The Armenian government has started its third assessment of the Amulsar gold project’s environmental impact on water resources, geology, biodiversity and water quality, Canada-based Lydian International reported on Tuesday, questioning the need for another review of the gold-mining project.

The audit follows two previous government-ordered audits in less than a year.

In September last year, the Armenian government ordered a study looking at the potential impacts of the Amulsar project on water resources. The scope of work will now also include a review of the environmental and social impact assessment and environmental impact assessment (EIA), which were approved before Lydian began constructing the mine.

Lydian president and CEO João Carrêlo said that the company would cooperate with the consulting firm appointed to perform the assessment, but questioned the legal basis for a third audit. He stated that the Armenian government confirmed that the Amulsar project complied with environmental requirements when it approved the EIA.

Illegal blockades have prevented access to Amulsar since June last year. The gold mine is expected to be a large-scale, low-cost operation, producing an average of about 225 000 oz/y.

Carrêlo urged the Armenian government to enforce the rule of law in order to provide access to the Amulsar project site and allow Lydian to resume construction and environmental activities concurrently with the third audit.

“Despite all our efforts to date and notwithstanding the current government’s intolerance of other illegal blockades in the country, Lydian has been prevented from restarting construction activities. The Armenian government’s actions and inactions form part of an ongoing campaign targeting Lydian’s investments in Armenia. No other company in Armenia has been subjected to three audits since June 2018 and been unable to continue its operations.”

The third assessment will take up to 16 weeks to complete, Lydian stated.

Earlier this month, Lydian formally notified Armenia’s government of disputes related to the ongoing blockades of road access to the Amulsar project. Under the UK legislation, Lydian UK may submit the dispute to international arbitration three months after such formal notification, and under Canadian legislation, Lydian Canada can do so after six months.