Barrick skeptical on Pascua-Lama project

By Robert Melnbardis

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Barrick Gold Corp (ABX.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is not convinced there will be a resolution soon of tax and permit issues delaying its proposed $2.4 billion Pascua-Lama mine in Argentina, its chief executive said on Wednesday.

Greg Wilkins, CEO of Barrick, the world's top gold producer, said he met with Argentina's mining secretary, Jorge Mayoral, last week to discuss the gold-silver project.

"I got all the assurances in the world, but I'm skeptical because I've had all the assurances in the past and we continue to struggle," Wilkins told the Reuters Global Mining Summit.

"I do believe that it's going to boil down to a senior level political will," he said.

He added that in the past, however, he has been reluctant to take similar discussions above the government department level to top political leadership.

Pascua-Lama straddles the Andes between Argentina and Chile and needs the two countries to agree on how to share tax proceeds. Key permits are also outstanding.

Pascua-Lama holds at least 18 million ounces of gold. Once it is a mine, Pascua-Lama also will be the world's largest single source of silver.

Wilkins, who took over on Wednesday as chairman of the World Gold Council, a marketing organization, said he sees upward short-term momentum in gold prices as investors stay in the market as a hedge against downward trends in the U.S. economy.  Continued...