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Barrick Gold CEO "Super-Excited" About Reko Diq Copper-Gold Mine Development in Pakistan
Barrick Gold CEO Mark Bristow says he’s “super excited” about the company’s Reko Diq copper-gold development in Pakistan. Speaking about the Pakistani mining project at a conference in the US State of Colorado, the South Africa-born Bristow said “This is like the early days in Chile, the Escondida discoveries and so on”, according to Mining.com, a leading industry publication. "It has enormous upside potential". He was referring to Pakistan’s untapped discovery potential. Escondida was the first discovery of copper in Chile which is now the world's largest producer and exporter of copper. Last year, the South American country exported nearly $20 billion worth of copper.
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| Barrick Gold CEO Mark Bristow in Balochistan, Pakistan. Source: Quetta Voice |
“Copper has no substitutes,” Bristow continued. “It is as strategic as gold is precious, and we’re bringing new copper projects online just as the supply squeeze hits.” Comparing Reko Diq to Escondida, he said "walking across, there's more than one porphyry, significantly more than one, it's a real endowment for the people of Balochistan and greater Pakistan". "It (Reko Diq) is world class, a gold mine on its own and a copper mine on its own". He expects a peak of 10,000 jobs during construction and 5,500-6,000 direct jobs to operate the Reko Diq mine afterwards. It will also create a lot of indirect job opportunities in the supply chain. "We are going to demonstrate (in Balochistan) that you can do something transformatory, both socially and economically".
Interest in developing Pakistan's Reko Diq copper and gold mines has grown with widening gap between demand and supply of the metals. Dennis Mark Bristow, CEO of the Canadian mining giant Barrick Gold Corporation, has said the Reko Diq mining project in Balochistan province is “absolutely on track” and would be able to begin production by 2028, according to news reports. Bristow said Reko Diq is an “enormous project” in which the company would be investing $10 billion.
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| Growing Copper Supply-Demand Gap |
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| Clean Energy Driving Global Copper Demand. Source: IEA Via Nikkei |
New infrastructure development is underway to connect Reko Diq with the national highway network. Barrick is building a link road to connect the mining project site with N-40 Quetta-Taftan national highway. Barrick chief says the company looks at the project as a “multi-generational investment,” adding that it wants all children under the age of 10 in the Reko Diq region to be in school by the end of 2024. Similar infrastructure projects to support coal mining in Thar desert have brought socioeconomic improvements and human development for the local villagers.
Barrick is developing local Balochi human capital trained in modern mining. Dozens of selected candidates, including women, are undergoing an intensive two-year on-the-job training program at Barrick’s mine sites at of Veladero in Argentina and Lumwana in Zambia. This hands-on experience is designed to equip them with practical skills and insights into world-class mining operations. Upon completion of the program, graduates typically return to Barrick operations in their home country, contributing to driving positive change in their communities, according to Barrick Gold.
The Reko Diq project is expected to employ thousands of workers during and after completion. Barrick has interviewed over 3,000 applicants from universities across Pakistan and selected 9 Baloch citizens, four women and five men, according to Bristow. “And they are now working on our mines in Argentina and they will go through a program of development and gaining experience from all our different operations around the world,” Bristow said, saying 30 such graduates would be employed in training programs with the company by the end of the year. By Jan-Feb next year (2025), he said, 1,200 people would be employed, which would increase to 6,000 by 2026. “By the time we peak production, we will have employed 10,000 people,” Bristow told Arab News.
Canadian mining giant Barrick Gold Corporation and the governments of Pakistan and Balochistan reached a deal to restart the Reko Diq mining project back in March 2022 on former Prime Minister Imran Khan's watch. Reko Diq is the world's 4th largest undeveloped copper-gold porphyry deposit with over 14 million tons of copper (worth $142 billion at $9,464 per ton) and 21 million ounces (worth $50 billion at $2,367 per ounce) of gold.
The project was abandoned in 2011 after a Pakistan Supreme Court bench headed by former Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry canceled the mining license granted to Tethyan Copper Company (TCC), a joint venture between Canada's Barrick Gold and Antofagasta Minerals of Chile. TCC challenged the cancellation in the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Dispute (ICSID). On July 12, 2019, the ICSID Tribunal awarded TCC $5.894 billion plus interest of $700,000 per day in damages against Pakistan. As of 1 March 2022, the award stood at $6.5 billion. The new agreement between Barrick Gold Corporation and the governments of Pakistan and Balochistan does away with this award. It also increases the share of the project owned by Pakistan from 25% to 50%, brings in $10 billion investment, the largest single investment in the country, and creates 8,000 jobs. Reko Diq is part of the Tethyan metallogenic belt (TMB) that extends from the Balkans in Europe to Pakistan including Serbo-Macedonian, Anatolian, Takab, Kerman and Chagai metallogenic belts. It is believed to be rich in copper and gold deposits.
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Riaz Haq
Barrick Gold sees higher gold reserves on Reko Diq project | Kitco News
https://www.kitco.com/news/off-the-wire/2025-02-06/barrick-gold-see...
