Guatemala court confirms suspension of Tahoe mining licenses

According to Mining News Pro - (Updates with detail from court, background) GUATEMALA CITY, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Guatemala`s highest court on Monday confirmed the suspension of mining operations at the San Rafael unit of miner Tahoe Resources Inc. , and ordered the government to carry out an immediate consultation of the local indigenous population.

The Constitutional Court upheld the suspension of licenses at Tahoe`s Escobal mine, one of the world`s biggest silver mines, and at the company`s smaller Juan Bosco mine.

The licenses for the two mines were suspended in July 2017 after an anti-mining group alleged that the energy and mining ministry had not consulted with the Xinca indigenous people before awarding the license to Tahoe. Constitutional Court magistrate Martin Guzman told a news conference that the suspension would remain in place until the consultation had been carried out.

After that, it was possible that Tahoe could regain its licenses, he said.

A Tahoe spokesman had no immediate comment.


The suspension of Tahoe`s operations in Guatemala has hurt the company, leading to a second-quarter loss. The company`s chief executive said last month that ending the dispute over the San Rafael unit was his top priority. (Reporting by Sofia Menchu; Editing by Tom Hogue)