North Mara Gold Mine
Encyclopedia
North Mara Gold Mine is an open pit
gold
mine
in the Tarime District
of the Mara Region
of Tanzania
. It is operated by African Barrick Gold
.
It is one of four gold mines African Barrick Gold, a subsidiary of Barrick Gold
, operates in Tanzania, the other three being Tulawaka
, Bulyanhulu
and the Buzwagi Gold Mine
. In the financial year 2009, the four operations produced a combined amount of 716,000 attributable ounces of gold.
colonial period, beginning with gold discoveries near Lake Victoria
in 1894. The first gold mine in what was then Tanganyika
, the Sekenke Mine, began operation in 1909, and gold mining in Tanzania experienced a boom between 1930 and World War II
. By 1967, gold production in the country had dropped to insignificance but was revived in the mid-1970s, when the gold price rose once more. In the late 1990s, foreign mining companies started investing in the exploration and development of gold deposits in Tanzania, leading to the opening of a number of new mines.
The North Mara mine, which opened in 2002, consists of four open pits, a process plant, waste rock dumps, a tailings containment pond, and other associated facilities. In 2009, North Mara employed close to 2,200 people. As of 2009 there was an expected mine life of 10 years remaining.
The mine was owned by Afrika Mashariki Gold Mines, which became Placer Dome Tanzania, a subsidiary of Placer Dome
. Barrick Gold took over Placer Dome in January 2006.
15 million worth of Barrick property, including lighting some of it on fire
. The vandalism resulted in temporarily closing an open pit, and an increase in security on the property. Motivation for the attack on the property was not determined, the local police suggested they were attempting to get gold from the pit.
ordered the government to have a study completed to determine if the North Mara Gold Mine was polluting the Tigithe River (the drinking water supply for more than 250,000 people), thereby killing people and livestock, as had been reported. The government accepted the "principle" of doing the study, and stated that there had been minimal environmental monitoring done in the area because the National Environment Management Council is quite small, with only 20 environmental inspectors for the entire country.
In June 2010 the Tanzanian government declared the Tigithe River free of pollution, following changes made to Barrick's environmental program. The government stated the water is potable and suitable for human consumption. Barrick had replaced 40000 sqm of liner within their effluent pond, which they claim was destroyed by vandalism.
Open-pit mining
Open-pit mining or opencast mining refers to a method of extracting rock or minerals from the earth by their removal from an open pit or borrow....
gold
Gold mining
Gold mining is the removal of gold from the ground. There are several techniques and processes by which gold may be extracted from the earth.-History:...
mine
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
in the Tarime District
Tarime District
Tarime is one of the five districts of the Mara Region of Tanzania. It was previously known as the North Mara District. It is bordered from the north to east by the Kenya districts of :Migori , the Trans Mara and Kisii and to the east by Masai Mara...
of the Mara Region
Mara Region
Mara is one of the 26 regions of Tanzania. The region is named after the Mara River. Musoma serves as the Region's capital.The neighbouring regions are Mwanza and Shinyanga , Arusha and Kagera . To the north east, it borders the Republic of Kenya...
of Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
. It is operated by African Barrick Gold
African Barrick Gold
African Barrick Gold plc is a gold mining business operating in Tanzania. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.-History:...
.
It is one of four gold mines African Barrick Gold, a subsidiary of Barrick Gold
Barrick Gold
Barrick Gold Corporation is the largest pure gold mining company in the world, with its headquarters in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; and four regional business units located in Australia, Africa, North America and South America...
, operates in Tanzania, the other three being Tulawaka
Tulawaka Gold Mine
Tulawaka Gold Mine is a combined underground and open pit gold mine located in the Biharamulo district, in the Kagera Region of Tanzania. It is operated by African Barrick Gold, who ownes 70% of the mine...
