Jamaican mineral exploration company, Geophysx, and Toronto-based mining company, Barrick Gold, have announced an agreement to search for gold and copper in the country.
The partners are tight-lipped about the location of the sites and the volume of minerals their research to date suggest could be available.
They say, however, that there are about six targets with high-yield potential across the island.
Managing Director of Geophysx, Robert Stewart, told Nationwide News that the prospects are good.
Robert Stewart, Managing Director of Geophysx.
Under the agreement, Barrick Gold has exploration licences for approximately 4,000 square kilometers of land in several parishes across the country.
Mr. Stewart was keen to say the licensed areas exclude protected areas.
Barrick Gold will have the right to work with Geophysx to earn up to an 80 percent joint-venture interest in designated properties upon fulfilment of certain spending obligations and study-deliverable milestones.
Speaking at a press conference at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston on Tuesday, Barrick Gold’s country manager for the Dominican Republic, Juana Barcelo, says the company’s presence in Jamaica could result in a significant increase in mineral exports.
Juana Barcelo, Country Manager for Barrick Gold in the Dominican Republic.