PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara (PTNNT) will be able to continue mining its Batu Hijau mine in accordance with the optimum mining plan, thanks to a 20-year land borrow and use permit it received.
The permit gave PTNNT approval to use 6.4 acres (2.6 hectares) of land to store stockpiles of ore before they are processed. The mine nearly ran out of land for its ore stockpiles and warned it may have to shutdown operations if the permit - which it applied for in 2005 - was not renewed by 2010.
Had the permit not been renewed, the mining operation would have ended in 2011 and processing in 2017, potentially causing the nation to lose US$3.4 billion in income.
PTNNT expects to produce 455 million pounds of copper concentrate this year, up from 284 million pounds in 2008. It also estimates it will produce 486,000 ounces of gold this year, up 80.6 percent from 269,000 ounces last year.
