Ivanhoe Mines will meet the higher taxes and royalty requirements expected to be introduced by the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) provided it is counterbalanced by stability and transparency into how the additional revenues are spent, the company's executive chairman said.
Local communities must benefit from mining revenues in the manner that was intended at the outset of projects, Robert Friedland added. "I'm happy to pay higher royalties; I'm not concerned about the level of taxation. That's not the fundamental issue. The issue is that the mining industry absolutely requires stability. We just can't get there from here without stability, and we need transparency," he told delegates at the annual Mining Indaba in Cape Town. "I don't mind paying a higher royalty as long as that royalty goes to develop, help and empower local people. I want the accounting of that money to be absolutely transparent, and it has to absolutely help the people around mines, and if it doesn't then of course we don't want to pay it. But we're happy to talk about what the dispensation is going to be," the copper, gold, nickel and zinc deposit...