WGC, OMM partner to advance artisanal and small-scale gold mining
me-metals: The World Gold Council (WGC), OCIM Metals and Mining SA (OMM) announced on Wednesday a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support the formalization of artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM).
According to me-metals cited by mining.com, This partnership combines WGC’s experience in standards development, best practices and gold market infrastructure with OMM’s operational experience in centralized processing plants. The goal is to improve conditions in the ASGM sector, reducing illicit activity and creating opportunities for more legitimate ASGM production to enter the formal global supply chain.
The agreement comes at a moment where there’s increasing pressure to control illicit trade, mercury pollution and unsafe labour practices.
Together, they plan to develop a global standard for ASGM processing plants, which includes practicing due diligence, traceability and environmental and safety performance. The standard will also support WGC’s gold processing initiative, which aims to pilot formalization models in host countries.
They also plan to build blueprint frameworks to guide policymakers, investors and others on responsible processing infrastructure, with hopes that with more upstream control, there will be less harm associated with the sector.
Both organizations have a shared commitment to foster practical and scalable solutions that can support miners, governments and the industry to build more transparent and sustainable gold supply chains.
WGC’s plan for ASGM formalization focuses on three aspects: origin verification, centralized processing plants and stronger participation by legitimate buyers to combat illicit mining practices. OMM, on the other hand, has formalized partnerships with over 200 small-scale mining operations in Peru, being expected to produce 1,000 kg of gold by the end of this year.
These facilities have the capacity to produce 100,000 tons a year, meaning that they will be able to scale operations while still ensuring full traceability and banking-grade compliance through the ASGM value chain.
source: mining.com
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