Newcrest has announced the establishment of a A$20 million Community Support Fund to provide financial support to host communities to assist them with the challenges associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The health and safety of our people and host communities is our prime concern. The Community Support Fund will initially focus on increasing the availability of medical care and equipment to cope with the pandemic, as well as assisting in the provision of other essential goods and services, in the communities that host Newcrest’s operations worldwide,” said Sandeep Biswas, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.

Recognising that the development of a vaccine for COVID-19 could save many lives worldwide, a portion of the Fund will go towards vaccine research, while remaining funds will be distributed to our communities in Papua New Guinea, Australia, Canada and Ecuador. In Australia a portion of this fund will be directed to the Orange, Blayney and Cabonne regions.

Cadia Valley Operations Acting General Manager, Aaron Brannigan said that the global pandemic COVID-19 has been felt by communities big and small, and that Orange was no exception. 

“Our community has never faced a situation like this one and there is a great need to provide adequate support for our local people during these exceptional circumstances,” Aaron said.

“We are a local operation that employs local people who live in our community. With the support of our global company Newcrest, we have the ability to provide direct assistance to many industries, businesses and community groups who are feeling the effects of this pandemic.” 

“We plan to actively engage with members of our communities, all levels of government, our key stakeholders and other organisations, including the health service, to ensure our contribution has the greatest possible benefit to the Orange, Blayney and Cabonne regions.” 

“We have already begun canvassing our community for ways we can assist. This week we were able to assist the Orange Health Service in purchasing specialised face masks for its frontline doctors to provide additional protection against the virus. This is the first of many opportunities where we will be able to assist,” Aaron said. 

For more information on the Newcrest Community Support Fund, and our focus on local support, please visit the Cadia Valley website.