With the troy ounce of gold trading around US$1,747 on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the Dominican Republic expects to cash in on the bonanza of its gold exports and rising export prices.
Energy and Mines Minister Antonio Isa Conde said that with most hard currency generating sectors collapsed, gold exports will bring in essential cash. While the gold companies are foreign-owned, contractual agreements stipulate the Dominican government takes a share of the price.
“In this situation, gold-producing countries have an important advantage that they should take advantage of to mitigate the effects of the crisis,” said Isa Conde, highlighting the importance of continuing to exploit gold as a non-renewable resource, always in a socially, environmentally and economically sustainable manner.
“Metal-mining, especially gold mining, is a lever that can help us lift up our economy, but for that to happen it is necessary to create awareness among the people that this sector can be beneficial, as long as it executes its projects in a responsible manner,” he insisted.
The Minister said he was convinced that the extraction and production of gold is not an enemy of this people, but an ally that can contribute much to rebuilding the economy after the passage of the pandemic, both in the Dominican Republic and in other gold exporting countries.
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El Dia
17 April 2020