MINISTER of Natural Resources and the Environment Robert Persaud yesterday met with various stakeholders in the gold sector to discuss issues relating to the fall in the global gold price which has been occurring since last Friday.   Representatives from the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners’ Association (GGDMA), the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), the Guyana Gold Board and licensed gold dealers as well were in attendance, according to a press release yesterday from the ministry.
Coming out of the meeting, a working group of representatives of the ministry and its agencies, along with representatives of the GGDMA and licensed dealers, will continue to monitor the situation.
The session was chaired by the minister, who highlighted that the price of gold has now hit below the US$1,400 level which is now the “bear market era”.
“The price of gold has now hit a new two-year low. However, it was noted that since the beginning of 2013, prices have been marginally declining,” the release stated.
The release stated that some of the factors which have caused this continuous  decline in gold prices are the effects of the Cyprus bailout in the European Union (EU) and the selling of reserve gold by the Central Bank of that country, as well as the possibility of more gold reserves from other members of the EU being sold to cover the larger bailout of countries.  
In addition, it cited the slowing down of the Chinese economy and the decision by the United States to move away from quantitative easing as well as lower consumer confidence as some of the additional factors that are impacting on the downward trend of gold prices.
Stakeholders at the meeting alluded to the fact that the price of gold is sometimes very unpredictable and the quantity of gold declared in and exported by Guyana will not influence the global market since Guyana is a price taker in this situation.

NATIONAL IMPACT
However, it emphasised that the global price of gold will affect the level of output, investment and earnings of Guyana.
Therefore, in order to ensure that the national impact of the price change is not significantly felt by Guyana, a few short-term measures were highlighted which will require both private and public cooperation.
These include the use of better technology for recovery and production, more effective tax breaks and duty free concessions for miners and improved methods of building local machinery for miners.      
Also highlighted were the need for diversification of mineral extraction activities and the use of a revolving fund for new technologies whereby both the public and private sector will contribute. In addition, the GGDMA recommended that various tax incentives be reconsidered for the mining sector.      
Stakeholders reportedly indicated that the inefficiencies in the processing of permits for various levels of operations, often affect the cost of production. Thus, as gold prices continue to be lowered, production cost will have to be reduced at each stage of development for the mineral.    
It was also noted that the GGMC should consider the option of allowing persons who have applied for the Prospecting Permits Medium Scale to be converted to Mining Permits to work without having to wait for the full process of the permit to be completed. However, this will be subject to verification of the type of mining operations.  
The miners noted that short-term reductions in operational cost could include better roads and infrastructure in the various mining districts.
Foreign currency usage and availability were also noted as being critical, along with the various options to ensure that the mining industry facilitation of foreign trade is being explored by the Bank of Guyana and the Ministry of Finance.    
The release added that the GGMC will work with the mining stakeholders to gauge the cost of production for the various levels of operation.