Bougainville Landowners Warn Companies at Panguna Mine to Stop Work

A vocal group of landowners in Bougainville has issued a stark public warning to Bougainville Copper Limited (BCL) and its partner, Indian company Lloyds Metals and Energy Ltd, demanding they halt all operations and vacate the Panguna mine area. The landowners are protesting what they term 'unauthorised entry and activities,' asserting their indigenous ownership rights over the vast copper reserves. This intervention signals growing local unease despite the Autonomous Bougainville Government's (ABG) push to redevelop the mine as a cornerstone of Bougainville's economic self-reliance and its bid for independence from Papua New Guinea.

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Failure to comply will result in us taking necessary actions to protect our indigenous lands, resources and territories in accordance with our indigenous ownership rights and relevant legislation and regulatory frameworks in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville and Papua New Guinea.

The Panguna mine, once one of the world's largest copper reserves, has been dormant since its closure 37 years ago, during the early stages of Bougainville's civil war. While the ABG, in partnership with BCL, has recently moved machinery and equipment into the area for feasibility and exploration work, this progress has apparently outpaced essential community consultations. Paramount Chief Moses Pipiro, a signatory to the public notice, stated that local people are uncomfortable with the companies' presence and the speed at which activities are progressing.

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They already shipped their machinery up there, trucks and excavators, all these things.

Pipiro specifically highlighted a critical breakdown in communication: "The problem is our government didn't consult and run the awareness to the resource owners in Panguna. That's the first thing. The second is we didn't know what sort of agreement has been made between our government and Lloyds Metals and Energy Ltd." This lack of transparency and consultation fuels the landowners' determination to protect their ancestral lands and resources, issuing a 24-hour ultimatum for the companies to withdraw personnel and equipment. Failure to comply, they warn, will result in 'necessary actions' to safeguard their rights, underscoring a potential conflict between development aspirations and indigenous land rights.

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The problem is our government didn't consult and run the awareness to the resource owners in Panguna. That's the first thing. The second is we didn't know what sort of agreement has been made between our government and Lloyds Metals and Energy Ltd.