China Development Bank provides loan for Kratie Gold Mine Project

Project narrative

In August 2018, Xing Yuan Kanng Yeak Co., Ltd received a license from Cambodia’s Ministry of Mines and Energy to operate a gold mining business on a 28 square km area within Sambo district in Kratie province. China Development Bank (CDB) subsequently issued a loan to Xing Yuan Kanng Yeak Co., Ltd for the $70 million Kratie Gold Mine Project. The precise face value and borrowing terms of the loan are unknown. The purpose of the project was to construct a gold production line within the 28 square km gold licensing area in Sambo district and Kratie province. However, the project faced significant implementation delays due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Xing Yuan Kanng Yeak Co., Ltd. produced 8.2 kg of gold ore for the first time on October 11, 2022, with the aim of producing at least 60 kg in the first three months of operations. A ceremony to mark the beginning of gold production was attended by Cambodia’s Minister of Mines and Energy Governor of Kratie Province Va Thon. The Kratie gold mine went through an Initial Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (IEIA) released by the government. The IEIA utilized Cambodia's Ministry of Environment's Joint Guidelines and the Rapid Environmental Assessment. It is unclear how closely the recommendations of the IEIA were followed by Xing Yuan Kanng Yeak Co., Ltd. Equitable Cambodia, a non-profit focused on advocating for the protection of land and natural resource rights in Cambodia, claims the company did not follow the guidance from the IEIA. The report also interviewed locals who claimed groundwater supplies were reduced, traditional gravesites in forested lands were cleared, land was seized without payment, noise pollution, and low wages. Xing Yuan Kanng Yeak Co., Ltd. was suspended by the Ministry of Mines and Energy in 2024 due to the death of a worker when a pit collapsed.