DUSHANBE, June 7, 2016, Asia-Plus – Tajik-Chinese joint god mining company, JV Zeravshan, has reportedly been compelled to pay a heavy fine for environmental pollution.
According to information posted on the anticorruption agency’s website, criminal proceedings have been instituted against Bobo Bobokhonov, deputy director-general of JV Zeravshan, and Qobil Tursunov, manager of the company’s ecology and industrial safety department.
Specialists from the Sughd Directorate for Environmental Protection reportedly inspected JV Zeravshan in January last year for observance of environmental protection requirements and imposed a 13.3709 million somoni fine on the company for pollution of the environment of the city of Panjakent in 2014.
For the purpose of avoiding paying the mentioned amount, Bobokhonov and Tursunov reportedly drew up a document for payment of 561,726 somoni and submitted the document to the Committee for Environmental Protection under the Government of Tajikistan.
A special commission comprising representatives of the anticorruption agency and other relevant agencies has been set up to check on the credibility of the report prepared by the Sughd Directorate for Environmental Protection and the document drawn up by JV Zeravshan top managers.
Examination of the report and the documents has reportedly established that the facts provided by the Sughd Directorate for Environmental Protection are authentic and JV Zeravshan top managers tried to avoid payment of that amount.
JV Zeravshan has been compelled to pay the 13.3709 million somoni fine, the website says.
JV Zeravshan has reportedly accounted for 36.3 percent of mining output produced in Tajikistan over the first quarter of this year.
China’s Zijin Mining now owns 75 percent of the shares in JV Zeravshan.
The company was launched as a joint venture with Nelson Resources Ltd (44%) and the Tajikistan government (51%) and the IFC (5%) in 1994. In September 2002, Avocet signed a heads of agreement to acquire the Tajik gold assets of Toronto-based Nelson Resources Ltd held through Nelson”s subsidiary, Commonwealth and British Minerals Ltd. The assets included a 44% interest in Zeravshan Gold Company. In November 2004, Avocet increased its equity interest in ZGC from 49% to 75%.
In 2007, Zijin Mining Group Co acquired Avocet’s equity stake in Zeravshan Gold Company.
Zijin Mining Group Co., Ltd is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under the stock code of 2899. In 2005, its gold production ranked 20th among global gold producers with a yield of 20.96 tons. Since December 20th 2005, Zijin Mining has been included in the FTSE mine index. On March 20th 2006, Zijin entered into the Dow Jones Offshore 50 Index.
