The mining record of Guyana
25,073 properties in the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission's register, 12,790 of them small-scale claims, held by 3,292 named holders of whom 803 carry a TIN, 19,929 tenure polygons on GGMC's map, and at least 95 mining deaths reported by the Guyanese press.
Two live registries and a dark safety record. The Guyana Geology and Mines Commission serves its whole property register through a public search: small-scale claims, mining permits, prospecting permits, special mining permits, prospecting and mining licences and quarry licences, each with its holder, status, grant date, minerals and area; claim rows print each holder's TIN, Guyana's tax id, which no other type does. Its tenure map serves the licence and permit polygons with applicant, acreage and location, and leaves the claims out on purpose. Mining that kills people in Guyana is small and medium scale alluvial gold and diamond work in the interior backdams and on dredges, which the register covers and the map does not. What no agency publishes is an inspection, a sanction or a per-incident accident record: the Labour Ministry announces one national workplace-death figure a year, and the two dailies report each death within a day, naming the person and the backdam but rarely a permit. The deaths here come from that press, so every count is a floor.
Looking for US mine enforcement instead? See MSHA violations by operator. · Peru's mining record · Brazil's record · The Dominican Republic's record
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A Claim under the Mining Act 1989 is the small-scale title, typically an alluvial gold or diamond working; the register shows the active ones and prints each holder's TIN.ⓘ
A mining permit (MP) is the medium-scale title; PPMS is its prospecting stage.ⓘ
The TIN is the Guyana Revenue Authority's nine-digit taxpayer identification number; the register prints it only on Claim rows, so a holder's TIN is known only where they hold a claim.25,073 properties read from the register's search (last refreshed Sep 15, 2026), 3,292 named holders as the register spells them, newest grant Aug 13, 2026. The weekly sync re-reads the current and prior year; the full crawl runs on demand.
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GGMC's mineral property map, an ArcGIS service refreshed a few times a year; polygons carry applicant, application date, permit type and acreage.Licence and permit polygons from GGMC's ArcGIS service, newest application Jul 20, 2026 (last refreshed Sep 15, 2026). The service omits small-scale claims by the publisher's choice; the register has them.
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Counted from press headlines only; Guyana publishes no official per-fatality mining record, so the true number is at least this.ⓘ
Events the headline itself places in a backdam pit, on a dredge or at an unlicensed working, as against a named company's operation.English-language headlines naming Guyanese backdams, rivers and regions from 2013 to Jul 15, 2026, read daily through Google News (last pull Sep 15, 2026) and classified by a language model against the headline's own words.
GGMC inspects mines and issues cease-work orders after deaths, but publishes no inspection, sanction or accident record; the Ministry of Labour's Occupational Safety and Health Department counts workplace deaths and announces one national figure a year at a press conference (32 in 2024, primarily mining and construction; action taken against one employer), and its website is down; the Ministry of Natural Resources posted named fatality releases in 2016 to 2018 and none since. One request under the Access to Information Act 2011 is drafted: GGMC's mines-inspection reports, fatal-accident investigations and cease-work orders since 2011.
Drafted, not yet filed. The Act gives the right of access only to Guyanese citizens and residents and excludes records created before 2011, so the request must be filed by a Guyanese proxy; a plain letter to GGMC asking for the same records needs no law. This line changes to a ticket number and an answer date the day one is filed.
“Man killed in freak incident at Morwa Backdam”
“Bodies of dead miners recovered from collapsed mining pit in Region 8”
“Probe launched into fatal accident”
“Miners trapped in collapsed mining pit”
“Two men trapped in collapsed mining pit”
“Rupununi resident killed in mining pit cave-in at Chi Chi Backdam”
“Miner dies after pit collapse at Chi Chi Backdam”
“Brazilian miners die in Guyana after pit collapses”
“Brazilian miners die in mining pit collapse at Chenapou”
“Police probe death of Brazilian miner at Cuyuni River Backdam”
“Gold miner dies in river incident”
“Guyana: One man dead following mining pit collapse”
Every event is one press item read by a language model: the sentence shown is the headline's own words, the holder link exists only where the headline names a register holder exactly, and most Guyanese mining deaths are in backdam pits and dredges the press places by river or region, not by permit.
