The Mineral Industries of the Islands of the Caribbean in 2015
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2015 Minerals Yearbook ISLANDS OF THE CARIBBEAN [ADVANCE RELEASE] U.S. Department of the Interior April 2019 U.S. Geological Survey The Mineral Industries of the Islands of the Caribbean Aruba, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and Other Islands By Yadira Soto-Viruet ARUBA Minerals in the National Economy Mining did not play a significant role in Aruba’s economy. The Dominican Republic’s real gross domestic product (GDP) In 2015, the country’s sole refinery continued to operate as a increased by 7.0% in 2015 compared with that of 2014. The crude petroleum and refined products storage terminal. During positive growth in the GDP was attributed mainly to a 19% the year, the Government of Aruba signed a memorandum of increase in the output of the construction sector; however, the understanding with the United States-based Citgo Petroleum output of the mining and quarrying sector decreased by 10% Corp., which is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Petroleós compared with an increase of 20% in 2014. The decreased de Venezuela S.A., to explore the possibility of reopening the output of the mining and quarrying sector was mostly 235,000-barrel-per-day (bbl/d) refinery. In 2012, Valero Energy attributable to a decrease in gold and silver production, which Corp. of the United States had suspended operations at the accounted for about 80% of the country’s mining and quarrying refinery owing to inadequate profit margins (table 2; Urribarri production. As of October, 9,945 people were employed in the and Parraga, 2015). mining and quarrying sector (Banco Central de la República Dominicana, 2016a, p. 9, 12, 27). Reference Cited In 2015, the total value of the Dominican Republic’s exports decreased by about 5% to $9.4 billion from about $9.9 billion Urribarri, Sailu, and Parraga, Marianna, 2015, Update 2—Aruba, Citgo in 2014. The total value of mineral exports decreased by 22% in Petroleum to explore reactivating refinery: Thomson Reuters, September 25. (Accessed September 8, 2016, at http://www.reuters.com/article/ 2015, which was attributed to a decrease in the export values of refinery-aruba-citgo-pete-idUSL1N11V1F320150925.) copper, silver, and gold by 42%, 41% and 21%, respectively. In 2015, the total value of gold exports accounted for about 13% DOMINICAN REPUBLIC of the country’s total exports and silver exports accounted for about 0.5%. The country imported about $305 million worth of In 2015, the Dominican Republic’s mineral industry was crude petroleum (about 6.0 million barrels) (Mbbl) and about dominated by the production of bauxite, cement, copper, gold, $177 million worth of natural gas in 2015 (Banco Central de la and silver. The country’s mineral sector is regulated by Mining República Dominicana, 2016b, c). Law No. 146 of June 4, 1971. According to the law, exploration and mining concessions or contracts are awarded by the Production Government. An exploration concession gives an exclusive right In 2015, production of travertine increased by 196% to for a period of 3 years, and a mining concession gives the right 6,680 cubic meters from 2,257 cubic meters in 2014, and for a period of 75 years. The Ministerio de Energia y Minas production of bauxite increased by about 20% to 1.7 million (MEM) is responsible for administering national policy in the metric tons (Mt) from 1.4 Mt. Production of marble decreased energy and mining sectors. The Viceministerio de Minas, which by 61% to 1,214 cubic meters from 3,156 cubic meters; silver, is under the MEM, is the agency responsible for regulating, by 28% to 91,928 kilograms (kg) from 127,712 kg; clay, by auditing, promoting, and developing the mining sector (table 2; 25% to 91,330 cubic meters from 121,737 cubic meters; copper, Ministerio de Energia y Minas, 2016a–c). by 21% to 7,324 metric tons (t) from 9,262 t; and gold, by 13% In 2015, the Dominican Republic submitted an Extractive to 30,454 kg from 35,081 kg. Data on mineral production are in Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) candidature application table 1. to the EITI board. The EITI is a global standard to promote the open and accountable management of oil, gas, and mineral Structure of the Mineral Industry resources, in particular by addressing key governance issues in the mining sector. The country’s candidature application was Table 2 lists major mineral industry facilities in the country. expected to be approved by the EITI Board in 2016 (Ministerio de Energia y Minas, 2015b; Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, 2016a, b). ISLANDS OF THE CARIBBEAN—2015 [ADVANCE RELEASE] 13.1 Commodity Review Banco Central de la República Dominicana, 2016b, Sector externo— Exportaciones—Anual [External sector—Exports—Annual]: Santo Domingo, Metals Dominican Republic, Banco Central de la República Dominicana. (Accessed September 8, 2016, at http://www.bancentral.gov.do/estadisticas_ economicas/externo/.) Bauxite and Alumina.