Bucaramanga, Colombia, December 14, 2009—
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, and Greystar Resources Ltd launched a program to help Colombia’s California Municipality establish effective strategies for managing royalty revenue from the Angostura gold-silver project.
The program is expected to increase community involvement in the public management of Angostura royalties, providing opportunities for all local stakeholders. It also will advise the Vetas and Suratá Municipalities in an effort to attract government resources to improve the living conditions of each community. Total cost of the initiative is about $330,000, with $224,000 as Greystar’s contribution.
“This IFC-Greystar initiative is part of an ongoing social responsibility effort within the communities surrounding the Angostura gold-silver project,” said Frederick Felder, Executive Vice President of Greystar. “The goal is to achieve growth and sustainable development within the region by implementing programs that build community participation.”
The program, along with others being studied with IFC and the Canadian International Development Agency, seeks to mitigate social and environmental impacts of the Angostura project on local communities. It will be measured by the adoption of best practices in municipal investment and the increase in the number of residents with access to better education, health, and potable water supplies.
Roberto Albisetti, IFC Representative for Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela, emphasized IFC’s commitment to supporting initiatives that help improve living conditions of communities where natural resources are extracted. “This project has the potential to determine new social and environmental standards for Colombia, as well as increase employment opportunities and provide additional benefits for the local communities,” he said.
Greystar Resources Ltd is completing a feasibility and environmental-impact study of the Angostura gold-silver project. Subject to a positive bankable feasibility study, approval, and successful project financing, Angostura is expected to begin production in 2012. Upon commercial production, Angostura will generate estimated royalties for the Municipality of California of $10 million to $15 million annually.
IFC is the only international financial institution focused exclusively on the private sector, the engine of sustainable development in emerging markets. Along with IBRD, IFC is currently seeking a capital increase to strengthen its ability to create opportunity for the poor in developing countries―including by supporting projects that generate social benefits from extractive industries in the Andean region.
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, creates opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. We foster sustainable economic growth in developing countries by supporting private sector development, mobilizing private capital and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments. Our new investments totaled $14.5 billion in fiscal year 2009, helping channel capital into developing countries during the financial crisis. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
About Greystar Resources Ltd
Greystar Resources Ltd is a precious metals exploration and development company that wholly owns the multimillion ounce Angostura gold-silver deposit in northeastern Colombia. A positive prefeasibility study of the deposit announced in March 2009, envisions average annual production of 511,000 ounces of gold and 2.3 million ounces of silver over a 15-year mine life. For more information, contact
www.greystarresources.com
.