| Region | Press accidents | Deaths (floor) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mowasi | 1 | 5 | |
| Mahdia | 4 | 4 | |
| Cuyuni | 2 | 2 | |
| Region Seven | 2 | 2 | |
| Thomas Island | 2 | 2 | |
| Cuyuni River | 1 | 1 | |
| Essequibo | 1 | 1 | |
| Frenchman Backdam | 1 | 1 | |
| Issano | 1 | 1 | |
| Kuribrong River | 1 | 1 | |
| Matthew's Ridge | 1 | 1 | |
| Mazaruni River | 1 | 1 |
By the administrative region or mining district the headline names; the press places a death by backdam, river or region, which the register does not carry, so no region total joins to a permit.
| Type | Properties | Holders | With a TIN | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claim Claim | 12,790 | 913 | 13,320 | |
| Mining permit MP | 7,208 | 1,687 | 0 | |
| Prospecting permit (medium scale) PPMS | 4,040 | 1,018 | 0 | |
| Special mining permit SMP | 700 | 661 | 0 | |
| Prospecting licence PL | 299 | 97 | 0 | |
| Quarry licence QL | 31 | 20 | 0 | |
| Mining licence ML | 5 | 4 | 0 |
Claim is the small-scale title (the register's only type that prints a TIN); MP a mining permit, PPMS a medium-scale prospecting permit, SMP a special mining permit, PL and ML the large-scale prospecting and mining licences issued before 2016, QL a quarry licence. The register shows only Active claims and Granted permits.
| Area | Properties | Holders | Minerals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knoawaruk NW | 160 | 119 | Diamonds,Gold; Gold; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Precious Minerals; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals; Precious Stones,Gold,Valuable Minerals | |
| Kaieteur NE | 156 | 74 | Gold; Gold & Diamonds; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold,All Minerals; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Minerals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Valuable Minerals | |
| Quartz stone SE | 130 | 26 | Gold; Gold , Diamonds and Precious Stones; Gold & Diamonds; Gold and Pecious Stones; Gold and Precious Minerals; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold, Diamonds & Precious Stones; Gold, Diamonds and all other Precious Minerals; Gold,All Minerals,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,All Minerals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Minerals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones,Precious Metals; Percious Minerals; Precious Metals; Precious Minerals; Precious Stones,Gold | |
| Kaieteur SE | 128 | 63 | Gold; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold, Diamonds, Precious Metals & Minerals; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Lithium,Copper,Manganese,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Minerals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals; Gold,Valuable Minerals | |
| Oranapai NE | 125 | 45 | Cassiterite; Gold; Gold, Precious Stones and Precious Minerals; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones,Rare Earth Elements; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones,Semi Precious Stones,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Minerals,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones,Precious Minerals; Gold,Valuable Minerals | |
| Puruni NW | 121 | 20 | Gold; Gold & Precious Stones; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Metals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Valuable Minerals; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones | |
| Quartz stone SW | 121 | 28 | Gold; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Diamonds Precious Stones; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold, Diamonds & Precious Metals; Gold, Diamonds and Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,All Minerals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Metals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Minerals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals; Gold,Diamonds,Valuable Minerals; Gold,Minerals,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Metals,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones,Precious Metals; Gold,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals | |
| Aurora NE | 108 | 34 | Cassiterite; Gold; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold and Valuable Minerals; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Base Metals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Minerals,Metal; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Valuable Minerals | |
| Kokerite NW | 107 | 36 | Gold; Gold & Precious Stones; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold and Preciuos Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals | |
| Matthews Ridge NE | 107 | 41 | Gold; Gold & Precious Stones; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Minerals,Precious Metals,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Valuable Minerals; Gold,Valuable Minerals,Precious Minerals | |
| Puruni NE | 107 | 22 | Gold; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Precious Minerals; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold, Diamonds and Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Industrial Minerals,Rare Earth Elements; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Metals; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals | |
| Oranapai NW | 103 | 47 | Diamonds,Gold,Precious Metals,Precious Minerals,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals; Gold; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Pecious Stones; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones | |
| Aurora NW | 101 | 42 | Gold; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold, Diamond & Precious Minerals; Gold, Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Base Metals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Metal,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Minerals,Metal; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Semi Precious Stones,Precious Stones | |
| Knoawaruk SW | 101 | 28 | Gold; Gold and Diamonds; Gold, Diamonds, Precious Stones and Valuable Miner; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals; Gold,Precious Metals; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals; Gold,Valuable Minerals | |
| Kaituma SW | 99 | 22 | Gold; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones,Precious Minerals; Granite & Quarriable Materials; Quarriable Materials | |
| Supenaam SW | 98 | 30 | Gold; Gold & Precious Stones; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold, Diamonds and Precious Minerals; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Minerals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Metals,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones,Precious Metals | |
| Kurupung NE | 95 | 20 | Gold; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Pecious Stones; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones | |
| Quartz stone NW | 91 | 51 | Gold; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Precious Minerals; Gold and Precious Srones; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold, Diamonds, Precious Stones & Valuable Mineral; Gold, Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Metals,Precious Minerals,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones | |
| Amakura SW | 88 | 46 | Gold; Gold & Other Precious Minerals; Gold & Precious Minerals; Gold and Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Manganese,Diamonds; Gold,Precious Metals; Gold,Precious Minerals; Gold,Precious Stones; Gold,Precious Stones,Diamonds; Gold,Precious Stones,Valuable Minerals; Valuable Minerals,Gold,Precious Stones | |
| Matthews Ridge SE | 87 | 36 | Gold; Gold and Diamonds; Gold and Precious Stones; Gold, Diamonds; Gold, Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Minerals; Gold,Diamonds,Precious Stones; Gold,Diamonds,Valuable Minerals; Gold,Precious Metals; Gold,Precious Stones |
The register's area name (a stock-sheet locality such as Aurora NW or Kaieteur SE), present on about a fifth of rows; claims carry none.
