Accepted Manuscript

Nickel mining in northern New Caledonia - a path to sustainable

development?

Matthias Kowasch

PII: S0375-6742(18)30174-2
DOI: doi:10.1016/j.gexplo.2018.09.006
Reference: GEXPLO 6195
To appear in: Journal of Geochemical Exploration
Received date: 12 March 2018
Revised date: 26 July 2018
Accepted date: 14 September 2018

Please cite this article as: Matthias Kowasch , Nickel mining in northern New Caledonia -
a path to sustainable development?. Gexplo (2018), doi:10.1016/j.gexplo.2018.09.006

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Nickel mining in northern New Caledonia - a path to sustainable

development?

Author: Matthias Kowasch, University of Graz (Austria), matthias.kowasch@uni-graz.at

Address:
University of Graz

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Department of Geography and Regional Science
Heinrichstr. 36
8010 Graz

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Austria

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Abstract

Mining is associated with unsustainable development pathways and frequently, local

communities are affected by environmental degradation and social upheavals. In many
developing countries, its macroeconomic effects are negative and promote conflict. At the
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same time, the resource sector is an engine of economic growth.

The Koniambo nickel project in the French overseas territory of New Caledonia is unusual
compared to other large-scale projects worldwide. Kanak independence aspirations resulted in
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the Koniambo project, as an ‘instrument’ for their economic and political emancipation from
France.
The mining operator KNS, a joint venture of the local, Kanak dominated SMSP and the Swiss
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group Glencore, is taking measures to reduce environmental impacts, privileging local

employment and supporting ethical business practices. I examine the success of KNS
operations through its sustainable development report and based on several years of fieldwork
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in and around the site. I discover a mixed picture. Alternative economic practices of benefit to
the Kanak population are less than successful, and social disparities within indigenous
communities are widening. Customary land is being commodified and developed, driven by
neoliberal goals. Like other large-scale mining companies in New Caledonia, KNS profits
from tax exemptions. To contribute to a true sustainable development with less ‘green-
washing’, Koniambo needs to provide solidarity-based criteria for subcontracting, and pay
appropriate taxes to the New Caledonian administration. The political authorities need to
establish a wealth fund for future generations and should initiate economic diversification
before dividends from the nickel sector fill its coffers.

Key words: Nickel mining, New Caledonia, sustainable development, indigenous people,
economic emancipation, imperial lifestyles
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1. Introduction

In the south of New Caledonia, a French overseas territory in the South Pacific, the majority
shareholder of the Goro Nickel project, the Brazilian company Vale, recently declared it
would shut down its nickel processing plant in June 2018 if the economic situation does not
improve. Koniambo, a second large nickel smelter built in the last 10 years in New Caledonia,
has had more positive news. In December 2017, the second furnace of the Koniambo nickel
smelter was repaired so that the mining operator could increase its production. The mining
company SMSP (Société Minière du Sud Pacifique), one of the two shareholders of the

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project, announced on its webpage: “On December 15 at 3.30 pm, three days after the first
slag roll, furnace 2 delivered its first metal casting, carrying in its wake an appanage of
feelings of satisfaction, delight, relief and accomplishment, not only by the management team

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and KNS 1,588 workforce but also both partners Glencore and SMSP.” (SMSP, 2017) The
commissioning of the second furnace ends nearly 2 years of uncertainty and doubt, during

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which Koniambo produced lowered volumes of nickel-metal. The latest news seems to secure
the future of the Koniambo nickel project in the Northern Province of New Caledonia.

Mining is mostly associated with palpably unsustainable patterns of development and growth
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(Bebbington et al., 2008), because minerals are finite and are exploited without being
replaced. In the 1990s, Auty drew on the historical experience of mineral economies in
different countries in Africa, Asia and South-America to argue that mineral-rich countries
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perform less well than economies that are resource poor (Auty, 1991, 1993, 1998). In
addition, several authors have claimed that large resource endowments may prove to be a
curse rather than a blessing (Gelb, 1988; Bridge, 2004). Nevertheless, incomes from mining
projects can be used for sustainable development where their financial gains are reflected or
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reinvested in other economic sectors (e.g. tourism, family agriculture, renewable energy
supply). Economic development and environmental protection have fused in debates over the
best ways and measures for making mining more sustainable (Bridge, 2004; Esteves, 2012).
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In New Caledonia, the Koniambo project was designed from the outset to contribute to
employment and economic development. But it is also an instrument for economic
emancipation from France, which in turn represents a base for political independence
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(Néaoutyine, 2006; Pitoiset and Wéry, 2008; Kowasch, 2010). This article asks whether a
large-scale nickel project is really compatible with sustainable socioeconomic development in
the North of New Caledonia. What measures have to be taken to make mining operations and
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economic development more sustainable and fair, so that all communities in the Northern
Province can benefit? The mining operator KNS (Koniambo Nickel SAS) published two
sustainable development reports in 2014 and 2015, which will be analysed. I will ask how
KNS contributes to sustainable local development? Or are the measures taken by the mining
operator just a form of “green washing” that supports a neoliberal development model, which
is leading to widening socio-economic disparities? I begin with a discussion on mining
development and sustainability before describing the methods, giving a short history of the
Koniambo project, presenting and discussing the results concerning sustainable development
paths in the vicinity of the nickel smelter.

2. Mining development, sustainability and imperial lifestyles

Elliot (1999: 1) argues that “understanding the characteristics of successful sustainable

development projects will be essential for meeting the ongoing and evolving challenges
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worldwide of balancing present needs against those of the future”. Present and future needs
were highlighted in the “Our common future” report, published by the United Nations World
Commission on Environment and Development, better known as Brundtland report:
“Sustainable development is not a fixed state of harmony, but rather a process of change in
which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of
technological development, and institutional change are made consistent with future as well
as present needs.” (UN World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987: 17).
Thus, sustainable development is not seen as something to achieve, but as a constant process
of change. According to Lambert and Morgan (2010), sustainable development has three
pillars: economic prosperity (development), environmental quality and social justice. The
three dimensions are not separate but intertwine. Different priorities are made depending on

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the interests of individual citizens, politicians or corporate interests. It is not unexpected that
companies prioritize the economic dimension of sustainability. They frequently link the
concept to self-responsibility, a deregulation of markets and economic growth (Tremmel,

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2003). From 2005-2014, the United Nations declared the “Decade of Education for
Sustainable Development (ESD)”, followed by the UN Global Action Programme (GAP) on

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Education for Sustainable Development 2015-2019 (Unesco, 2014). The concept of
sustainable development also appears in formal education (Bagoly-Simó, 2013).

