"Peru is and will be a mining country," said Gonzalo Tamayo, Minister of Energy and Mines, during the conference held last November 24 at Unviersidad del Pacífico. Tamayo presented a diagnosis of the current situation of the mining sector in the event 'Towards the Bicentennial: Perspectives and Pending Agenda for Sustainable Mining in Peru'.
"Peru ranks first in Latin America in production of gold, lead, zinc, among others. And ranks second worldwide in silver production", said the minister. He also noted that our country ranks first in world silver reserves and second in molybdenum reserves.
On the other hand, Carlos Gálvez Pinillos, president of the National Society of Mining, Petroleum and Energy (SNMPE), estimated that this year we will be the second largest copper producer in the world.
However, Tamayo said that although copper production is expected to reach 2.4 million metric tons (MTF) this year, "we are in a cycle where mining investments are in pause because the price cycle helped push forward several projects and allowed companies to make decisions in some risky cases". The head of the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM) estimated that recovery in investment would be achieved in 2018
As part of the event, Elsa Galarza, Minister of Environment, gave the conference 'Gestión medioambiental para una minería sostenible' ('Environmental management for sustainable mining'). "We have the vision of environmental economists," she said while explaining that her sector seeks convergence between economic development and environmental sustainability.
Elsa Galarza, Minister of Environment and graduate from our university spoke about environmental management
Carlos Gálvez Pinillos, president of the National Society of Mining, Petroleum and Energy (SNMPE)
Social advancement and procedure facilitation
One of the government's actions to strengthen the sector is 'social advancement', which is the implementation of social projects that benefit the communities where a mining project will be carried out. The aim is to reduce social conflicts and promote environmentally responsible mining investment.
"We seek to improve the living conditions of the population, and also to improve project acceptability conditions," said Minister Tamayo. "A key element is commitment fulfillment," said Minister Galarza.
Another important aspect is the elimination of excessive procedures. The goal is to keep only those procedures that are essential for the completion of projects, said the head of the Ministry of Energy and Mines, who was in favor of simplifying the National Public Investment System (SNIP).
Peruvian Southern Gas Pipeline
Minister Tamayo referred to the Executive's decision to refuse to modify the anti-corruption clause, related to undue payments in the process of awarding the Peruvian Southern Gas Pipeline.
"We have acted according to what is established in the contract, and we will continue to respect each of the contract milestones, evaluating well the options to achieve the goal of bringing natural gas to Peru", he said.
Carlos Galvez Pinillo, Carlos Casas, Gonzalo Tamayo and Fernando Aragón
Oswaldo Molina, Elsa Galarza, Javier Torres Seoane and Carlos Casas
About the event
The event 'Towards the Bicentennial: Perspectives and Pending Agenda for Sustainable Mining in Peru', organized by Universidad del Pacífico (UP) Center for Mining and Sustainability Studies (CEMS), was held on Thursday, November 24 at the UP premises. The keynote speeches were given by the Minister of Energy and Mines, Gonzalo Tamayo; and the Minister of Environment, Elsa Galarza.
The comments were in charge of Carlos Galvez Pinillos, President of the National Society of Mining, Petroleum and Energy (SNMPE); Fernando Aragón, Professor at the Simon Fraser University in Canada; Javier Torres Seoane from Asociación Servicios Educativos Rurales (SER); and Oswaldo Molina, UP Professor. The moderator was Carlos Casas Tragodara, Director of CEMS.