‘Real generational uplift’: Victorian gold mine strikes historic profit-sharing deal with traditional owners

CEO Agnico Eagle Mines Ammar Al-Joundi (left), Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation chair Rebecca Phillips, general manager Cassandra Lewis and Vice President Australian operations Agnico Eagle, Ion Hann. Photograph: Stuart Walmsley/The Guardian

The operator of Victoria’s largest gold mine has struck the state’s first voluntary agreement with a First Nations traditional owner group, with the deal to funnel a portion of its annual profits to the Dja Dja Wurrung people.

Agnico Eagle, which operates the Fosterville gold mine in central Victoria, signed the historic agreement with the traditional owner group on Monday.