Canada’s First Quantum Minerals misses Panama payments deal deadline By Reuters

PANAMA CITY (Reuters) – The Panamanian unit of Canada’s First Quantum Minerals (OTC:) missed a deadline to finalize a deal with Panama’s government that would have increased payments at the miner’s flagship mine, the company and government said on Thursday.

The government had given Minera Panama, which is majority owned by First Quantum (NASDAQ:) Minerals, until Wednesday to sign an agreement reached in January to pay $375 million a year to the government from its Cobre Panama mine.

Months of talks between the miner and government continued past a midnight deadline until early morning, Panama’s commerce and industry ministry said. It added that the miner then sent a new proposal that “fundamentally” changed the deal’s economics.

The Toronto-based miner said the deal was not finalized because “necessary legal protections on termination, stability and transition arrangements could not be agreed.”

The company added it was open to further dialogue.

“Our goal remains to find a mutually acceptable resolution,” Chief Executive Officer Tristan Pascall said in a statement.

Panamanian President Laurentino Cortizo was set to address the matter later on Thursday.

Authorities and the company began negotiating a new concession contract late last year after Cortizo promised to extract better benefits for the country from the copper mine.

First Quantum Mineral’s $6 billion investment in the open-air mine, where operations began in 2019, is considered the largest private investment in the Central American country and is responsible for roughly 3.5% of Panama’s gross domestic product.