Corporate News Blog - Eldorado Gold Receives Permits from Greece for Olympias Mining Project
ACCESSWIRE September 19, 2017
The British Columbia, Canada based Company announced on September 15, 2017, that it has received the approval of the Technical Study for the Old Olympias Mine Closure as well as the Installation Permit for the paste plant at Olympias. The long-awaited permits were received after the Company had announced its plans to suspend all investments in its operational mines, development projects, and exploration assets in Greece on September 11, 2017.
The Company has revealed that the Greek government has yet to issue the amended Electromechanical Installation permit for the Skouries flotation plant and permits for the relocation of antiquities at the Skouries site. The Greek government has assured that it would be issuing more permits soon.
The Company has assured that it would be agreeable to any constructive discussions with the Greek government once it receives requisite permits for the Skouries project. During these discussions, the Company will be in a better position to clarify its stance and re-assess its investment options in Greece. The bone of contention between Eldorado Gold and the Greek government is over compliance of environmental norms and resistance from the local communities regarding the Company's mining activities. The arbitration process is expected to last for at least three months and is expected to resolve pending disagreements between the Greek Government and the Company.
Commenting on the matter, George Burns, President and CEO for Eldorado Gold, said:
"This is another positive step forward; however, we are still waiting on the other matters, which we continue to believe can be resolved through good faith negotiations. We again invite the Ministry to engage with us to resolve these matters."
Eldorado Gold's projects in Greece
Eldorado Gold's projects in Greece include the Stratoni, Skouries, Olympias mines all of which are in Halkidiki Peninsula, Greece and the Perama Hill mine located in Thrace, Greece. The Stratoni, Skouries, Olympias mines were part of Eldorado Gold's acquisition of European Goldfields Limited in February 2012.
During the mining update of the Company's projects in Greece, provided in March 2012, the following was mentioned: Hellas Gold, a Greek subsidiary of Eldorado Gold, had acquired the approval of the Technical Study of Skouries Project and the Olympias mine from the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MoE) in 2012. The mining operations were at the Stratoni Mine continued and the Company had received Preliminary Environment Impact Assessment for Perama Hill in February 2012.
Current status of the mining projects in Greece
In 2016, between January and May, the development of the Skouries Mine was suspended due to delayed permits and licenses. After the receipt of the updated Technical Study in June 2016, the development work recommenced.
Eldorado Gold plans to develop the Olympias Mine in three phases. The work on Phase-I is nearly completed, and in the Phase-II, the Company expects to start commercial production from the end of 2017.
The Perama Hill project has been put on care and maintenance as of FY16. Work on the Stratoni mine is yet to commence.
Eldorado Gold Strong Stance Compels the Greek Government to Respond
On September 11, 2017, Eldorado Gold had announced that it has not received the requisite routine permits and licenses for the construction and development of the Skouries and Olympias projects, even after repeated attempts by the Company and Hellas Gold to have a constructive dialogue with the Greek government, the Ministry of Energy and Environment, and other government agencies. The Company's contention was that the delays in getting permits are affecting the project schedules and costs. This, in turn, is impacting negatively on the Company's ability to make any progress on these projects.
The Company had revealed its plans to stop any new investments in the Company's mining projects in Greece and the funds budgeted for these projects would be used for community spending. The Company planned to terminate its employees and suspend its contractors and put its Skouries, Olympias projects and the Stratoni mine on care and maintenance with effect from September 22, 2017.
The matter came to light when workers from the Company protested outside the Energy Ministry offices in Athens on September 13, 2017, as they were worried about potential job losses. Immediately after this, the Greek government's Ministry of Energy and Environment on September 13, 2017, gave the Operating Permit for the Olympias project and modified the Electromechanical Installation Permit for the tailings management facility at Kokkinolakkas. This was followed by a formal notice from Greece's Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Environment and Energy on September 14, 2017, initiating Greek domestic arbitration.
Last Close Stock Review
On Monday, September 18, 2017, the stock closed the trading session flat at $2.32. A total volume of 14.19 million shares have exchanged hands, which was higher than the 3-month average volume of 6.58 million shares. Eldorado Gold's stock price rallied 24.06% in the last one month. The stock is trading at a PE ratio of 145.00 and has a dividend yield of 0.43%. The stock currently has a market cap of $1.89 billion.
