SMALL loggers will soon be able to access a portion of one of Barama Company Limited (BCL) 1.6 million hectares of land, as Government works towards attracting foreign investors to invest in lands which the company will leave behind.In October, the logging company, which is a subsidiary of Malaysia’s Samling Global Limited, announced the closure of its 25-year-old forest operations here, leaving dozens of persons on the breadline.

At the moment, the Ministry of Natural Resources through the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) is engaging the company as it winds up its forest operations at Buck Hall on the Essequibo River, while the Ministry of Social Protection is discussing labour issues relevant to the company’s affected employees.
Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman, told members of the media in the boardroom of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) on Thursday that one of the concessions which BCL has given up will be divided into four parts and utilised for varied purposes.

He explained that one of the four sections will be dedicated to small loggers; a second section will be opened up for conservation, while the last two sections will be opened to interested investors.
“The last two will be open to multi-national companies interested in operating larger concessions in an environmentally sustainable manner,” Trotman said.
Regarding the latter, he said that the GFC has been advertising locally via the media and regionally and international via major forestry magazines and websites with the aim of inviting the interests of highly competent parties to submit expressions for state forestry permits (SFPs).

Earlier, Trotman said that in 2016, there have been several changes in the forestry sector, some of which were beyond the control of the authorities and he listed the closure of BCL’s Buck Hall operations as one of the lows of the year.
He said that the authorities have held discussions with another Malaysian-owned logging company, Demerara Timbers Limited (DTL) and that company has since informed the Government that it will continue to operate here.

Barama Company, which started its operations in Guyana in 1991 in the North West District, has had a chequered history, mainly during the latter half of its operations in the Essequibo. The company was made to pay millions of dollars in fines which were instituted by the GFC over contravention of the forestry regulations.
Barama will continue to operate its sawmilling operations, Trotman said on Thursday.
Meanwhile, regarding other sections of the extractive sector, Trotman noted that 2016 has been a record-breaking year for the gold-mining industry, and that a total of 690,000 ounces were recorded from production.

On the down side, he said that the official report of several mining deaths this year has dampened “elation” of the record- breaking year.
”2017 must be a more successful, and safe year,” Trotman said.