In sum, since the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro 1992, sustainable development has become
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a social guiding principle. According to Swyngedow (2007), everybody seems to support the
concept of sustainability, nobody is against, from Greenpeace to the neoliberal World Bank.
Krueger and Gibbs (2007: 1) affirms that “in the battle of big public ideas, sustainability has
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won: the task of the coming years is simply to work out the details (…)”. In September 2015,
the UN general assembly adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty,
protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all as part of a new sustainable development
agenda. Each of the 17 goals has specific targets to be achieved over the next 15 years. The
SDGs are the expression of a double-crisis of environment and development. In contrast to
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the former Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), adopted by the UN in 2001, the SDGs
not only focus on countries of the Global South but worldwide, and they move socio-
ecological questions to the fore. Brand and Wissen (2017) criticise that SDGs transformation
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policies remain restricted to ecological modernization. Questions of social transformations

and justice are mostly excluded. Political authorities tend to pay greater attention to the
sustainability problems of (multi) national automobile or mining companies than impacts on
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local populations. The questioning of power relations and questions of life quality are pushed
back. Poulantzas (2002) speaks in this context of a “structural selectivity” of the capitalist
state.
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Resource exploitation is closely connected to non-sustainability, not only because the mining
of fossil fuels leads to significant CO2 emissions, but because mineral resources do not
regenerate over timescales that are meaningful to humans. The Earth has limited carrying
capacity (Meadows et al., 1972). As noted by Joyce and Thomson (2002), the Earth summit in
1992 said very little about how mining would fit within the goals of sustainability. The
mining sector has been associated with “palpably unsustainable patterns of development”
(Bebbington et al., 2008), because it draws down natural capital and create negative
externalities. In Melanesia (primarily in Papua New Guinea), terms such as “social
disintegration” (Filer, 1990) or the “pathologies” of mining (Golub, 2006) are often used to
characterise the rapid transformations that arise from the social effects of large-scale mining
operations on local communities. Banks et al. (2017) call such developments, including
disintegration and pathologies, “immanent”; they distinguish them from “intentional
development” that often have depoliticising tendencies. Intentional development programs
include technical or material interventions, strengthen infrastructure and institutions.
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In contrast to unsustainable patterns of development, mineral and energy resources are at the
same time a main engine of global manufacturing growth. Economic growth depends on
resources supply, which leads to two theoretical propositions that link mining to sustainable
development. First, mineral extraction and processing are processes of capital conversion,
through which stocks of irreplaceable natural capital are converted into replaceable human
capital. Second, wealth creation is central to the anti-poverty agenda of sustainable
development (Bridge, 2004: 233; Eggert 1995; Sterna, 1995).

The extractive industries were instrumental to industrial development in the 19th century in
the UK, Germany and France, and rising incomes have been recorded in contemporary
mining regions in Australia and other countries (O’Faircheallaigh, 2013). If mining industries

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generate additional incomes through enhancing employment and profits to supply chains, this
attenuates some of their negative impacts (Aragaon and Rud, 2009). Mikesell (1994) argued
that sustainable development in mining regions can be achieved by saving and reinvesting

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each year an amount equal to the present value of the annual net revenue from the sale of
minerals. This argument requires a high degree of substitutability between human and natural
capital.

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Brand and Wissen (2017) challenge the idea of substitutability between human and natural
capital, firstly because natural capital has no monetary price, and second, the approach
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neglects existing power relations and public welfare. They coined the term of “imperial
lifestyle” (ibid, 2017: 44), which refers to the unequal conditions and norms of production,
distribution and consumption. The term not only addresses material practices, but also social
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guiding principles and discourses. The imperial lifestyle is based on exclusivity, it can only be
sustained as long as there is an “elsewhere” to where costs are transferred. The consumption
of electronic devices in the West for example requires the extraction of mineral resources in
developing nations where working conditions, environmental damage and energy
consumption are not visible when we buy smartphones, laptops, etc. The reproduction of
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individuals through production and consumption norms is a constitutive element of the

imperial lifestyle: the majority of the population is obliged to sell their labour in order to
survive. This workforce must be cheap so that multinational companies can satisfy their
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shareholders with growing benefits.

Bebbington et al. (2008) note that mineral-dependent states whose economic activity rely on
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one sector elicit socio-political relationships that undermine sustainable development.

Resource-rich countries such as DR Congo, Peru or Papua New Guinea (PNG) do not register
overall socio-economic growth. Mineral extraction has not led to prosperity and economic
vitality, but represents “a source of economic instability and depression” (Freudenburg and
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Wilson, 2002: 229). In the 1990s, Richard Auty coined the theory of “resource curse”. While
some researchers speak of the “well-documented resource curse” (Collier and Hoeffer, 2005:
625), others argue that the evidence for the theory is largely an artefact of indicator choice
(Brunnschweiler and Bulte, 2008). At the centre of the resource curse debate is the argument
extractive industries are associated with poor economic performance (Auty, 1993, Sachs and
Warner, 1995, Bebbington et al., 2008), which increase the vulnerability to conflicts by
exacerbating tensions over the distribution of resource rents (Le Billon, 2012). Several
reasons are given. One is that mining windfalls from high mineral prices are absorbed too
rapidly, resulting in inflation and high exchange rates (Bridge, 2004). This phenomenon was
already described by the idea of “Dutch disease” in which mineral wealth leads to levels of
consumption that cannot be sustained through subsequent economic downswings. Moreover,
financial and human resources are directed away from non-mining sectors, leaving them
undeveloped and non-competitive when the mining boom ends (ibid, 2004; see also Mikesell,
1994). In this context, Pegg (2006) highlights the missing investment in labour productivity in
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non-mineral sectors, resulting in underinvestment in education. Nevertheless, the extractive

sector is not the only factor limiting economic diversification. But the concentration of one
economic sector brings with it vulnerabilities associated with export dependence, especially
arising from price volatility for minerals on the world market (Bebbington et al., 2008). Other
researchers argue that mining infrastructures often take the form of enclave economies
(Szablowski, 2002) developing few links to local subcontractors and suppliers.

In sum, the relationship between large-scale mining and development can be described as
“contentious and ambiguous”, referring to Bebbington et al. (2008: 887). “Contentious”
because mining has so often delivered negative social, environmental and economic effects,
but significant benefits only for the few. “Ambiguous” because the mining sector can ‘just

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maybe’ contribute to a fairer and sustainable local development and wealth. Banks et al.
(2017: 208) think that the contradictions “can be put down, in part at least, to an under-
theorised approach to the nature of the relationship between these mining operations and

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affected communities”. The economic flows are central, also for initiate an eventual
sustainable community development, if that is possible.