Feb 6 (Reuters) - Canadian miner Barrick Gold (ABX.TO), saw its proven and probable gold mineral reserves rise by 23% to 17.4 million ounces before 2024 depletion, largely due to its Balochistan, Pakistan-based Reko Diq copper-gold project, the company said in a statement on Thursday.
After the completion of its feasibility study at Reko Diq, 13 million ounces of gold were added to its probable reserves on an attributable basis.
Feb 6
Riaz Haq
TOKYO -- Japanese heavy machinery maker Komatsu will establish a maintenance hub for mining equipment in Pakistan, Nikkei has learned.
https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Komatsu-to-set-up-mining...
With Canada's Barrick Mining developing the Reko Diq gold mine in southwestern Pakistan, Komatsu has signed a contract to supply $440 million in equipment to the project in the coming years, starting in fiscal 2026.
The contract is one of Komatsu's biggest deals in the operating area that includes Pakistan and the Middle East, according to the company. It will provide equipment including large dump trucks, electric rope shovels and giant excavators.
Komatsu Pakistan Mining will be established in Karachi by year-end. Komatsu already has a software development center in the country but not a maintenance hub.
Mining equipment is run 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, so it needs immediate maintenance. Komatsu will spend $100 million on facilities for inspecting and repairing mining machinery. It will also eventually build up the staff to roughly 500 engineers and operators.
Komatsu will expand warehouse facilities in Dubai to bolster parts supplies. The Middle East hub, which already handles components for 100-ton-class machinery, will supply parts for mining equipment.
Komatsu and Barrick have collaborated on a copper mine in Zambia and a gold mine in the U.S. Mining equipment accounts for roughly 40% of Komatsu's group sales, with the bulk from North America and Central and South America.
Demand is rising for mining in the Middle East as the region looks to move away from a dependence on oil. Komatsu established a Kazakhstan hub in 2023 and plans to make investments in the Middle East to capture the anticipated growth in demand.
Supplying mining equipment is highly profitable, thanks to revenue from such after-sales services as parts replacement. Komatsu acquired U.S. mining equipment manufacturer Joy Global in 2017 and has been expanding its lineup by selling underground mining equipment.
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https://im-mining.com/2025/06/25/barrick-and-komatsu-agree-on-440-m...
Barrick Mining Corporation, the operator of the Reko Diq Mining Joint Venture, and Komatsu have finalised an agreement for the delivery of primary mining equipment to Barrick’s Reko Diq copper-gold project in Pakistan starting in 2026. Valued at $440 million over the first five years, the deal marks Komatsu’s first major mining equipment placement in its Middle East territory and underscores the strengthening partnership between the two companies.
As part of its commitment to supporting Reko Diq’s operations, Komatsu intends to establish Komatsu Pakistan Mining (SMC-Private) Limited, a new entity dedicated to providing service and technical expertise at Reko Diq. Additional investments will also be made to Komatsu Middle East FZE, the regional headquarters in Dubai, UAE, to support an expanded equipment footprint in the region. These investments ensure Barrick will have the resources needed to efficiently operate at one of the world’s most significant greenfield mining developments.
“The Reko Diq project represents a long-term investment in our future and that of mining in Pakistan, and our partnership with Komatsu is an important part of that vision,” said Mark Bristow, Barrick President and CEO. “Komatsu equipment has proven its performance and reliability at our operations worldwide, and we are confident in their ability to support our goals at Reko Diq. We look forward to building on this strong relationship as we develop one of the world’s newest greenfield assets.”
The equipment package for Reko Diq includes:
• Komatsu 980E-5 ultra-class haul trucks – Manufactured and exported from Peoria, Illinois, these trucks are designed for high efficiency and longevity in demanding conditions.
Jun 25
Riaz Haq
‘Generational benefits’ from Reko Diq mines will uplift conflict-hit Balochistan — Barrick CEO
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2608119/pakistan
“Reko Diq is not just a mining project; it is a multi-generational opportunity that promises sustained economic and social development for local communities for decades to come,” Barrick CEO Mark Bristow said in a statement on Monday released after he visited Humai, the closest village to the project site in District Chagai.
Bristow met local elders and development committee members, reaffirming the company’s goal to invest in job creation, skills training, education, and health care for Baloch communities.
“We are creating job opportunities not only through RDMC but also through our large network of partner and supplier companies that are coming onboard to support this major development,” Bristow said. “Currently, 75 percent of our workforce is from Balochistan — the majority from District Chagai — and we aim to continue strengthening this local representation.”
Bristow also highlighted recent investments in health care, including a new Mother and Child Health Center in Humai that offers maternal care services — the first such facility of its kind in the area.
“No meaningful development of this world-class mineral resource can happen without the active involvement and support of the people who live here,” he said.
Humai village chief Liaqat Malik and Par-e-Koh Community Development Committee Chairman Taj Muhammad thanked Bristow and RDMC for their engagement and development work, pledging continued community support for the project, according to the Barrick statement.
The Reko Diq project is expected to begin production by 2028 and generate thousands of jobs while significantly boosting Pakistan’s export revenues. The Pakistani government has said it will ensure environmental protections and fair distribution of project benefits, though watchdog groups continue to call for greater transparency and community participation in oversight.
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