An internal letter from Barrick indicates that as part of a legal battle over the share of revenue owed to Mali, the military government of this West African state has begun seizing gold stocks from the Canadian mining company Barrick.

The seizure follows a warning letter sent to Barrick earlier this month by Mali's lead investigating judge, Boubacar Moussa Diarra, saying that three tons of gold would be seized. On Monday, January 13, a senior Barrick official confirmed that three tons had been seized by the military government and transported to the capital, Bamako. According to the latter, the gold was extracted from a mine near Kayes, in the west of the country, and transported by plane and truck to the capital on Saturday evening. This gold seizure, valued at around $180 million US, is part of the conflict over revenues due to the Malian state