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The last two decades have witnessed the emergence of local and international activism and
protest against mining activities, environmental damage and social upheavals, but also
discursive changes within the mining industry. In 2001, the International Council for Mining
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and Metals (ICMM) was founded, a sort of ‘club’ of self-styled responsible mining companies
(Bebbington, 2008). The creation of ICMM had much to do with an increasingly engagement
of mining companies with ideas of sustainable development, also in preparation for the 2002
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World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg (South Africa). On its webpage,

ICMM (2018a), which brings together 25 of the world’s leading mining and metals
companies, announces its principle: “We believe that only by mining with principles can the
mining and metals industry contribute to sustainable development and protect the planet.” To
join ICMM, the companies have to subscribe to its “sustainable development framework”
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(Bebbington et al., 2008). ICCM membership requires a commitment to 10 principles

(ICMM, 2018b), including the integration of sustainable development in corporate strategy
(principle 2) and the improvement in environmental performance issues (principle 6). One of
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the 25 member companies is Glencore that is a 49% shareholder in the Koniambo project in
New Caledonia. All member companies are represented by their CEOs on ICMM’s council
and by nominated representatives on various committees. ICMM has also felt obliged to deal
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with arguments about the resource curse (e.g. ICMM, 2006). While the conclusions ICMM
draw explain failures to turn resource wealth into development mostly in terms of weak
government and bad governance rather than a result of mining development per se
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(Bebbington et al., 2008).

The increasing engagement of mining companies with sustainable development can be seen as
a variant of ‘green-washing’ in order to protect market shares. Companies and politicians sell
the commitment as a “win-win-situation” to local people. Mining activities should be less
polluting, control erosion processes and reforest damaged mine sites. But we often forget that
governments and the market are not neutral. The green modernization of mining activities
does not question existing power relations and leads to the marginalization of large parts of
the population. Not only mining infrastructures (processing plants, power plants, etc.) are
produced with resources from other parts of the world, but also consumption products that
increasingly arrive in the mining region. Decision-making is mostly far away from the mine
sites and mining benefits remain with a small number of people.

3. Methods
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The article is based on extensive literature review concerning nickel mining, sustainable
development and indigenous people. A report on sustainable development published by KNS
represents a key element to understand how this mining operator perceives sustainability
(KNS, 2015). To get a deeper understanding of how indigenous Kanak representatives and
public authorities want to promote a sustainable economic growth in the Northern Province, I
carried out four years of fieldwork in the VKP (Voh-Kone-Pouembout) region in the North of
New Caledonia (Fig. 1). I contributed to a research project exploring mining governance in
New Caledonia (between 2009 and 2013), funded by CNRT (Centre National de la Recherche
Technologique). Centre stage in the study were projects to be established on customary land
of Baco to stimulate employment and sustainable financial returns. Baco is often described as
‘flagship’ project for New Caledonia; thus, the projects serve as example for future operations

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on customary land; a ‘sustainability benefit’ from the large KNS project to the North.

Moreover, I organised empirical studies in the vicinity of the Koniambo nickel smelter in

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2007/08 and 2016. Quantitative semi-structured surveys in six Kanak villages were carried
out: in Baco, Gatope, Koniambo, Netchaot, Oundjo and Tieta (Fig. 1). In 2008/09, 239 people

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were interviewed, and 186 in 2016. The surveys were complemented by qualitative interviews
with customary representatives, local businessmen and politicians, based on several lead
questions. The aim of the surveys and interviews was “to understand people’s lives, as lived
in real time and space” (Katz, 1994: 70). In my case, local customary institutions encouraged
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a long stay in Kanak communities so that survey and interview information was
complemented by participatory observation. I stayed around two years in the Kanak village of
Baco, a few kilometres away from Kone, the capital of the Northern Province. Since
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indigenous Kanak people are involved in a prolonged struggle for political independence from
France, my position as a white, non-French, non-indigenous researcher affected my
fieldwork, but permitted some access to customary representatives and everyday voices in
Baco and other Kanak communities (Crossa, 2012; Kowasch, 2014).
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In addition to the empirical studies in the frame of a PhD, postdoctoral research and different
research projects, and the revision of the spatial development plan for the VKP region
contributed to my findings. The spatial development plan allowed analysis of the state of
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infrastructure (in terms of transport, habitation and economic activities) and to design future
development measures.
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Fig. 1: The field – VKP region and studied Kanak villages (Sources: DITTT, 2008; author;
Cartography: author)
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4. The Nickel industry and spatial disparities in New Caledonia

The nickel sector is the engine of the New Caledonian economy, representing over 90% of the
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value of export products (ISEE, 2016). About 50% of the identified mineral resources are not
yet mined. Referring to CSI (2012), New Caledonia still possesses nickel reserves for a 50
years-exploitation of garnierite (according to a production of 200.000t/year) and for a 150
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years-exploitation of laterite (according to a production of 100.000t/year). From a quantitative

viewpoint, with a “classic” nickel content of 2% for garnierite and 1.4% for laterite, New
Caledonia has gross mining resources of about 13 million tons contained in garnierite and 20
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million tons contained in laterite.

Nickel is a hard metal used for protective plating and the production of stainless steel and
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other alloys (Ali and Grewal, 2006). While the country has around 25% of worldwide nickel
resources, New Caledonia produces only 4% of global nickel-metal at present (ISEE, 2016).
Although the main island “Grande Terre” is rich in nickel ores, the country lacks the financial
and technological skills necessary to launch large-scale processing projects on its own
(Horowitz, 2004). For around 100 years, there was only one processing plant (“Doniambo”),
run by SLN (“Société Le Nickel”), a French company founded in 1880 (Filer and Le Meur,
2017). Thus, the majority of nickel ores were exported to be processed in Australia, Asia or
Europe. Doniambo was inaugurated in 1910 and acquired by SLN in 1937. Following a
bailout by the French Government, SLN came under the control of the newly established
French company Eramet in 1985 (ibid, 2017). SLN uses a pyrometallurgical process to
produce ferronickel and nickel mattes. Shareholders of SLN today include Eramet (56% of
the shares), the Caledonian holding company STCPI (34%) and the Japanese company
Nisshin Steel (10%) (Kowasch, 2010). Doniambo processes nickel ores from four different
mine sites in New Caledonia (Filer and Le Meur, 2017).
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From an economic viewpoint, the wish to process more nickel ores locally is rational: it
would generate greater added value and address island unemployment (14.7% in 2014
according to ISEE, 2016), particularly for low skilled labour. For a long time, there was the
idea of building a second nickel processing plant in New Caledonia. President Charles de
Gaulle visiting New Caledonia in 1966, lauded a new smelter as an instrument for an
indispensable sharing of wealth between communities. During the nickel boom from 1967-71,
the increasing production (linked to the war in Vietnam) led to an economic growth in the
country. Several projects to build a new smelter in the northern part of “Grande Terre” were
considered, but ultimately failed because nickel prices dropped on the world market. For
example, a project, envisaged by SOMMENI (Société Métallurgique du Nickel), comprised
the construction of a processing plant with a production capacity of 40,000 tons of nickel-

