Rio Tinto | Minerals and Metals for the world

Treasure Island
In Tok Pisin, "Yumi bung wantaim" is the message from the Lihir gold mine - meaning "Let us all work together". Words and pictures by Anthony Bannister.

Lihir is a small, rugged island that rises steeply from the floor of the south-west Pacific. Part of the territory of Papua New Guinea, it is one of a long chain of islands off the north-east coast of New Ireland. It is some 22km long and 14.5km across, with deeply forested slopes reaching to around 600m above sea level.

Together with its four smaller neighbours, it bears witness to titanic volcanic events that began deep under the ocean and eventually built lava cones rising to a kilometre or more above its surface.

The youngest of the volcanoes on the island became inactive less than a million years ago and is still pumping out heat and hot water. Part of it collapsed towards the ocean, leaving a huge amphitheatre on the land that contains the heart of the extinct volcano. Within it is the giant Ladolam gold deposit, comprising two main bodies of mineralization (Leinetz and Minifie) with numerous offshoots and satellites.

The Lihir resource contains 44.7 million ounces of gold, making it one of the largest gold deposits of its type ever discovered.

Today, this is the scene of one of the world's most remarkable gold mining operations: it is literally a treasure island, operated by Rio Tinto through its Lihir Management Company. Rio Tinto also has a 14.49 per cent shareholding in Lihir Gold Limited, a public company registered in Papua New Guinea, whose other shareholders comprise institutions and individuals, with 6.01 per cent of the shares held in trust on behalf of the Lihirians.



Treasure Island In Tok Pisin, "Yumi bung wantaim" is the message from the Lihir gold mine - meaning "Let us all work together". Words and pictures by Anthony Bannister. Lihir is a small, rugged island that rises steeply from the floor of the south-west Pacific. Part of the territory of Papua New Guinea, it is one of a long chain of islands off the north-east coast of New Ireland. It is some 22km long and 14.5km across, with deeply forested slopes reaching to around 600m above sea level. Together with its four smaller neighbours, it bears witness to titanic volcanic events that began deep under the ocean and eventually built lava cones rising to a kilometre or more above its surface. The youngest of the volcanoes on the island became inactive less than a million years ago and is still pumping out heat and hot water. Part of it collapsed towards the ocean, leaving a huge amphitheatre on the land that contains the heart of the extinct volcano. Within it is the giant Ladolam gold deposit, comprising two main bodies of mineralization (Leinetz and Minifie) with numerous offshoots and satellites. The Lihir resource contains 44.7 million ounces of gold, making it one of the largest gold deposits of its type ever discovered. Today, this is the scene of one of the world's most remarkable gold mining operations: it is literally a treasure island, operated by Rio Tinto through its Lihir Management Company. Rio Tinto also has a 14.49 per cent shareholding in Lihir Gold Limited, a public company registered in Papua New Guinea, whose other shareholders comprise institutions and individuals, with 6.01 per cent of the shares held in trust on behalf of the Lihirians.
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Review is published by Rio Tinto, 6 St James' Square, London SW1Y 4LD, England Telephone +44 (0)20 7930 2399 Editor: Cherry DeGeer