Mali seizes Canadian company’s gold stocks

Mali's military government has started seizing gold stocks of the Canadian mining company Barrick as part of a legal battle over the share of revenue owed to the West African state, according to an internal Barrick letter seen by AP. The Independent reports that the letter from CEO Mark Bristow to the Malian Mining Minister says Barrick is ‘awaiting official confirmation of the proper receipt by the Malian Solidarity Bank,’ a government entity. The seizure follows a warning letter to Barrick earlier this month from Mali's senior investigating judge, Boubacar Moussa Diarra, saying three tons of gold would be seized. Last Monday, a senior Barrick manager confirmed that three tons had been seized by the military government and placed in the capital, Bamako. Valued at around $180m, the gold seizure is part of the dispute over revenues owed to the state. In December, Mali issued an arrest warrant for Bristow for charges of money laundering, without giving evidence, and ordered the seizure of Barrick's gold reserves. The company has offered to pay $370m. Mali's military government previously arrested four senior executives of the Canadian mining company as part of the dispute. They are still being held. The military seized power in 2020, and the government has placed foreign mining companies under growing pressure as it seeks to shore up revenues. In November, the CEO of Australian company Resolute Mining and two employees were arrested in Bamako. They were released after the company paid $80m to Malian authorities to resolve a tax dispute and promised to pay a further $80m in the coming months.

Full report in The Independent