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metal per year, extracting the Poum and Tiébaghi deposits from 1973 and employing about
1,000 people. Shareholders of SOMMENI included also the French company SLN.

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The economic power emanating from the European community was largely anchored in the
mine. The marginal participation of the Kanak population in the market economy did not

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contribute to the development of a unified cultural identity. The country still suffers deep
spatial fragmentation. Out of a total population of 268,767 in 2014, the year of the last census,
179,509 (or 66.8%) live in Greater Noumea, which includes the districts of Noumea (99,926
inhabitants), Dumbea (31,812), Mont-Dore (27,155) and Paita (20,616) (ISEE, 2018) (Fig. 2).
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Three out of four jobs occupied are located in the agglomeration of Greater Noumea; Noumea
alone has 56% of the jobs. In total, 84.1% of employees in the country work in Greater
Noumea and it is completely dominant economically (David et al., 1999; Doumenge, 2000;
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Kowasch, 2012). Most of the enterprises in New Caledonia are situated in the South (74.9%),
where 33% of the population is European and “only” 26% Kanak. Greater Noumea has 65.8%
of all enterprises in the country (ISEE, 2016).
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The Northern Province, where 70% of the population are Kanak (ISEE, 2014), is
economically lagging behind the Southern Province. The employment rate exceeds 63% in its
four mining towns on the West Coast (Voh, Kone, Pouembout and Koumac). Filer and Le
Meur (2017: 10) explain the focus on nickel development in the North: “Given that Kanaks
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account for roughly three-quarters of the population of North Province, but only one-quarter
of the population of South Province, it is understandable that the large-scale mining industry
has become the focus of a specific form of local-level politics that is part of the process of
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‘negotiated decolonisation’ initiated by the Nouméa Agreement”. Deep disparities still exist
between ethnic communities. The unemployment rate is 27.1% for Kanak, 15.4% for
Wallisians/Futunians, 4.2% for Europeans and 9.0% for all other ethnic groups. In 2011,
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Gorohouna stated that Kanaks who live in villages earn 36% less than non-Kanaks, for the
same work (Gorohouna, 2011: 79). While the Northern and Loyalty Islands Province are
governed by independence parties, the government of the Southern Province is against
political independence from France.

Fig. 2: Nickel mining and demographic disparities in New Caledonia (Source: ISEE, 2017;
Cartography: author)
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After violent uprising in the mid-1980s, the first steps towards an economic development in
the North of New Caledonia were finally formalized in the Matignon agreements in 1988
(Blanchet, 1999), renewed and pushed forward in the Noumea Accord in 1998. Both pro-
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independence and anti-independence leaders came together to sign, but for different reasons.
While the independence movement believed the way for future political independence was
established, their opponents hoped to render such aspirations unnecessary (Horowitz, 2004).
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The rebalancing principle provides the reduction of inequalities between the different ethnic
communities and the promotion of economic development in the North. It is reflected in a
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new distribution policy that was important historically for France: three quarters of
development contract finance had to be allocated to the benefit of the Northern and Loyalty
Islands Provinces, and the remainder to the Southern Province, based on the 1988 budget.
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Social and health facilities, economic activities, transport infrastructure and the promotion of
Kanak culture were specified (Kowasch, 2012). The implementation of a nickel processing
plant in the North, which has been expected for decades, was to contribute to this socio-
economic rebalancing policy (Carnuccini and Guillaud, 1999; Kowasch, 2012; Filer and Le
Meur, 2017). Koniambo not only contributes to the rebalancing principle, but also extends
economic and socio-cultural activities in the VKP region. In proximity to the smelter, new
industrial areas for subcontracting companies, rental housing and socio-cultural
infrastructures, such as shopping malls and a cinema, have been built in order to establish an
urban growth pole.

5. A short history of the Koniambo project

The credo of rapid economic development based on the nickel industry is at the heart of the
Koniambo project. The Kanak independence movement have long been committed to
building a smelter in the Northern Province (Pitoiset and Wéry, 2008; Kowasch, 2010; Fisher,
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2013). Paul Néaoutyine (FLNKS), president of the Northern Province, notes in his book
“L’independence au présent”: “If we should get into nickel business, our philosophy is that
the ores should be processed here. If we succeed, we will prove, firstly, that we are able to
manage an economic activity that is essential for the country, secondly, that the rebalancing
[of the Caledonian territory] can not be done only by means of development contracts and
assistance from France, without being able to create enough added value here to relay
development finance.” (Néaoutyine, 2006: 158)

Thus, the independence movement wants to prove that the Kanaks are able to construct a
processing plant and to manage a major nickel project. In 1995, SMSP signed an agreement
with the Canadian group Falconbridge (later acquired by Xstrata, then Glencore) to express

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the will to build a processing plant in the Northern Province. SMSP held 51% of the shares in
the project, and Falconbridge 49%. While Falconbridge brought know-how and money to the
joint-venture, SMSP and public authorities gained the support of local Kanak communities

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and undertook to supply the smelter with nickel ores. The Northern Province administration
and SMSP convinced the French government to help them to obtain the Koniambo Massif

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from the SLN. With pressure from French government, SMSP and SLN swapped mining
titles: the rich nickel reserves at Koniambo against far inferior deposits at Poum, in the far
north of the country (Ali and Grewal, 2006; Kowasch, 2010; Néaoutyine, 2006; Pitoiset and
Wéry, 2008,). In addition, SLN received compensation, because the Koniambo deposits are
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much richer than those in Poum. The Bercy Accord signed in 1996 made the exchange
official and stipulated that the companies would have to invest US$100 million in the project
prior to 1 January 2006 or the deposit would revert back to SLN control (Frédière, 2005;
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Pitoiset and Wéry, 2008). This was done. The Koniambo deposit, which comprised
approximately 25-30% of Eramet’s reserves, contains about 151 million tons of minerals
(garnierite) at an average 2.58% nickel content (Falconbridge, 2002). The construction of the
nickel smelter on Vavouto peninsula, close to the Koniambo massif, began in March 2006
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(Fig. 3). The first nickel melting occurred in April 2013.

