Four Malian employees of Canadian miner Barrick have been freed from prison after a year in detention, following a deal between the company and Mali’s government to settle a long-running dispute, sources said Saturday.
The workers were arrested in Bamako in November 2024 amid tensions over Mali’s new mining code, which increases the state’s share of revenue from gold projects as prices hit record highs.
Barrick said Monday it had reached an agreement with the authorities to resolve all outstanding issues related to the Loulo-Gounkoto gold complex after two years of talks. The deal included the release of the four detained staff, the company said.
Three sources to confirmed to Reuters the men had been freed but asked not to be identified as they were not authorised to speak publicly.
