Barrick's Congo mine calls claim `spurious'

JOHANNESBURG SA, Kibali Goldmines SA, the Congolese joint venture of Barrick and AngloGold Ashanti, said its 10-percent shareholder Société Minière de Kilo-Moto (SOKIMO) had filed a financial claim against it in a Kinshasa commercial court.

The Democratic Republic of Congo news website objectifinfos.cd published documents on Sunday showing state-owned SOKIMO filed proceedings on April 16 claiming Kibali owed SOKIMO US$1.1138 billion in unpaid dividends and other funds.

Kibali also rejects the current proceedings on the basis that it was similarly spurious and without substance ...

Kibali said it had learned of this action on Sunday and described the claim as a second attempt by SOKIMO to “extort certain benefits from the company.”

Kibali said SOKIMO withdrew its first claim after it was “shown to be without foundation.”

“Kibali also rejects the current proceedings on the basis that it was similarly spurious and without substance, and would seek its dismissal as it had done with the previous claim,” the company said in a statement.

SOKIMO did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the claim.

In its documents published on the Congolese website, SOKIMO said the cash it was claiming included fees for the use of SOKIMO's share of the mine.

Barrick, Kibali's operator, has been seeking to repatriate US$500 million belonging to the joint venture out of the Democratic Republic of Congo for more than a year.

Barrick chief executive Mark Bristow said in February that the formation of a new government in the Congo should aid the release of the money. On Monday, Bristow said in a release that he looked forward to working with President Felix Tshisekedi and his coalition government “to resolve certain outstanding issues around the mining code and the repatriation of cash.”

The mine produced 191,612 ounces of gold in the first quarter and has contributed US$3.5 billion to the country's economy since development started in 2010, Barrick said. Barrick's Toronto-listed shares edged lower in afternoon trade in line with gold prices which eased off a seven-week peak.