AUSTRALIAN rare earths miner Lynas Corp will be allowed to continue operations at its processing plant in Gebeng, said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir today.
The government intends to renew the plant’s licence as it involved a large investment, Dr Mahathir said at a press conference in Tokyo which was broadcast on Facebook Live.
“We think we’ll have to renew the licence.
“We will allow Lynas to carry on, otherwise we are going to lose a big investment from Australia,” Dr Mahathir said at a press conference with the Foreign Correspondents Club.
Lynas’ licence is due for renewal in September but has been facing opposition over waste disposal issues.
Malaysia’s Ministry of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change has been adamant that Lynas must remove and ship back waste stockpiles to Australia as a precondition to licence renewal, which Australia has rejected.
There are some 450,000 tonnes of radioactive waste accumulated at the plant since it began operations in late 2012.
Dr Mahathir today affirmed that Malaysia still wants Lynas to remove and take back its waste, and if Australia refused, “we are going to talk to them”, adding that an alternative might have to be found if the country still refused.
“If we fail, of course we need to do something with the material, maybe spread it around somewhere so as not to have concentrated radioactive material in one place,” he said.
Earlier this month, despite uncertainty over its licence, Lynas said it would continue with plans to build a permanent disposal facility for low-level radioactive waste from its Gebeng plant in Pahang.
It said Malaysia’s Atomic Energy Licensing Board has approved its planning framework and site selection.
Lynas has faced consistent opposition from the ruling government’s Kuantan lawmaker Fuziah Salleh as well as green groups since it began operations, over fears of radioactive contamination in the environment.
MALAY MAIL
So Dapsters Wong Tuck , Yeo & PKR's Fuziah .Whats next ?
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