Fig. 3: First stone of the Koniambo nickel smelter (Source: author, 2016)
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The quote above from president of the Northern Province highlights the importance of
Koniambo for the Kanak independence movement and the indigenous Kanak people in
general. Horowitz (2004) explains why the project is highly unusual compared to other large-
scale mining projects worldwide. First, the Koniambo project is viewed favourably by a
majority of the (mostly indigenous) inhabitants of the Northern Province. This argument was
confirmed by studies in 2007/08 and 2016 (Kowasch, 2010; Rosner et al., 2016). While in
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2008/09, 56% of those interviewed were in favour or ‘somewhat’ in favour of the project,
52% expressed their approval in 2016.

Second, the history of the Koniambo project is unlike many other mining projects. In
Bougainville (Papua New Guinea) for example, the implementation of the Panguna copper
mine and smelter intensified demands for independence from PNG. Regan (1998) suggests
that project was the catalyst for the resulting violent conflict over island independence rather
than its direct cause. In northern New Caledonia, the opposite occurred. The Kanak activism
for independence has resulted in massive investment in Koniambo. Thus, Koniambo has a
strong symbolic and material importance for the Kanak independence movement and is
considered as a fundamental step of the decolonization process. Economic emancipation for

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colonised Kanak peoples is through involvement in the mining sector.

SMSP established the 51/49%-shareholding model with other multinational companies. For

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the extraction of nickel ores in New Caledonia (apart from Koniambo), SMSP formed a joint
venture with the Korean company Posco, called NMC (Nickel Mining Company). Posco and

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SMSP have also constructed a nickel smelter in Gwangyang (South Korea) supplied by New
Caledonian garnierite ore from the mines in Ouaco, Kouaoua, Nakéty, Poya and Boakaine, all
spread along the east and west coasts of New Caledonia. In addition, SMSP applied the
51/49% shareholding model for a joint venture with the Chinese group Jinchuan, the world’s
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third largest nickel producer. Together, they formed CCMC (Caledonian Chinese Mining
Company), which should run a future smelter in Guangxi (China) (SMSP, 2013).
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Since February 2016, Koniambo was dogged by problems resulting from a design defect. US$
58 million, financed by the Swiss shareholder Glencore, was needed to reconstruct the second
furnace. In December 2017, it reopened after a year of inactivity. This will help to maintain
850 project jobs and meeting the objectives set for 2020. The Koniambo nickel smelter has a
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production capacity of 60,000 tons per year. With only one furnace, 9,892 tons of nickel-
metal were produced in 2015, 15,000 in 2016, and 20,600 tons are expected for 2017
according to the actual president of KNS, Marc Boissonneault (Outremers360°, 2017). In
2015, an executive manager of KNS stated that the mining company is actually producing
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nickel metal “to impede more debts” (Interview, March 2016). Full production capacity
should be reached by 2020-2021. The aim is to be competitive by reducing production costs
below US$ 4 per pound (Outremers360°, 2017).
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Koniambo is far from being “the world most competitive processing plant ever” as André
Dang, the enigmatic Chairman of SMSP, once labelled it (Nacci, 2015). It is not yet making a
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profit, but the local control of mineral resources overshadows its lack of financial success.
Nevertheless, tracking back to the discussion of true sustainable development at the beginning
of the article, we have to ask if the socio-economic development that the authorities of the
Northern Province strive to initiate in the VKP region is sustainable. While control over land
and resources is one aim for the indigenous Kanak independence movement, development to
provide economic self-sufficiency is a second.

6. Sustainable development policy of KNS

The sustainable development policy is visible in the Koniambo Nickel SAS sustainable
development reports, published in 2014 and 2015. On its website, KNS (2018b) advertises its
sustainable development policy: “Our Sustainable Development Policy is a core element of
our corporate vision, mission and values; it provides the framework in which we act
purposely to develop the exceptional wealth embodied in Koniambo Nickel.” The sustainable
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development report is based on four strategic pillars: a) to master its ecological footprint; b) to
be an employer of choice and a committed partner; c) a culture of risk management; d) to stay
economically responsible (KNS, 2015). I deal with these in turn in the following sections
about the ecological footprint, employment and development via subcontracting, and financial
benefits.

6.1. Ecological footprint

An innovative vertical pyrometallurgical process (Nickel Smelting Technology, NST) was

developed by Falconbridge in the mid-90s and first used in Koniambo. The new technology
solves a certain number of problems linked to pyrometallurgical processes such as high

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energy supply and dust emissions, which are re-injected (Pitoiset, 2015). The NST technology
stores the remainder in baghouses as a dust control measure and also recycles gases as an
energy saving measure (KNS, 2018a).

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New Caledonia is a global biodiversity hotspot, the smallest single hotspot in the world. It is

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home to extremely rich terrestrial and marine biodiversity, and has one of the highest
observed rates of endemism in the world for terrestrial flora (IUCN, 2012). The sustainable
development report highlights that the preservation of the fragile biodiversity is the
responsibility of the mining operator. Plant diversity consists of 3,261 species of indigenous
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flora (74% strictly endemic), which is nearly as many as on the whole of continental Europe
(3,500 species) (ibid, 2012). Since 2008, six marine clusters are designated in the UNESCO
List of World Natural Heritage sites (Unesco, 2018). The lagoons feature an extraordinary
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diversity of coral and fish species and a continuum of habitats from mangroves to seagrasses.
The choice to inscribe six clusters on the UNESCO list and not the entire lagoons was a
concession to the nickel industry. None of the six clusters is located in the neighborhood of
the Koniambo smelter and mine.
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The Koniambo site itself has a high rate of endemism. KNS cooperates with the three research
institutions that are present in New Caledonia – Institute of Research for Development (IRD),
the Caledonian Agronomic Institute (IAC) and the University of New Caledonia (UNC) – in
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order to guaranty the preservation of biodiversity. KNS engages in ecological restoration,

which is more than reforestation and means that the original state should be restored after
mining is completed. The mining operator set up a tree nursery on the Vavouto peninsula
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where the smelter is located. The nursery also gets plants from other nurseries in the Northern
Province. KNS established 110 stations for marine monitoring. According to KNS, it had
100% compliance in 2015 with the agreed standards (KNS, 2015).
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KNS also has a management strategy concerning nuisance species and waste. In 2015, the
mine site (including the smelter) generated 3,250 t of waste, of which 2,655 t where not
dangerous and 595 t classified as dangerous (KNS, 2015). Water is a precious good. KNS
needs water for nickel exploitation and ore processing, but at different moments and levels. In
2015, it collected 167,500 m3 of groundwater in the Coco river valley (from 481,800 m3
authorized) and pumped out 149,555 m3 of surface water in Pandanus river (from 1,500,000
m3 authorized). The water served to irrigate mining roads and reforestation sites, and to
prepare the minerals for processing.

