Reko Diq mine to generate $74 bln in cash flow, says Barrick CEO

ISLAMABAD: The Reko Diq copper and gold project in Pakistan is expected to generate about $74 billion in free cash flow over the next 37 years, based on consensus long-term prices, the CEO of co-owner Barrick Gold said in a media interview.

Barrick Gold owns a 50 percent stake in the Reko Diq mine, and the governments of Pakistan and Balochistan province own the remaining 50 percent. Barrick considers the mine one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper-gold areas, and its development is expected to have a significant impact on Pakistan’s struggling economy.

The project, delayed by a long-running dispute that ended in 2022, is due to start production by the end of 2028. It will produce 200,000 tonnes of copper per year in its first phase, at an estimated cost of $5.5 billion. Barrick CEO Mark Bristow told Pakistani media outlet that the first phase is expected to be completed by 2029.

He added that the second phase, estimated to cost $3.5 billion, would double production.

The mine is estimated to have reserves of up to 37 years, but Bristow said upgrades and expansions could potentially allow it to mine for much longer.

The $74 billion in free cash flow could generate significant profits, royalties and taxes for Pakistan, which currently has only $11 billion in foreign reserves.

Barracks is also in talks with railway authorities and infrastructure providers to rehabilitate the coal terminal at Port Qasim, on the outskirts of Pakistan’s port city of Karachi, to develop infrastructure for transporting and exporting copper into the country.

Bristow said the project’s timeline is on track, with fencing, housing and surveys already completed.

Pakistan’s Petroleum Minister Musadik Malik said last week that Saudi mining company Manara Minerals could invest in Pakistan’s Reko Diq mine in the next two quarters.

Manara executives visited Pakistan in May last year to discuss buying a stake in the project. Malik said Pakistan was also in talks with other Gulf countries about mining opportunities.