(Adds statement from mining minister)
BUENOS AIRES, April 21 (Reuters) - Barrick Gold Corp ABX.TO and its new Chinese partner presented a plan on Friday to make safety and environmental improvements to the Veladero gold mine in Argentina after the third cyanide spill in 18 months, the government said.
Argentina's Energy and Mining Minister Juan Jose Aranguren told reporters that analyzing the plan would take about two weeks and approval would depend on guarantees of investment by Barrick aimed at improving safety at the mine.
"We estimate it will require a couple more weeks," he said, declining to say how much investment had been proposed.
Argentine officials told Barrick earlier this month it had to overhaul environmental and operating processes at the mine following a March 28 cyanide spill and the country's environment ministry asked for a suspension of operations. the world's largest gold miner, has been temporarily restricted from adding cyanide to the mine's gold processing facility in Veladero, although other operations continue.
Alberto Hensel, mining minister of San Juan province where the facility is located, told local radio he hoped the sale of 50 percent of the mine to China's Shandong Gold Mining Co 600547.SS that was announced this month would improve its operations. we know about Shandong is that it is a company that has extensive experience meeting the highest environmental standards, which we believe will contribute to the improvement of the Veladero mine," Hensel told radio station Radio Sarmiento in San Juan on Thursday evening.
The Toronto-based company, which counts Veladero as one of its five core mines, says no material impact was expected on the mine's projected 2017 production.
Barrick Gold did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its new work plan at Veladero.
The company needs to make improvements in pipelines and in its control and monitoring systems as well as expand its leach processing facility, Hensel said.
The provincial government, which rejected a first work plan from Barrick on April 5, is still evaluating a potential fine for the company for the March 28 incident. said penalties could surpass the $9.8 million the company was fined for a 2015 spill. A fine has not yet been applied for a September 2016 incident in which solution containing cyanide flowed over a berm.