Inmet Mining Corporation (TSX:IMN) (Inmet) announced today that its wholly-owned subsidiary Minera Panama, S.A. (MPSA) has received a letter from His Excellency, the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Roberto Henriquez, that clarifies the Government of Panama's position on the recent repeal of Law 8 of 2011, making it clear that such repeal will not impact the development of mining projects in Panama, such as the Cobre Panama project, that currently have a contract law in place in respect of their concessions.
The text of the letter in translation is as follows:
"Being duly authorized and instructed by the Government of the Republic of Panama, I hereby inform you that the recent repeal of Law 8 of 2011, that modernized the Code of Mineral Resources, DOES NOT affect the contracts or concessions that have been granted to companies to develop metallic or non metallic mining projects in the Republic of Panama.
All the concession contracts or contract-laws (referring to contracts approved by the National Assembly) that regulate the relationship with national or international mining companies established in the country will be respected over their legal duration. The National Government will guarantee juridical stability to allow the normal development of the operations of these companies. The mining sector in Panama continues to be regulated by the Mineral Resources Code and, in applicable cases, by the contract-laws approved by the State and all mining projects in process will be respected and supported according to applicable legal norms.
The National Government reiterates that it will ensure compliance with agreements reached for not allowing the development of metallic or non metallic mining in any indigenous reservations, and in this moment there are no existing projects of metallic mining being developed in any indigenous reservation."
A copy of the letter (in Spanish) and an unofficial English translation are available at www.inmetmining.com.
Jochen Tilk, Inmet's President and Chief Executive Officer said, "We welcome this clarification and affirmation of support provided by the Government of Panama in the form of the letter from His Excellency, Minister Henriquez, as we develop the Cobre Panama project within the context of Law 9 of 1997, the project's contract law. We remain committed and look forward to working with the Panamanian Government and its various agencies to develop Cobre Panama for the benefit of all stakeholders".
ABOUT INMET
Inmet is a Canadian-based global mining company that produces copper and zinc. Inmet has interests in three mining operations in locations around the world: Cayeli, Las Cruces, and Pyhasalmi. Inmet also has a 100 percent interest in Cobre Panama, a development property in Panama.
Image from Mina De Cobre Panam?? Project, Panam?? Ni 43-101 Technical Report