Bolivia: in Potosí, a mega silver deposit that does not only make people happy

Audio 01:22

Cerro Rico, in the background in this photo taken in Potosí, Bolivia, in 2018. Andean peak famous for providing large amounts of silver to Spain during the colonial era.

© AP - Juan Karita

Text by: RFI Follow

2 mins

After seven years of exploration, the Canadian company New Pacific Metals has just announced the results of an economic evaluation study of the Silver Sand project in Bolivia.

And that's promising, according to the company, which owns the entire site.

A mega silver deposit, likely to transform the area into a huge open-pit mine.

This eventuality does not only make people happy and raises questions.

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With our correspondent in La Paz,

With 171 million ounces, the Silver Sand project in Potosí could become one of the largest silver mines in the world.

According to Rui Feng, executive director of New Pacific Metals, the development of this project will have economic benefits for both shareholders and Bolivian communities.

But nothing is certain, according to Roxana Graz, at the head of an opposition formation.

How will the extraction go?

What are the guarantees for the environment?

We have many outstanding questions.

One thing is certain, we will have little impact if the conditions are always the same, ie 3% royalty, a pittance.

Bolivian law indeed offers particularly attractive conditions to a large part of the gold mining industry in the country.

No taxes in particular, and a very low royalty percentage.

Beyond the economy, the project could also create tensions among the communities surrounding the site, according to Ana María Aranibar, who has worked in the Bolivian mining sector for more than thirty years.

They have great challenges ahead of them.

If the communities don't understand the scope of the project, if they are unhappy for one reason or another, then it will be difficult for the company.

Potosí and its silver mines made the fortune of the Kingdom of Spain during colonization.

And this, without real benefits for Bolivia, which today remains one of the poorest countries in Latin America.

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• Bolivia

• Raw materials

• Environment

• Economy