Read the Initial Assessment published 1 August 2023: English

On 9 November 2022, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea (ELC-PNG), the Center for Environmental Law and Community Rights Inc. (CELCOR) and Jubilee Australia Research Centre submitted a specific instance to the AusNCP alleging that Newcrest Mining Ltd and Harmony Gold (Australia) Pty Ltd, two gold mining companies, had not observed the General Policies (Chapter II), Disclosure (Chapter III), Human Rights (Chapter IV) and Environment (Chapter VI) provisions of the Guidelines. Specifically, the issues concern the planned Wafi Golpu gold and copper mine project, including a proposal to dispose of mining waste via deep sea tailings placement (DTSP) into the Huon Gulf in Papua New Guinea’s Morobe Province. The submitters allege that the company failed to adequately consult and obtain consent for DTSP from the affected communities and failed to undertake adequate environmental assessments.

The Independent Examiner considered the admissibility criteria during the initial assessment process and engaged with parties in written correspondence. On 1 August 2023, the NCP published an initial assessment deciding to accept the case for further examination. The AusNCP will move to make an offer of good offices to both parties.