RO attempts blocking gold mining project by placing site under UNESCO protection

Romania will resume the procedure for listing the Rosia Montana site in the list of UNESCO World Heritage, culture minister Bogdan Gheorghiu announced on January 31.

“Following the analysis and consultations, we decided that the procedure of listing the Roşia Montană site in the list of UNESCO World Heritage should be resumed. The notification will be filed today [January 31], thus allowing us to have the case discussed in this summer's meeting of the World Heritage Committee in China,” Gheorghiu said, quoted by Profit.ro.

The final deadline for submitting the application file is February 1, 2021.

Placing the site under UNESCO’s protection is requested by the NGOs advocating against the gold mining project developed by foreign investors in partnership with the state - a project that lingers amid complications related to the environmental permits.

Canadian group Gabriel Resources, the majority shareholder of Roşia Montană Gold Corporation (RMGC), is asking the state USD 4.4 billion in compensations from the Romanian state for not allowing the project, accusing the former Ciolos Government that, in its last days of mandate, it submitted the necessary documents to UNESCO to declare the entire area naturally protected.

No gold exploitation will be carried out in the area, if UNESCO completes the procedure for declaring it as a natural protected area.

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