—Sierra Bauxita Dominicana was Banco Central de la República Dominicana, 2016c, Sector externo— the sole producer of bauxite in the Dominican Republic. Importaciones de crudo y derivados [External sector—Imports of crude The company mined bauxite from Las Mercedes deposit in oil and derivatives]: Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Banco Central de la República Dominicana. (Accessed September 8, 2016, at Pedernales Province, which had estimated reserves of about http://www.bancentral.gov.do/estadisticas_economicas/externo/.) 4 Mt at an average grade of about 46% aluminum oxide. Bauxite Direccion General de Mineria, 2016, Proyecto extraccion de bauxita y was transported to the Port of Cabo Rojo for export. In 2014 rehabilitacion ambiental del deposito de Las Mercedes, Pedernales [Bauxite (the latest year for which data were available), China received extraction project and environmental rehabilitation of Las Mercedes deposit, Pedernales]: Direccion General de Mineria, 8 p. (Accessed September 26, 2016, about 1,130,000 dry metric tons of bauxite, followed by Canada, at http://www.dgm.gov.do/transparencia/images/docs/publicaciones/Informes/ which received about 21,800 dry metric tons. In June, the MEM Informe%20Extraccion%20de%20Bauxita%20en%20Las%20Mercedes%20 notified Sierra Bauxita Dominicana to halt mining operations con%20finalidad%20de%20su%20cierre%20correcto.pdf.) and exports; the halt in mining operations was a Government El Nuevo Diario, 2013, Informan reinicio mineria de bauxita crea 450 nuevos empleos en Pedernales [The restart of bauxite mining creates 450 new jobs in prerequisite for the implementation of a comprehensive Pedernales]: Pedernales, Dominincan Republic, El Nuevo Diario , August 7. development plan for sustainable tourism in the area, which was Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, 2016a, About: Extractive thought would bring greater benefits to communities in the medium Industries Transparency Initiative. (Accessed September 26, 2016, at and long terms by preserving the environment and improving https://eiti.org/about/who-we-are.) Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, 2016b, Dominican Republic: living conditions (El Nuevo Diario, 2013; Ministerio de Energia Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative. (Accessed September 26, 2016, y Minas, 2015a; Direccion General de Mineria, 2016, p. 5). at https://eiti.org/dominican-republic.) Gold.—GoldQuest Mining Corp. of Canada, through its Falconbridge Dominicana S.A., 2015, Actualizacion de las actividades de reinicio subsidiary Gold Quest Dominicana SRL, owned 100% interest en la Republica Dominincana: Falconbridge Dominicana S.A. (Accessed September 14, 2016, at http://www.falcondo.do/update_falcondo.html.) in the Romero gold-copper project, which is located in San Juan Glencore plc, 2015a, Annual report 2014: Baar, Switzerland, Glencore plc, Province. A prefeasibility study, which included the Romero and 204 p. (Accessed September 14, 2016, at http://www.glencore.com/assets/ the Romero South (formerly La Escandalosa Sur) deposits, was investors/doc/reports_and_results/2014/GLEN-2014-Annual-Report.pdf.) underway during the year. The company announced the revision Glencore plc, 2015b, Sales of Tampakan, Falcondo and Sipilou: Baar, Switzerland, Glencore plc, August 14, 1 p. (Accessed September 14, 2016, at of its preliminary economic assessment and reported that the http://www.glencore.com/assets/media/doc/news/2015/201508140800-Sales- project had the capacity to be developed as an underground of-Tampakan-Falcondo-and-Sipilou.pdf.) mine with a mine life of 9 years. As of October 2013, indicated Glencore plc, 2016, Annual report 2015: Baar, Switzerland, Glencore plc, 202 p. mineral resources at the Romero project were 19.4 Mt at average (Accessed September 14, 2016, at http://www.glencore.com/assets/investors/ doc/reports_and_results/2015/GLEN-2015-Annual-Report.pdf.) grades of 2.63 grams per metric ton (g/t) gold, 3.7 g/t silver, GoldQuest Mining Corp., 2016, Management’s discussion and 0.63% copper, and 0.29% zinc and inferred mineral resources analysis—December 2015: GoldQuest Mining Corp., 23 p. (Accessed were 10.0 Mt at average grades of 1.64 g/t gold, 3.8 g/t silver, September 26, 2016, at http://www.goldquestcorp.com/images/pdf/financials/ 0.36% copper, and 0.42% zinc. GoldQuest Mining applied for GoldQuest_-_Q415_MDA_FINAL.pdf.) Ministerio de Energia y Minas, 2015a, Energia y Minas ratifica paralizacion de a mining license to develop the Romero project on October 23 extraccion y exportacion de bauxita [Energy and Mines ratified the stoppage (GoldQuest Mining Corp., 2016, p. 3, 5–6). of extraction and export of bauxite]: Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Nickel.—In August, Glencore plc of Switzerland sold 100% Ministerio de Energia y Minas, July 1. (Accessed September 26, 2016, at of its shares in Falconbridge Dominicana S.A. (Falcondo) to http://www.mem.gob.do/index.php/noticias/item/energia-y-minas-ratifica- paralizacion-de-extraccion-y-exportacion-de-bauxita.) Americano Nickel Ltd., which was owned by Global Special Ministerio de Energia y Minas, 2015b, Ministerio de Energia y Minas continua Opportunities Ltd.