, Bulyanhulu
Bulyanhulu Gold Mine
Bulyanhulu Gold Mine is an underground gold mine in the Shinyanga Region of Tanzania, located 55 kilometres south of Lake Victoria. It is operated by African Barrick Gold....
and the Buzwagi Gold Mine
Buzwagi Gold Mine
Buzwagi Gold Mine is an open pit gold mine in the Shinyanga Region of Tanzania, located 6 kilometres southeast from the town of Kahama. It is operated by African Barrick Gold....
. In the financial year 2009, the four operations produced a combined amount of 716,000 attributable ounces of gold.
History
Gold mining in Tanzania in modern times dates back to the GermanGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
colonial period, beginning with gold discoveries near Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. The lake was named for Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, by John Hanning Speke, the first European to discover this lake....
in 1894. The first gold mine in what was then Tanganyika
Tanganyika
Tanganyika , later formally the Republic of Tanganyika, was a sovereign state in East Africa from 1961 to 1964. It was situated between the Indian Ocean and the African Great Lakes of Lake Victoria, Lake Malawi and Lake Tanganyika...
, the Sekenke Mine, began operation in 1909, and gold mining in Tanzania experienced a boom between 1930 and World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. By 1967, gold production in the country had dropped to insignificance but was revived in the mid-1970s, when the gold price rose once more. In the late 1990s, foreign mining companies started investing in the exploration and development of gold deposits in Tanzania, leading to the opening of a number of new mines.
The North Mara mine, which opened in 2002, consists of four open pits, a process plant, waste rock dumps, a tailings containment pond, and other associated facilities. In 2009, North Mara employed close to 2,200 people. As of 2009 there was an expected mine life of 10 years remaining.
The mine was owned by Afrika Mashariki Gold Mines, which became Placer Dome Tanzania, a subsidiary of Placer Dome
Placer Dome
Placer Dome Inc. was a large mining company specializing in gold and other precious metals, with corporate headquarters in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada....
. Barrick Gold took over Placer Dome in January 2006.
2008 attack
In 2008 a group of 200 people broke into the North Mara mine site and destroyed approximately US$United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
15 million worth of Barrick property, including lighting some of it on fire
Arson
Arson is the crime of intentionally or maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires...
. The vandalism resulted in temporarily closing an open pit, and an increase in security on the property. Motivation for the attack on the property was not determined, the local police suggested they were attempting to get gold from the pit.
Environment
In 2009 a Tanzanian Member of Parliament, Harrison Mwakyembe, demanded the Mara Gold Mine be closed, due to the deaths of eighteen villagers from Nyamongo which had been attributed to drinking water polluted by the mine. In February 2010 the National Assembly of TanzaniaNational Assembly of Tanzania
The National Assembly of Tanzania and the President of the United Republic make up the Parliament of Tanzania. The current Speaker of the National Assembly is Hon. Anna Makinda, who presides over an assembly of 357 members.- History :...
ordered the government to have a study completed to determine if the North Mara Gold Mine was polluting the Tigithe River (the drinking water supply for more than 250,000 people), thereby killing people and livestock, as had been reported. The government accepted the "principle" of doing the study, and stated that there had been minimal environmental monitoring done in the area because the National Environment Management Council is quite small, with only 20 environmental inspectors for the entire country.
In June 2010 the Tanzanian government declared the Tigithe River free of pollution, following changes made to Barrick's environmental program. The government stated the water is potable and suitable for human consumption. Barrick had replaced 40000 sqm of liner within their effluent pond, which they claim was destroyed by vandalism.
Production
Recent production figures for the mine:| Year | Production | Grade | Cost per ounce | Tonnes processed |
| 2007 | 237,000 ounces | 2.86 g/t | US$ 461 | 2,709,678 |
| 2008 | 197,000 ounces | 2.64 g/t | US$ 804 | 2,643,860 |
| 2009 | 212,000 ounces | 2.74 g/t | US$ 508 | 2,604,747 |
| 2010 |
External links
- Barrick website
- African Barrick Gold website
- North Mara mine (TZA-00044) Secretariat of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States website