Unlock the value

The Canadian gold mining outfit Barrick Gold is offering $10m to scientists, engineers and other inventors who can unlock the silver from the ore at its Veladero gold mine in Argentina.

Geologists have determined there are 180 million ounces of silver contained in gold reserves in the ore at the Veladero mine in Argentina. But because the silver particles are encapsulated in silica, current processing methods are recovering only 6.7 per cent of the silver. Barrick's "Unlock the Value" program invites proposals for an economically viable way to significantly increase silver recovery from this type of ore.

For proposals judged to have merit, Barrick will fund research and development. For a technology that is successfully implemented at Veladero, the company will pay a performance bonus of $10m.

'This opportunity will appeal to chemists, metallurgists, physicists, engineers, or any inventor with a new concept for improving silver recovery,' said Greg Wilkins, President and CEO. 'Experience in mining is not required because we are looking for innovation and new approaches. The $10m award is a substantial incentive to spur creative thinking but, beyond that, Barrick will fund research and development for proposals that have merit. Scientists sometimes have difficulty finding funding to take their good ideas to the next level, so we believe this will be a welcome aspect of the program.'