"Hochschild on collision course with Peru communities over mine closures after meeting", 16 December 2021

Hochschild Mining (HOCM.L) is on a collision course with Peruvian communities near its key Inmaculada gold and silver mine, after local residents said on Wednesday the national government had told them it is feasible to legally shut down the mine, even as the firm says it plans to continue operations.

"We thought (the government) was going to ... say the shutdown was impossible, but they have said it is possible to work on it while respecting the law," said Che Bernaola, a leader in Peru's Ayacucho region who has advocated for the mine's closure over allegations it has polluted water sources.

Hochschild told Reuters ahead of the meeting that it expects to be granted approval to extend the life of its Inmaculada mine for 20 more years. It denies the pollution allegations...

...Prime Minister Mirtha Vasquez had said Peru would not back permit extensions for Hochschild's Inmaculada and Pallancata mines... But later, the government appeared to backtrack, saying that mining firms could still request permit extensions in adherence with regulations...

"But there is no deal here, our lives comes first," Asuncion Margarita Gutierrez, a district leader in Ayacucho's Paucar del Sara Sara province, where Hochschild's mines are located, told Reuters...

Hochschild's vice president of legal and corporate affairs, Jose Augusto Palma, told Reuters the company "has no plans to close" Inmaculada or Pallancata and that it had provided all the legal documentation necessary to extend the permits.

"We trust that the government will explain to the leaders the status of the current permits and those that are in process, and that it will respect the legal order that regulates the renewal of permits," he said...

Under Peruvian law, all mines have a planned closure date, which can be modified if more resources are found and if regulators allow it. The four mines in questions have closure dates ranging from 2022 to 2025...