Canadian mining firm Barrick Gold has firmly opposed efforts by Mali’s ruling junta to place the Loulo-Gounkoto gold complex under temporary administration, deepening a protracted dispute over the country’s lucrative mineral resources.
In a strongly worded statement issued on Monday, May 26, the company condemned what it termed an “unlawful and unprecedented” move, insisting there is no legal or operational justification for handing day-to-day control of one of the world’s largest gold deposits to a court-appointed administrator.
The standoff between Barrick, which holds an 80% stake in the site, and the Malian state, which owns the remainder, has intensified following recent amendments to Mali’s mining code aimed at securing greater national returns. The junta accuses Barrick of owing hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes—a charge the company denies. The authorities responded by shuttering Barrick’s offices in Bamako, detaining local staff, and seizing three tonnes of gold earlier this year. Now, with the government petitioning Bamako’s commercial court to impose provisional oversight of Loulo-Gounkoto, a critical ruling looms on 2 June.
Strategically located in western Mali near the Senegalese border, the Loulo-Gounkoto mine has been in operation for two decades and boasts estimated gold reserves exceeding seven million ounces. In 2023 alone, the mine contributed nearly $1 billion to Mali’s economy, according to industry data. As gold accounts for 75% of Mali’s export revenues and a quarter of its national budget, the dispute underscores the broader geopolitical tensions surrounding resource control in a country grappling with insurgency and financial instability. Barrick’s latest rebuke sets the stage for a potentially high-stakes legal and diplomatic showdown.