A few hold majority of mining properties in Guyana

Sep 16, 2018 News

…GGMC favours review of legislation

An inspection report on the state of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) had found that just a few persons hold the majority of the mining properties in Guyana.
The 2015 report points out that with a Mining Permit, one can have access to almost 1200 acres of land. A Prospecting licence affords access to about the same acreage. Yet, there are persons holding in excess of 500 Prospecting Permits and 100 Mining Permits (Medium Scale).
The situation is one that has left many wondering if there should be a cap on the number of permits one individual or institution can have.
GGMC’s Commissioner General, Newell Dennison, pointed out that Guyana’s mining laws allow for there to be no limit to the permits a person can have. He said however, that given the implications of such a circumstance, there is merit in having the laws reviewed.

GGMC Commissioner General, Newell Dennison

GGDMA Head, Terrence Adams

Former GGMC Commissioner General, Rickford Vieira

Dennison said, “The question of whether to set a limit on the number of permits one can have is something that has been raised in several quarters for years. And I think we need to consider the implications, all of which aren’t always immediately obvious.”
“The inception report makes the argument that you need a cap because when so much state land is in the hands of a few, it can be held at ransom; this contributes to landlordism.
“I believe that there is enough concern for this issue to be in a prominent place in the national discussion on how to deal with the allocation of lands.”
The Commissioner General added, “Nothing has come to me to say determine a cap on mining properties but from the inception report and all the representations that keep coming , it is something we need to keep as a consideration going forward. Indeed, we do need to talk about how not to find ourselves in a situation where the sector is controlled by a few and others aren’t getting a stake to advance and succeed and develop.”
While Dennison holds this view, there are others who disagree. Head of the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA), Terrence Adams, does not agree with the logic laid out by the authors of the inception report.
Adams argued that many individuals are scaling back on their operations and giving up lands.
“Very soon, this would become a non-issue. Most of the lands will be in the hands of the Closed Area Committee. I believe that there is merit to one person owning several pieces of lands especially of you want to stay in this mining business long. You will need reserve lands.”

A list of persons who held Prospecting Licences and Mining Permits as at 2015. (Taken from the GGMC Inception Report)

He added, “It boils down at the end of the day to who is financially strong and who can maintain these lands. But the reality before us is that the mining sector is on a downturn.”
Former Commissioner General of GGMC, Rickford Vieira, also expressed the opinion that capping the number of permits one can have is tantamount to stymieing investment in the sector.
In a brief comment he said, “I don’t agree with capping. It is a source of income for GGMC. If it is not profitable for the miners, they would eventually relinquish it.”
REPORT CALLS FOR REVIEW
The inception report on GGMC, done in 2015, spoke at length about the need to cap the number of mining permits one person or company can have access to. The authors— G.W. Walrond; L. J. L. Heesterman and J. Goolsarran—noted however that the current laws do not allow a cap on aggregate land ownership, but does allow properties to be challenged.
However, challenging a property is onerous and time consuming, and may not be worth the effort, while consuming significant regulatory time and resources.
The report says, “If there is a cap on individual ownership of a specific title type, a mechanism to upgrade and amalgamate titles to a higher class would allow an individual to move up the title scale. It would significantly reduce the tendency to engage in Landlordism, which has taken over the mining industry.”
In a practical sense, the authors said that there must be a limit to claim holding and 20 claims (500 acres) would be on the generous side for persons wishing to engage in the small-scale scheme of mining.
To emphasize this point, the authors said that a cursory examination of the declaration by producers/declarers of gold and diamonds demonstrate absolutely no correlation between large claim holding and production/declaration.

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