Fiji marble sparks territorial row

A HUGE marble deposit near Sigatoka is the subject of claim and counter-claim between Fiji Government officials and an Australian mining company. The picture is further confused by the presence of a second Australian miner who says it is the only company which has fulfilled its legal obligations in relation to the marble pro ject. The row centres on an area near Toga village in the Sigatoka Valley on Viti Levu.

Two leases covering marble deposits have been covered by prospecting li cences. One has been granted to Paget

Goldmining (Fiji) Ltd, a subsidiary of

Paget Gold Mining Co Ltd, which is a company listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. This area covers 350 hectares.

There is no controversy about this lease Fiji’s Department of Mineral Re sources has confirmed the lease exists.

The second area involves an adjacent 200 ha. This is the disputed territory.

The Department of Mineral Resources said the prospecting lease is held by

Korosoniyasa Holdings Company Ltd,

which is a local landowner vehicle. An unlisted Australian company, Major Min ing Ltd, claims it has a partnership deal with the landowners the government replies that Major has no permission at the moment to enter such an agreement as it does not have the necessary author isation from the department or the minister.

There is quite a lot at stake; Major Mining has announced that the area over which it has staked a joint venture claim contains at least 53 million tonnes of marble. Major’s chairman Dr Frank Corbett described the deposists as being equal with Italian marble, with a very fine grain and excellent polishing char acteristics. It has been dubbed “Fiji Pink” by Major. Dr Corbett told Pacific Islands Monthly he has had many enquiries, especially from resort projects, about the stone.

Major has said it is now involved in a

feasibility study, with the venture being

launched around August and probably including a Fs2 million marble proces

sing centre. Major said its subsidiary,

Major Pacific Ltd, has a joint venture agreement with Korosoniyasa and the Australian partner has so far spent A$ 100,000. It is the first joint venture agreement in Fiji which gives the land owners a 50 per cent equity; if the deal survives the official government proces ses, the landowners will provide the min ing licence and will have preferential

employment rights.

Major has also made much of the de posits being easily accessible a claim disputed by Paget, and backed by the

Department of Mineral Resources. Paget chairman Roger Stroud told Pacific Is lands Monthly that the only access Koro soniyasa/ Major have is through Paget’s prospecting area. “What are they going to do mine by balloon? ” said Stroud.

He said Paget had spent money, time and effort to follow the Fiji government requirements, another claim confirmed by the department. “We are doing every

thing the right way,” added Stroud.

Paget was now three-quarters of the way through its environmental impact state ment. But Stroud does agree with Cor bett about the value of the area. “It has potential there is no problem about that,” he said.

It was after initial publicity for the Ma jor Mining scheme that the dispute boiled up. The Department of Mineral Resources said it had not approved the joint venture between Major and the landowners’ company. Dr Corbett coun ter-claimed the joint venture had lodged two signed and sealed copies of the min ing agreement with the department and had also received a mineral export permit.

Mineral Resources’ deputy director Alfred Simpson has branded this claim as “thoroughly misleading”. In a written release, he said when the department heard of the proposed joint venture it wrote to the companies involved to advise them of the correct procedure.

That letter was dated November 17, and at February 6 the department had re ceived no reply.

Lack of permission did not prevent Major assisting the local company which held the prospecting licence.“lt merely means that the Australian company can not acquire any holding in the licence area or the benefits which might be gained from work and money invested in it,” said Simpson. The export licence was for samples being sent for testing in Australia, and had been issued to Major Mining with the permission of Koroso niyasa not to Major as the licence holder itself.

Simpson said the department would require a written agreement on com pensation, and a full environmental im pact report, before any mining licence would be considered. In fact, said Simp son, Korosoniyasa’s licence expired on December 31, and was allowed to lapse even though the department had sent the company a reminder before that date. Since then, Korosoniyasa has ap plied for a new licence.

Meanwhile, Dr Corbett remains opti mistic. He still says the plan is for pro duction this year, and the company has sent out samples to architects. □