In sum, the report shows that KNS is committed reducing its environmental footprint.
Measures focus on waste management and the preservation of marine and terrestrial
biodiversity. Local Kanak people are worried about environmental destruction, but they are
conscious that environmental impacts are “the price to pay” when mining development could
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bring employment and new incomes. But, of course, sustainable development goes beyond
environmental protection alone.

6.2. Sustainable employment and local development via subcontracting?

In 2015, KNS had 999 employees, with 504 workers and 216 managers at different levels.
Nearly 30% (296) of the employees were women. The mining operator makes efforts to hire
local workers; in 2015, 84% of the employees had a local contract (KNS, 2015). This
situation changed since the end of the construction phase of the smelter: while in 2011, 4,762
foreigners (mostly from China and the Philippines) were working on the construction site, the
number dropped to 80 in 2015 (ISEE, 2016: 195). Compared to other economic sectors, the

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salaries in the nickel industry are averagely 1.5 times higher (ISEE, 2016). Moreover, KNS
has a prevention program against stress at work to detect psychosocial risks (KNS, 2015).

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KNS collaborates with the Northern Province authorities to establish training courses for
subcontractors. In 2015, nine people completed the professional qualification certificates to

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become hygiene, safety and environmental assistants; 16 subcontracting companies were
involved. For 2016, KNS were planning to organize another two training courses, for 24
employees of subcontracting companies (KNS, 2015).
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Nevertheless, not every subcontracting company can get work with KNS, which has to select
the most competitive and suitable enterprises. KNS assisted the creation of local
subcontracting enterprises and federating them in an umbrella company called “SAS
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Vavouto” (Kowasch, 2010; Grochain and Poithily, 2011; Le Meur et al., 2012; Grochain,
2013). The aim of SAS Vavouto is to manage and distribute subcontracting markets, and to
support small enterprises (with few employees) in management processes. Six priority areas
of work exist: earthworks, waste and maintenance of settling ponds, drainage, and drilling and
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road maintenance. In 2014, SAS Vavouto represented over 190 local enterprises (Grochain,
2013), but not everyone was doing subcontracting for KNS. The number of subcontractors
varied from month to month, and diminished significantly with the end of the construction of
the processing plant in 2013. Rosner et al. (2016) interviewed 43 businessmen in the vicinity
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of the Koniambo project; Fig. 4 shows the foundation year of their enterprise. The most start-
ups occurred in the period 2006-2009, when the smelter was built. From 2010 to 2012, the
number already decreased even if the construction was not finished. After the end of the main
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construction, enterprises were only created in the areas of personal and material transport
(Fig. 4). The indigenous Kanak villages in the neighborhood of the nickel smelter on Vavouto
peninsula were the most involved, through several companies (Kowasch, 2010; Rosner et al.,
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2016). Small local enterprises were hard to sustain, because they were often not as
competitive as international or simply bigger companies.

Fig. 4: Foundation of subcontracting companies (VKP region) – 43 businessmen interviewed

(Source: Rosner et al., 2016)
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20
15
total
10
earth works
5 personal transport
0 construction
material transport

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The creation of private enterprises is different to community enterprises. The latter can
involve several clans or a whole village. This kind of community business share benefits, it
seems to be conform to the social structure of Kanak communities, where solidarity within

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and between families and clans is important. Community based business allows a fairer
distribution of benefits. But community consent can delay decision making or even inhibit a

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project. There are sometimes conflicts over profit distribution. Community participation
means that more people are involved, which eventually lead to higher labour costs. To avoid
conflicts and delays, even Kanaks often prefer an establishment as individual business. The
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foundation of SAS Vavouto (with help of KNS) in 2008 (Kowasch, 2010) shows that KNS is
willing to promote local business creation. The shareholding of SMSP certainly played an
important role in considering local development and the involvement of indigenous Kanak
communities. Nevertheless, KNS needs to consider other criteria (e.g. socially fair, alternative
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business models, diversification of enterprises) for subcontracting to provide local sustainable

development.

There is definitely conflict in the competition for markets and contracts. Between 1998 and
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2009, around 90 subcontracting companies were founded with assistance from KNS. The
distribution of contracts is never equal, and some businessmen were unhappy not to get new
contracts. Fig. 5 shows a strike being held by businesspeople asking for fairer distribution of
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markets and subcontracting involvement. Conflicts do not only happen between local
businessmen and the mining operator, but also between local enterprises and businessmen. In
2014, a new federation, called “SAS Vook”, seceded from SAS Vavouto after internal
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conflicts due to distribution of markets; SAS Vavouto then lost many contracts to its
competitor (Rosner et al., 2016).

Fig. 5: Strike of potential subcontracting companies: “The northern smelter WITH, not WITHOUT
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us” (Source: author, 2009)

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The participation of local subcontractors is appreciable in order to provide local economic

development, but many enterprises are highly dependent on the mining sector. Their
operations are not sustainable without nickel mining, and some have trouble repaying bank
loans. The cessation or slowing of mining production would render their businesses
‘unsustainable’.

6.3. Sustainable benefits from nickel mining to provide local development?

According to Nacci (2016), the total outlay of the Koniambo project reached U$8.3 billion in
2015, which is – compared to other processing plant construction projects in the world –
expensive. Thus, there will be no or few dividends before 2020, especially to SMSP.

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Although SMSP has only financed 3.5% of the construction costs, it owes US$244.6 million
to French banks (ibid, 2015). SMSP lost US$266 million in 2014 and US$148.5 million in
2015, bringing its deferred deficit to US$386.7 million. The Suisse partner of SMSP,

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Glencore, financed 96.5% of the smelter construction and also the investment for the repair of
the second furnace. The fate of the Koniambo project is really in the hands of Glencore.

