Additional Attorney General (AAG) Aamir Rehman informed the Supreme Court that Barrick Gold Corporation’s prior permit to mine gold in the Reqo Dik region of Balochistan had been revoked and that a new permit will now be issued.
The hearing on a presidential referral on the project was continued by a five-judge bigger bench, which was presided over by Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Umar Ata Bandial and comprised of Justices Munib Akhtar, Yahya Afridi, Ijazul Ahsan, and Justice Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail.
According to sources, President Arif Alvi filed the reference to request the Supreme Court’s view on the Reko Diq out-of-court settlement accord on the recommendation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The AAG continued his arguments during the proceedings and said that the government should act as a trustee in questions of public policy.
Only the company with a prospecting license has given the contract to mine it, he added.
The previous mining deal for Reko Diq, according to the AAG, was found invalid by the SC because it lacked a valid feasibility report.
A contract to mine minerals would be canceled when the company that discovered them terminated it, he added.
Earlier, he claimed, the mineral royalty was 2%; today, it is 5%.
Additionally, the AAG informed the court that the nearly $10 billion fine imposed on Pakistan by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) would be resolved following the signature of the $900 million payment arrangement with the Enterofista company.
He argued that court rulings had established that contracts with businesses for projects should be transparently negotiated.
He added that the court rulings did not state that projects cannot be transparent without a competitive bidding process.