RPT-Newmont sells Sumatra gold mine to Australia's Agincourt http://today.reuters.com/stocks/QuoteCompanyNewsArticle.aspx?view=CN&storyID=2006-07-13T094930Z_01_JAK215033_RTRIDST_0_MINERALS-INDONESIA-NEWMONT-REPEAT.XML&rpc=66
Thu Jul 13, 2006
Repeats to reach more subscribers)
JAKARTA, July 13 (Reuters) - The Indonesian unit of U.S. mining giant Newmont Mining Corp. (NEM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) has sold the Martabe gold mine on Sumatra island to Australia's Agincourt Resources Ltd for $76.5 million, Newmont said.
Denver-based Newmont said in April it had decided to sell the Martabe gold mine because its gold deposits were deemed unprofitable.
At the time Indonesia state-owned mining company PT Aneka Tambang (ANTM.JK: Quote, Profile, Research) had said it was looking at possibly acquiring the operation.
Newmont purchased it in 2002, but the site is still at the exploration stage and has not yet produced gold.
Newmont's operations in mineral-rich Indonesia accounted for about 6 percent of its global sales in 2004. The firm also operates Asia's second-largest copper mine, Batu Hijau, on Sumbawa island in the eastern part of Indonesia. Newmont has another gold mine in Indonesia on northern Sulawesi island, where it has completed operations but faces criminal charges on allegations of pollution.
In February, the company agreed to settle a separate civil suit launched by Indonesia's government by paying $30 million. The Environment Ministry lodged the civil case in 2005, seeking damages of around $133 million. Newmont is one of several major global mining operations that have operations in Indonesia, Southeast Asia's biggest economy.
Indonesia is home to some of the world's largest deposits of copper, tin, nickel and gold, but has been struggling to attract foreign investment in the mining sector due to political turmoil and policy uncertainties.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has made it a priority to work to wipe out corruption and create a better climate for investors.
© Reuters 2006. All Rights Reserved.