Exploration mining ‘an expensive business’
EXPLORATION mining is a very expensive business. Minister for Infrastructure and Meteorological Services and Minister for Lands and Mineral Resources, Jone Usamate said in Parliament recently while providing an update on the status of the Dome Mining Project in Naqara, Nabouwalu, Ono, and Kadavu. Minister Usamate said Dome Gold Mines Limited, which is in charge of the exploration mining projects, has had their contact renewed which is set to expire on June 24, 2023. “These renewals only take place if the Ministry look at the terms of their license and whether they have carried out the exploration work they said they would do.”
Dome Gold Mines Limited is a mineral exploration company that has been exploring in Fiji for magnetite (iron ore) and heavy minerals, copper and gold since 2007.
The primary objective of Dome is to discover sufficient minerals to support commercial mine development that will benefit the people of Fiji as well as the Company’s investors. Minister Usamate said the tenement prospect of an area around 3,000 hectares and to date, the company has already spent around $5.9 million in terms of exploration.
“Besides doing exploration work they want to be involved in some community assistance and development programmes for landowners in Ono as part of its corporate responsibility.” In Naqara, some of the projects have included maintaining old roads, adding and construction of seawalls, construction of the new school dormitory for Naqara Primary School, house flats constructions and excavations of rubbish dumps.”
Minister Usamate said even though Dome Gold Mines Limited has spent $5.9 million, they have not gained much.
“They only hope that they find enough ore.” will eventually