Adriano to MPLA: Issue permit to Azmar

Over two months since the agency rejected Azmar International’s application to mine Pagan pozzolan, the Marianas Public Lands Authority remains under pressure to issue a permit to the investor.

“I strongly encourage you to conclude your negotiations with Azmar, notify them of your intent to do so and then call a special meeting and approve their permit,” Senate President Joaquin Adriano said in a strongly worded letter to MPLA chair Ana Demapan-Castro.

Citing research work conducted by the Senate, Adriano said he is convinced that Azmar “is the right company to proceed with the long awaited development of our Pagan natural resources.”

He also stated that there is no harm in giving Azmar the opportunity to prove its ability, as the undertaking will cost the CNMI nothing. He pointed out that Azmar should receive a permit as soon as possible, especially in light of three previous failures at the project and the CNMI’s current revenue situation.

In an interview, MPLA commissioner Edward Deleon Guerrero said the agency cannot issue a mining permit simply because a lawmaker told it to do so.

“We have a fiduciary responsibility to exert due diligence in granting land use permits. Record would show that Azmar did not submit our requirements. Until it satisfies all our requirements, we will not provide them any permit,” Deleon Guerrero said.

He added that MPLA created a task force to study Pagan pozzolan, so the agency can look at the amount of material available on Pagan and get the best deal for the CNMI people.

“We’re not anti-business. We’re just trying to protect the property and interests of the people,” Deleon Guerrero said.

Adriano also brought up a Sept. 29 agreement that MPLA purportedly made with Azmar.

He was referring to a Sept. 29 email Castro sent to Azmar chief operating officer Greg Whitehorn. In that email, Castro confirmed Azmar’s understanding of a discussion MPLA had with the investor.

According to Azmar, Castro had stipulated only eight conditions that the permit applicant needed to fulfill so MPLA could issue a permit and a separate conditional agreement. These are Azmar’s official name of business, corporate papers, charter and bylaws, business license, federal tax I.D. number, corporate resolutions, Moore’s personal financial statement, and a revised pro-forma or feasibility study.

The agreement never materialized. Instead, the MPLA board of directors on Nov. 16 instructed the management to use a 26-page draft permit to initiate a 15-day negotiation with Azmar. The draft permit included a long list of documents required from Azmar.

The board met again on Dec. 3 to discuss the result of the negotiation. After finding that Moore in his counter-proposal has struck out most of the items in the list, the board decided to deny the application.

“I have been shown proof that [Azmar has] presented all eight of those items to MPLA. Therefore there should be no further question about ‘missing information,’” said Adriano.