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SMSP has to use future cashflows to reimburse the loans from French banks. Considering that
there are no dividends in the next few years, the creditors set the rules reminding the
government of the Northern Province to be 50%-guarantor of SMSP bank loans.
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In point 4 of the Sustainable Development report, KNS declares that it will be economically
responsible. In 2015, 45 small-scale projects concerning education, environment, health,
economy, culture, arts and social development were supported by KNS, with a total
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subvention amount of US$395,278. KNS estimates the direct economic benefits of the
Koniambo project for New Caledonia to US$3.76 billion, which include salaries for
employees, training, subcontracting contracts, and subventions and investment in housing.
Not only the VKP region benefits from housing and construction investments, since 51% of
“benefits” from such investments were made in the Southern Province, which again enhances
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the economic disparities between the South and the North of the country (KNS, 2015).

Like other mining companies, KNS is on a treadmill, needing to increase production to make
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greater profit. The Swiss shareholders want their investment returns. For the Kanak
independence movement and public authorities in the Northern Province, the control over
natural resources is certainly more important than making financial profit, but the
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reimbursement of bank loans precludes investments in sustainable development projects, e.g.

public transports and local food production in the VKP region. Moreover, the high fluctuation
of nickel prices on the world market is another obstacle for sustainable development.
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7. Neoliberal assumptions and changes to imperial lifestyles

During the 1960s and 1970s, the debate over environmental regulation of mining activities
has shifted in significant ways (Bridge, 2004: 230). National governments increasingly have
sought to place restrictions on the production and management of solid wastes, toxics and
water pollution. In New Caledonia, new environmental regulations were only adopted in 2008
(for the Northern Province) and in 2009 (for the Southern Province) (Le Meur and
Mennesson, 2011). Mining competencies were transferred to the provinces since the
Matignon Accords in 1988. In 2009, a new mining code was adopted (DIMENC, 2009).
Since, the Department of Industry, Mining and Energy at the Government of New Caledonia
controls the environmental conditions for minerals extraction and processing. The department
also collaborates with the newly established Nickel Fund for reforestation of mine sites
(ISEE, 2016). With these new regulations and restrictions, public authorities are trying to
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offset some of the socio-economic tensions arising from the externalization of environmental
costs.

However, the new mining code does not implicitly result in sustainable mining and
development outcomes. The New Caledonian Nickel Fund has three aims: a) to help the
municipalities to mitigate the effects of a possible closure of a mining centre; b) to support
mining companies and their subcontractors, especially the transport enterprises, in times of
economic crisis; c) to fund rehabilitation programs for degraded areas (DIMENC, 2009: 246).
Investments in economic diversification are not financed by the fund; public welfare and
socio-economic solidarity are not mentioned.

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Second, there is some populism among environmental views on sustainability that it offers
“an exclusionary form of consensus that avoids critical debates by characterizing alternative
viewpoints as ‘radicalism’” Le Billon (2017: 602). From this perspective, I assert that the

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profit-orientated principle of (large-scale) mining operations are concerned with the economic
dimension of sustainability first and foremost. Capital accumulation and increasing benefits

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do not lead to greater solidarity, but to marginalization. To out-produce competitors on the
world nickel market means that less productive mines are liable to face closure, and capitalist
firms are not a truly ‘sustainable’ climate for business. The ICMM principle 2 for sustainable
development notes that mining companies should “support public policies and practices that
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foster open and competitive markets” (ICMM, 2018b). The competitive agenda of large-scale
companies want to gratify the shareholders, which is at the core of corporate policy. Less
competitive subcontractors are already marginalized in the rush for contracts with KNS. The
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KNS sustainable development report shows efforts to reduce environmental impacts, provide
ethical business practices and “respect cultures, customs and values of employees and
communities” affected by the mining activities, as required by the ICMM principles (ICMM,
2018b). But mining still externalises its costs (Bridge, 2004). The substitution of natural with
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economic (money) or human capital is a weak, not a strong form of sustainability. The
essence of strong sustainability is that it regards natural capital as fundamentally non-
substitutable through other forms of capital (Neumayer, 2013: 25). Thus, Neumayer calls
strong sustainability the “non-substitutability paradigm” (ibid, 2013: 25). Strong sustainability
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demands for the preservation of the physical stock of those forms of natural capital that are
regarded as non-sustainable (so-called “critical natural capital”, see e.g. Ekins, 2003).
Moreover, the substitution of natural with natural capital (e.g. reforestation programs or
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restoration of coral reefs) still encounters technical problems (e.g. corals do not find hold on
the seabed) and political/customary conflicts endure (e.g. land claims connected to identity
value) in northern New Caledonia. Therefore, commitments towards sustainable development
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can, in the KNS case, be described as “green washing”, remembering neoliberal ‘green
economy’ approaches to environmental degradation (e.g. Sullivan, 2017). Such approaches
promote substitutability of natural capital and reproduce existing power relations.

Third, mining companies often benefit from tax exemptions and use tax dodges. Levacher
(2017: 196) notes that “the National Law on the Taxation of Nickel Mining for Major Metal-
Processing Projects, which was passed in July that year 2001, included corporate
exemptions from business licensing taxes, property taxes, registration fees and general service
taxes for a period of 15 years from the beginning of commercial operations.” In 2005, a report
by the Senate of the French Government on tax exemptions for the nickel smelters (both
Koniambo in the North and Goro Nickel in the South) expressed concern that a kind of
‘freedom from tax’ was being ordained (Levacher, 2017; Le Meur and Mennesson 2011). The
public authorities in New Caledonia are deprived of significant mining incomes that they
could have used for community development.
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Fourth, the Koniambo project, located in a rural region, provides employment for many
Kanaks living in surrounding villages. The incomes from mining employment contribute to
closing the existing wages gap between Kanak and non-indigenous people in New Caledonia.
But Banks et al. (2017) highlight that a shift to a cash economy enhances entrepreneurialism
and individual ambition. Social ills associated with large-scale mining (e.g. gambling,
prostitution, alcohol and violence) are not unconnected to these processes (Johnson 2011;
ibid, 2017). Moreover, new incomes from the nickel industry do not necessarily lead to a
LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability) consumption style (Ermann, 2013) in the
vicinity of the nickel smelter. In contrast, people have more holiday trips and restaurant
dinners, an increasing consumption of fast food, and electronic devices such as smartphones
and laptops. This increasing consumption may be good for (local) economic growth, but the

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new wealth widens the gap between people with lower and higher wages resulting in social
transformations and upheavals. In addition, most consumer products are imported from
overseas, which leads to a greater ecological footprint. In the neighbourhood of the nickel

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smelter, new restaurants, shops, socio-cultural facilities (e.g. a swimming pool in Pouembout
and a hospital in Koné) are growing like mushrooms to fulfil the growing demand for services
and consumption products, also “creating” new expectations and desires.

