– Board Chairman

CHAIRMAN of the Board of Directors of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), Mr. Clinton Williams has reported that the Board will make a definitive decision in relation to the royalties’ dispute with the bauxite company, BOSAI Minerals, within a fortnight.

An update on BOSAI and the bauxite industry was requested by Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment, Mr. Robert Persaud, who appeared before the Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Natural Resources on July 14.

Member of Parliament for APNU, Mr. Joseph Harmon, is contending that Bosai Minerals Group Guyana Incorporated (BMGGI) is indebted to Guyana for more than US$50 million in royalties for its bauxite operations here, and Government said it has been trying, with little success, for more than a year to get the Chinese-based firm to pay up. Harmon had made the claim during a Parliamentary Sectoral Committee meeting in November 2013. At the time, the GGMC and the legal team attached to the Ministry had been working to resolve the issue for more than a year.

The APNU Member of Parliament remained unconvinced that the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment has a handle on the royalties that the company is supposed to pay Guyana for its bauxite extraction. He also raised concerns over a three-year moratorium on the payment of royalties to the Government. This sparked an investigation to be launched into the matter by GGMC.

“We are working hard to bring closure to the issue surrounding royalty payment. I assure you that it is a matter engaging the attention of the Board,” Williams said.

Williams stated that according to information received, the Company has been paying taxes to the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA). He said this has to be looked at since there is a provision for either to be done. He added that the GGMC is in the process of invoicing Bosai and a definitive decision will be delivered within 10 days.

Meanwhile, Minister Persaud pointed out that the issue was not a simple one to resolve, considering the legal and other implications. He nevertheless called on the GGMC to make it a priority to bring closure to the issue.