Egypt agrees framework for mining terms with Barrick Gold and Centamin

Egypt’s petroleum ministry said on Thursday it had reached an agreement with mining firms Barrick Gold Corp and Centamin Plc on the commercial, fiscal and legal terms for exploitation of gold and associated minerals in a number of concession blocks they had been awarded.

Centamin said in a separate statement that under the Model of Minerals Exploitation Agreement (MMEA) framework, exploitation licences would be issued for a 30-year stabilized fiscal and legal regime.

The MMEA does not apply to the 160km2 Sukari gold mine mining concession, which operates independently under the Sukari concession agreement, the company added.

(By Aidan Lewis and Enas Alashray; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)