A new mining future for Haiti?
It was confirmed in December 2012 that the Haitian government had granted its first three exploitation permits in about 40 years.
In the past two years, several North American companies had massively invested in exploration, and the results had revealed a strong potential for Gold, Copper and Silver, for a global estimated value of 20 billion dollars (14 billion euros). The two main investors and operators are Majescor (Canada) and VSC Mining (USA).
The new President of Haiti, Michel Martelly, elected in 2011, had promised to open the country to foreign investments, including in the mining industry.
This is the first major investment in the country's mining sector since the 1970's, which had seen a complete collapse of exploitation due to political instability.
The mineralisation occurs essentially in the North of the country, near Cap Haïtien, and is mostly hosted in volcanic terranes, andesitic to rhyolitic in composition. The primary mineralisation includes native gold and silver, but has been subjected to an intense lateritic weathering.