years, he said. Over the coming days we ll be hosting a series of community meetings and an open day so residents here in Waihi can ask questions about our plans for the future. Information is also available on our website - ENDS - 1

6 For further information please contact: Media Relations Melissa Bowerman Tel: Kit Wilson Tel: Kit.Wilson@oceanagold.com info@oceanagold.com About OceanaGold OceanaGold Corporation is a mid-tier, high-margin, multinational gold producer with assets located in the Philippines, New Zealand and the United States. The Company s assets encompass the Didipio Gold-Copper Mine located on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. On the North Island of New Zealand, the Company operates the high-grade Waihi Gold Mine while on the South Island of New Zealand, the Company operates the largest gold mine in the country at the Macraes Goldfield which is made up of a series of open pit mines and the Frasers underground mine. In the United States, the Company operates the Haile Gold Mine, a toptier, long-life, high-margin asset located in South Carolina. OceanaGold also has a significant pipeline of organic growth and exploration opportunities in the Americas and Asia-Pacific regions. OceanaGold has operated sustainably over the past 27 years with a proven track-record for environmental management and community and social engagement. The Company has a strong social license to operate and works collaboratively with its valued stakeholders to identify and invest in social programs that are designed to build capacity and not dependency. In 2018, the Company expects to produce 480,000 to 530,000 ounces of gold and 15,000 to 16,000 tonnes of copper with All-In Sustaining Costs that range from $725 to $775 per ounce sold. 2