Introduction
Riko Diq mine is a southwestern part of Balochistan province in Pakistan, known
for its rich mineral resources of gold and copper. The mine was discovered in 1978
and is considered to world sixth largest mine. The mining Project stared in 2010 but
later it was closed to the legal case regarding the mine ownership between the
Federal Government of Pakistan and the Tethyan Copper Company (TCC) of
Australia.
The project gained international, attention due to its potential as one of the largest
underdeveloped Gold and Copper deposits in the world. The estimated reserves of
5.9 billion tons of ore grading 0.41% Copper and Gold reserves amounting up to
41.5 million oz and mining life of at least 40+ years. The development of the Reko
Diq will make Balochistan one of the largest recipients of foreign direct investment
in Pakistan. It will attract great number of foreign investors.
The evaluation of the mine is close to $1 trillion, as the mineral alone are worth close
to $500 billion. It has been stated that Phase 1 is expected to cost around $4 billion
and Phase 2 to cost $3 billion.
The first production is set to expected in 2028, The project is supposed to employ
7500 people and once the starts production it will create 4000 long term jobs during
the expected 40 years of life. Reko Diq mine is considered to have a great lasting
impact on the country’s economy, development and the foreign relation with the
countries which are part of the project.
Methodology
The methodology used is a mixed-method design that uses secondary data. The
secondary data acquired was from journals and research papers related to the study
from the internet, posted by multiple scholars. The statistics and tables along with
the scholars’ opinions helped in enriching and deciding the direction of the research.
The data from the expert along with the numerous information from the secondary
sources aligned with each other proving the direction of the paper and that the
solutions provided are accurate and can be executed. Consensus was taken from the
participants and thus there are no ethical issues related to the data obtained.
However, there were certain limitations present in data due to time constraints and
lack of sources. Finally, there was no funding provided causing the information
gathered to be too little to come to an accurate conclusion. The info gathered was
mostly biased on how the mine would affect the economic conditions of the country
and the development of the province.