El Salvador: $3 trillion gold deposit discovered

A gold deposit worth 3 trillion dollarswhich amounts to 8800% from the country's current GDP. However, no one can touch this wealth, at least not yet.

Now the President Nayib Bukele (which previously accepted bitcoin as legal tender) wants to make the most of El Salvador's natural resources. In an era when everything is questioned, including currencies, stocks and bonds, the ability to own huge reserves of gold is a real blessing.

?? El Salvador has discovered an unmined gold reserve potentially worth up to $3 trillion, President Nayib Bukele announced. pic.twitter.com/UzPnzJSImp

— BRICS News (@BRICSinfo) December 10, 2024

Gold, even if the whole world “disappears” as a result of an economic or military crisis, will always be one of the two pillars that geopoliticians call “hard currency” (hard currency). The other pillar is military and geopolitical power.

El Salvador gained attention by becoming the first country in the world to banned metal mining V 2017despite the fact that its natural resources and mineral wealth exceed all expectations. The country has expressed concerns about the environmental impacts of mining, and neighboring countries such as Costa Rica, Honduras And Panamasoon introduced their own restrictions on production.

This happened during the presidency Salvador Sanchez Serenabut in a dramatic turn of events, President Bukele is considering lifting the ban to start developing gold deposits. How can he explain to his people that they will remain poor when such wealth exists?

In a post in X Bukele stated that El Salvador potentially has “largest gold deposits per square kilometer in the world” He claims that even if only 4% from gold reserves, the country will be able to produce $131 billionwhich is equivalent 380% from current GDP. Since 27% El Salvador's population lives in poverty, mining even part of this gold could become “transformative“for the country.

Nevertheless France 24 notes that the figure 4%which Bukele cites appears to be based on a study written by unknown authors, which he refused to publish.

Bukele says: “El Salvador has potentially three trillion dollars, don’t be fooled, it’s not billions, it’s trillions of dollars, only in gold.”. Pointing to other precious metals that can fetch huge sums, he added: “We have also found gallium, tantalum, tin and many other materials needed for the fourth and fifth industrial revolutions. Gold is only a part, and it is not even the most valuable.”.

He noted that if mining is done responsibly, El Salvador can “invest in the restoration of its rivers, lakes, forests and reforestation,” following the example of Norway, which uses its natural resources responsibly.

However, not everyone is confident that El Salvador can mine in an environmentally friendly manner. Archbishop Jose Luis Escobar Alas called on the country to maintain the mining ban. After Bukele called the ban “absurd”Alas stated: “The ban is absurd: it is not true that green mining exists, it is paid for in lives, kidneys, respiratory problems and leukemia, which are not immediate”.

However, with Bukele's party leading the country's congress “by a large margin”the proposal to lift the mining ban is likely to face little opposition. Because most Salvadorans shun Bitcoin and its adoption has ruined El Salvador's negotiations with IMF about the loan in $1.3 billionit seems that Bukele is pinning all his hopes on gold.

However, the question is whether El Salvador will be able to start mining gold if “external” factors allow the country to manage this wealth for the benefit of its people. The fate of such small states is known when the world “sharks” smell “prey”.

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