Gabriel Resources

Following weeks of uncertainty in which the Bucharest government considered withdrawing its application for UNESCO protection for Rosia Montana, a former gold mine dating from Roman times, the UN cultural heritage agency declared it a World Heritage site on Tuesday.

The move came as a relief to conservation groups who oppose the resumption of mining in the area.

Prime Minister Florin Citu has not taken any official steps to withdraw the file of Rosia Montana site from registration on the UNESCO heritage list, nor has he submitted any proposal on this topic, the press office of the Government informs on Wednesday.

A living statue dressed in golden clothes and depicting Prime Minister Florin Citu was unveiled in Bucharest on Wednesday in Victoriei Square as part of a protest action staged by Greenpeace Romania amidst Romania's governmental coalition discussing how to manage placing the Rosia Montana site on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list.

The Romanian Order of Architects (OAR) calls on the Government to continue the procedure for inscribing the Rosia Montana site on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The region is rich in architectural and cultural heritage, including the most extensive mining system known from the ancient Roman world, remnants of Roman, medieval and modern mining settlements as well as churches belonging to five denominations.

Prime Minister Ludovic Orban said on Friday that the file regarding the inclusion of the Rosia Montană site with UNESCO's World Heritage list is a "serious one", pointing out that there is every chance of a favourable decision in this regard. "As far as I know, there will be a session in June [of UNESCO - editor's note]. Let's see if it will be on the agenda.

Romanian Prime Minister Mihai Tudose has angered environmental activists after announcing on Tuesday that the government will ask UNESCO to set aside a request made by the previous government in January to declare the 2,000-year-old Rosia Montana gold mine a protected area.

Canadian company Gabriel Resources filed a second lawsuit against Romania on Friday seeking $4.4 billion in alleged losses over its stalled Rosia Montana gold and silver project, which the government refused to approve following protests by environmentalists.

Two smaller companies belonging to Gabriel Resources group filed a similar lawsuit in July 2015 at the same court.

The Canadian gold mining company Eldorado Gold Corporation is ready to start a new gold mining project at Certej, in southern Transylvania, after completing a feasibility study.

The company intends to invest some $652 million US in extracting an estimated 44 million tonnes of ore from mine, worth some $3.2 billion US.

Romania’s lower chamber, the Chamber of Deputies, on Tuesday overhelmingly rejected a mining law that would have enabled Canada’s Gabriel Resources to start a controversial gold mining project in central Transylvania.

Last September, the centre-left government of Victor Ponta sent a bill to parliament to approve the project to dig for gold in Rosia Montana.