The investor will pay the government royalties of 6% of production value, and the Romanian state may require Rosia Montana Gold Corporation (RMGC) to pay the royalties in kind, according to a draft agreement between the Romanian Government, Gabriel Resources, and Rosia Montana Gold Corporation.
Minister-delegate for infrastructure projects and foreign investments Dan Sova said negotiations on Rosia Montana are still underway and the agreement is not final.
Rosia Montana Gold Corporation is 80.69% controlled by Canadian mining company Gabriel Resources, while the rest is held by the Romanian state through mining company Minvest. The company has a lease on Romania’s biggest gold resource, estimated at around 300 tons of gold and 1,600 tons of silver.
The Rosia Montana gold mining project, which has been on halt for several years because of environmental concerns entailed by cyanide mining, has been included in the Government’s national investment plan presented in July.
Also in July, Gabriel Resources said it was negotiating with the Romanian government raising Romania’s stake in RMGC to 25% from the current 19.31%, and raising royalties form 4% to 6%.