Mali’s interim President, Assimi Goita, has promulgated a new Mining Code that will allow the military-led government to increase ownership or shareholder control of gold concessions and recover what it declares to be a large shortfall in production revenues.
The new code, signed on state television on Monday night, will allow state and local investors to take up to 35 percent stakes in mining projects, up from 20 percent today, and could more than double the contribution of the sector to the Gross Domestic Product, to around 20 percent, indicated the Government.
It was not immediately clear whether the code affects already deployed projects. A Ministry of Mines official said last week that this would depend on implementing decrees, which have not yet been made available.
Mali is one of the main gold producers in Africa and is home to mining companies such as Barrick Gold, B2GOLD, Resolute Mining and Hummingbird Resources.
Mali’s finance minister, Alousseni Sanou, said on Monday night that an audit of the mining sector showed that the state recorded losses of between 300 billion and 600 billion CFA francs (one equivalent to 1 .6 kwanzas).
Mines Minister Amadou Keita added that some state losses were caused by companies taking gold ore to a different, tax-exempt mine to be processed, and that the new code will clamp down on this issue. He also announced greater attention to the issuance of mining bonds.
“From now on, for the sake of transparency and inclusion, the mining titles will be signed by several ministers (of Finance, Mines and Environment)”, said Mali’s Minister of Mines on a state television broadcast, where he highlighted the importance of transparency.
