Romanian economy minister Constantin Nita recently said that the authorities expect Canadian company Gabriel Resources to start a lawsuit against the state over the Rosia Montana gold mine situation.

“There is a valid contract. Anyone can go to court against the state and win in this type of a contract. Therefore we expect a lawsuit from Rosia Montana (e.n. Gabriel Resources, the majority shareholder). For sure they will sue us”, Nita said during a conference in Alba Iulia, according to Agerpres newswire. He added that the state will be searching for a law firm to represent it in case a lawsuit starts.

According to an article from the Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail, Gabriel Resources doesn’t expect a breakthrough regarding Rosia Montana gold mining project any time soon and started preparing for an international arbitrage procedure which may start in Vienna in the second half of this year. The Canadian company might seek to get billions of dollars in damages from the Romanian state, according to the same source.

In November 2013, the Romanian Senate rejected the draft law that would have pass the project as “extraordinary public interest” which would have green-lighted it to begin. A decisive vote is still expected in the Romanian Chamber of Representatives.

Romanian officials who were in favor of the project at first later changed their public statements after massive street protests in Bucharest and other Romanian cities in the fall of 2013 opposed Gabriel Resources’ intention to use cyanide to extract gold at Rosia Montana.

Gabriel threatened to sue the Romanian Government last September for up to USD 4 billion, for multiple breaches of investment treaties. The project at Rosia Montanah as estimated gold reserves of 17.1 million ounces and 81.1 million ounces of silver.

The Romanian state is a minority partner for Canadian Gabriel Resources in the Rosia Montana Gold Corporation firm that was supposed to kick off the project.

Andrei Chirileasa, andrei@romania-insider.com