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Fifth, massive mining incomes also enable the maintenance of the existing socio-economic
structures in New Caledonia. For the construction of the water sports centre in Koné (Foue
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peninsula) for example, five enterprises out of 11 came from the Southern Province
(Kowasch, 2010). Even if many subcontracting companies were created in the VKP region
with the support of the mining operator, economic disparities between the North and the
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South and existing power structures remain. It is hard for newly founded enterprises to
compete with large-scale or more experienced companies from the South or “outside”.

The urban development in the VKP region also includes customary land. The division into
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customary and common or private land is a relict from the colonial period when indigenous
Kanak people were deprived of their land and displaced to “reserves”. Land reform started in
1978, with the goal of rebalancing land allocation between indigenous and allochthonous
peoples (Kowasch et al., 2015). The public agency ADRAF (Agency for Rural Development
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and Regional Planning) buys private land with state funds and returns it back to Kanak clans.
Land claims and distribution lead to negotiation and conflict, because different land
legitimacies overlap (Naepels, 2006). ADRAF does not play the role of an arbitrator in
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conflicts; instead the agency discusses the claims with the involved actors and helps them to
find a solution. Negotiations become complex, because personal and family relationships
straddle the conflict ‘arena’ (Kowasch et al., 2015: 11). The redistributed estates often lay
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fallow, because Kanak communities do not need them for everyday livelihoods; they have a
symbolic value in terms of identity and land legitimacy. Capital accumulation is not the main
goal. All of this changed with the construction of the Koniambo nickel smelter. The political
authorities of the Northern Province wanted to fold customary land into broader urban and
economic development. Rental housing, a filling station and a shopping centre have already
been built on the estates of the village of Baco, close to the northern capital Kone (Fig. 1).
The Kanak clans living in Baco founded a real estate company, which established long-term
lease agreements with investors. At the end of the lease, they will get back the estates
including anything built on them. Rental incomes will mostly benefit the next generation,
because the indigenous real estate company has first to reimburse bank loans that served to
pay their share in the project. Land has therefore been commodified, resembling a form of
“land grabbing” of customary land despite its local beneficiaries. One of the public investors
in Baco is the New Caledonian Government; private investors come from “outside” the
village. Even if the Kanak clans control decision-making, the investors decide what kind of
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infrastructure they want to build and with what environmental features (e.g. low-energy
houses). Architects are chosen by the investors, not by the customary representatives. The
commodification of land is based on a capitalist economic system, thus on exclusivity.
Conflicts over rent distribution and land legitimacy have already shown themselves.

8. Conclusion

The Kanak independence movement has used the nickel sector as an instrument for political
emancipation and spatial rebalancing, which is a positive story of cultural revival backed by
economic modernization. Indigenous control over natural resources can indeed lead much-
needed social transformations of New Caledonian society, but with an economic growth

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imperative. Socio-economic development in the VKP region, by relies on the nickel sector, is
strategically vulnerable. The Koniambo project is a massive experiment with uncertain
outcomes, for SMSP, Glencore and local people. The dependence on a giant mining group,

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and on the world price of nickel, is a Faustian bargain. Sustainable local development in the
VKP region is heavily connected to the investments of a multinational company that has to

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satisfy its shareholders.

The KNS sustainable development report links sustainability to redressing environmental

impacts and to sustainable employment. But widening social disparities, and future
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generations, are not considered. Substitution of natural with economic capital does not
represent a strong sustainability approach and does not lead to a more solid, or solidarity-
based, economic model. A few recommendations show how mining development could be
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orientated towards more sustainability.

First, a certain amount of (future) mining benefits could go into a “sovereign wealth fund”,
for example based on the Norwegian model (see Mikesell, 1994). The Norwegian fund, which
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was set up in 1998, invests in equities, bonds and real estate in several dozen countries, and
about 9,000 companies worldwide (Neue Züricher Zeitung, 2017). A future wealth fund in
northern New Caledonia could save and reinvest mining benefits for prospective
infrastructure, health care and in general for future generations, measures that the existing
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Nickel Fund does not provide. The fund can also contribute to fight the social ills associated
with mining activities that also occur in the neighbourhood of the Koniambo project.
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Second, mining development in the North contributes to rebalancing the New-Caledonian

territory, but new spatial disparities emerge, as old ones are tackled (now between East-West
coast, towns-villages, and within Kanak villages). Economic inequalities between families
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and clans widen, driven by new incomes from the mining sector. If local development is to be
sustainable, measures for a fair financial redistribution should be taken. Families without
income should be assisted. Local exchange trading systems can be established and the
introduction of a local currency could help to support local business (the New Caledonian
CFP is a hard currency pegged to the Euro). Solidarity within local communities can be
promoted through concrete measures (e.g. exchange of farming products) organized by
customary representatives, who often are businessmen and involved in the nickel industry. An
investment in public transport would also contribute to mitigate spatial disparities.

Third, economic diversification should begin, even though dividends from nickel
development have scarcely arrived. Investment in family agriculture (local market facilities,
selling of farming products in Noumea and other cities, etc.) can contribute to a broader local
development outside the nickel sector. Economic diversification also involves the energy
sector. A transition from non-renewable to renewable energy resources can contribute to
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sustainability and economic transition. A diversification of electricity suppliers, from large

enterprises to individual electricity producers, would lead to lower electricity prices for
consumers. Individual electricity supply can be achieved for example with small-scale
community or family solar panels.

Acknowledgements

I am very thankful to Simon Batterbury for comments and proof reading of this article. My
profound gratitude goes to my host family in the Kanak village of Baco who welcomed me as

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a clan member for countless months, and to all other families who contributed to the results of
this study. Many thanks also to the Institute of Research for Development (IRD) in Noumea,
where I contributed to research projects on mining governance and value of places.

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Highlights

KNS takes measures to reduce the ecological footprint and promotes local employment.

The KNS sustainable development report is a sort of “green washing”.

Koniambo is an “instrument” for economic and political emancipation from France.

Koniambo supports a neoliberal development model and a commodification of land.

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Economic development in the vicinity of the smelter leads to “imperial lifestyles”.

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