Mitsotakis opens Skouries gold and copper mine in Halkidiki, a $2 billion investment

Inauguration in Halkidiki

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis formally opened the Skouries gold and copper mine in Halkidiki on Thursday, 8 October, at an event attended by Eldorado Gold president and chief executive Christian Milau and board member George Burns. The Canadian company said all preparatory works at the site are complete and that commercial production begins before the end of the year. The mine is operated by Ellinikos Chrysos (Hellas Gold), whose chairman Christos Balaskas said the company is also looking for opportunities across northern Greece and at Sappes in Thrace. The project had faced obstacles and objections from the local community and environmental organisations for more than three decades.

Investment and output

Mitsotakis said the project absorbed more than 2 billion dollars, placing it among the largest foreign investments in the country's recent history. He described it as possibly the largest foreign productive investment made in Greece in recent decades.

It is possibly the largest foreign productive investment that has been made in our country in recent decades.

At full operation the mine is to produce 140,000 ounces of gold and 30,000 tonnes of copper a year. Balaskas said the mine has a lifespan of 20 years, but he expressed confidence that ongoing exploration will extend the period of extraction. According to Mitsotakis, the state collects taxes from the project, while the municipality holds a share of the mining fees and will receive more than 80 million euros over 20 years through a corporate social responsibility programme.

Government and the 2017 dispute

Mitsotakis drew a clear line between his government and the one in office in 2017. He said his government requested amendments to the investment plan, tightened the already strict environmental terms and asked for additional intervention in processing the mining residues.

I remember well the difficult days of 2017 when a previous government, sunk in its obsessions and its perceptions, effectively made progress on this investment prohibitive.

He also linked the project to natural gas, saying the government is starting the first natural gas extraction in 40 years after a long period in which the country left its resources in the ground.

Jobs and local reaction

The workforce peaked at 5,000 during construction, and about 3,000 people are employed directly and indirectly in the commercial operation, according to company executives. The Mayor of Aristotle, Stelios Valianos, said the day opens a new chapter for the area and asked for the expansion of the related community programmes.

It opens a new chapter for our place.

Balaskas addressed the prime minister directly, arguing that the investment would not have been completed without his contribution.

You opened the chapter on the exploitation of the country's mineral wealth, in contrast to what the various Cassandras argued.

Copper demand and the next term

Milau said demand for copper is expected to rise, and he called the site an important mine for the company and for Greece. Mitsotakis argued that producing critical raw materials at home matters amid geopolitical upheaval in Europe. If voters re-elect his government, he said, the next four-year term will be the great four-year term of investments in the country.

It is the most impressive construction site I have ever visited.

Mitsotakis presented the mine as a model for other projects in northern Greece, where he said the country has untapped mineral wealth.