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Protesters shout slogans during a rally in Athens, as they oppose a copper-gold mine project in Halkidiki region in northern Greece March 12, 2013. The Skouries project, an open pit copper-gold mine, is run by Hellas Gold, a subsidiary of Canadian firm Eldorado Gold that runs the Stratoni mixed sulfide project in northern Greece and is developing three gold projects in the region. REUTERS/Yorgos Karahalis REUTERS/Yorgos Karahalis

Eldorado Gold said it will undertake all necessary action to protect its legal rights after the Greek government revoked the approval of Hellas Gold S.A. its Greek subsidiary, to finish the construction of processing plant of its Skouries project in northeastern Greece.

The country’s Ministry of Productive Reconstruction, Energy and Environment on Friday issued a notice saying it would recall the permit the government had earlier released once it completes a review. It did not say when it will exactly start the review. Vancouver-based Eldorado Gold stressed the decision has no legal basis.

“The company believes the decision of the ministry has no legal basis and will, if necessary, act to protect the legal rights of the company, employees and stakeholders,” Eldorado said in a statement. It also said the recent notice could prompt it to reconsider its investment plans for Greece, which was to invest another $310 million on the development of Skouries and Olympias in 2015.

The Skouries mine, majority owned by Eldorado, is one of the largest gold deposits found in Greece and in the rest of the world. It has an estimated reserves of 5.3 million oz of gold and 246.4 million tonnes of ore grading 0.49 percent copper.

Environmentalists had criticized the potential impact of the project to the surroundings. Reports had earlier said 3,300 acres of primeval forest had to be cut down so that the project could materialise. Eldorado Gold, in a report by the Canadian Press, maintained the mine’s Environmental Impact Assessment had been confirmed by three separate rulings of the Council of State of Greece, attesting it had gotten the necessary clearance from the government.

The development instantly affected shares of the Canadian gold miner. On Monday, Eldorado shares dropped 6.6 percent to $6.74 in Toronto.

“The recent move by the ministry does escalate the level of risk/uncertainty,” the Globe and Mail quoted Dan Rollins, a Toronto-based analyst at RBC Capital Markets, as saying in a note to clients. “We believe the most rational outcome is for higher taxes and royalties given the need for the anti-austerity government to fund increased social spending.”

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