Barrick owns a 50% stake in the mine and the governments of Pakistan and the province of Balochistan own rest. Barrick considers the mine as one of the world’s largest underdeveloped copper-gold areas.
It is expected to start production by the end of 2028.
The company’s reserves in the Africa and Middle East region edged up about 1.1% to 19 million ounces in 2024, driven by its Loulo-Gounkoto mine in Mali and the Bulyanhulu mine in Tanzania.
Barrick last month suspended operations at its Mali mine after the military-led government in December seized three metric tons of gold worth about $245 million, as part of a demand for a bigger share of revenue.
(Reporting by Seher Dareen in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)
