New Greek Government ‘Absolutely Against’ Eldorado’s Skouries Mine

Reuters reported Friday that Panagiotis Lafazanis, Greece’s energy minister, has said that the country’s new government is “firmly opposed” to Eldorado Gold Corp.’s (TSX:ELD,NYSE:EGO) Skouries gold mine. The left-wing government has also axed plans to sell the state natural gas utility.

As quoted in the market news:

‘We are absolutely against it and we will examine our next moves on it,’ Lafazanis, a 63-year-old former Communist, told Reuters at his new ministerial office. He declined to say if the government would try to block the project from going ahead.

The project is among the biggest foreign investments in Greece since the country sank into a debt crisis in 2010, with Eldorado taking over the mine in 2012 and promising to invest US$1 billion over five years.

But it has been beset by controversy and violent local protests for years and Syriza had criticized the environment impact of the project on the pristine Halkidiki peninsula landscape of beaches and forest surrounding it.

Click here to read the full Reuters report.