The Kumtor gold mine, in Kyrgyzstan, on May 28, 2021.Vladimir Voronin/The Associated Press
The Kyrgyz Republic’s Cabinet of Ministers has backed the government’s decision to resolve a dispute with Centerra Gold Inc CG-T over the Kumtor gold mine, the Canadian miner said on Monday, citing Kyrgyz news media.
While the cabinet has approved the government’s decision to finalize an agreement, negotiations on the exact terms are still ongoing, the company said, cautioning that there is no guarantee of any proposed deal being completed.
Centerra in January laid out a framework for resolving the dispute outside of court, after launching international arbitration against the Kyrgyz government over the seizure of its Kumtor mine in the country.
Centerra in its January framework proposed the company receive around 26.1 per cent of its common stock held by Kyrgyzaltyn JSC. It also said the state should assume all responsibility for Centerra’s two Kyrgyz subsidiaries as well as the Kumtor mine.
Last month, Kyrgyzstan had said it was in the final stages of settling its dispute with Centerra.
The Kyrgyz state in May last year took over the largest gold mine in the country, alleging its operations posed a danger to human lives and the environment. Centerra has denied all allegations.
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