| Holder | Permits | Claims | Polygons | Press accidents | Areas |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alfro Alphonso TIN 143099833 | 915 | 266 | 1,068 | 0 | 5, Amakura SE, Amakura SW, Aurora SE, Aurora SW, Bartica NW, Bartica SW, Kaieteur NE, Kaituma SE, Kaituma SW, Kokerite NW, Kurupung NE, Kurupung NE,Kurupung SE, Kurupung SE, Matthews Ridge NE, Mazaruni Mining District, NorthWest Mining District, Oranapai NE, Oranapai NW, Oranapai SE, Puruni NE, Puruni NE,Bartica NW, Puruni NW, Puruni SE, Puruni SW, Siparuni NE |
| . Ramnarine TIN 116530951 | 548 | 404 | 217 | 0 | Amakura SW, Ayanganna SE, Barima Head SE, Bartica NW, Bartica SW, Imbaimadai SE, Issano NE, Kaburi SE, Kaieteur NE, Kaieteur SW, Kaituma SE, Knoawaruk SW, Kurupung NW, Kurupung SE, Kurupung SW, Kwakwani SW, Matthews Ridge SE, Parish Hill NE, Peaima SE, Peaima SW, Potaro Mining District, Puruni NE, Puruni SE, Quartz stone NE, Quartz stone SE, Quartz stone SE,Puruni NE, Quartz stone SW, Rupununi Mining District, Supenaam SE, Supenaam SW, Tiboku SE, Waini SW |
| Shawn Hopkinson TIN 124452553 | 248 | 209 | 299 | 0 | Aurora NE, Aurora SW, Aurora SW,Peaima SW, Issano NE, Peaima SW, Quartz stone NE, Quartz stone SE |
| Ramnarine | 5 | 0 | 777 | 0 | |
| Shreemattie Budhram | 137 | 0 | 207 | 0 | |
| Michael Vieira TIN 138502227 | 115 | 132 | 163 | 0 | Achiwuib SE, Aurora NE, Issano SW, Kaieteur NW, Kaieteur SE, Knoawaruk NW, Kurupung SE, Oranapai SW, Puruni NE, Puruni NW, Puruni SE, Puruni SW, Quartz stone SW, Supenaam SE, Takatu Head NE |
| Stephen Lamazon TIN 160513079 | 105 | 8 | 111 | 0 | Akarabisi NE, Akarabisi NW, Aurora SE, Aurora SW, Marudi NE, Matthews Ridge SE, Matthews Ridge SE,Akarabisi NE |
| Hongbo Chu | 110 | 0 | 74 | 0 | Bartica NW, Bartica SW, Ekereku NE, Ekereku SE, Issano NE, Issano SW, Kaieteur SE, Knoawaruk NE, Knoawaruk SE, Knoawaruk SW, Kurupukari NE, Kurupukari NW, Parish Hill NW, Quartz stone NE, Quartz stone NW, Quartz stone SW, Supenaam NW, Supenaam SE, Tiboku NW, Tiboku NW,Tiboku SW, Tiboku SE, Tiboku SW, Waini NE, Waini SE, Waini SW |
| Edward Hopkinson | 79 | 0 | 174 | 0 | Amakura SE, Kaieteur NE, Kaieteur NW, Kaieteur SE, Knoawaruk NW, Knoawaruk SW, Kokerite SE, Kokerite SW, Oranapai NE |
| Randolph Alexander Griffith TIN 128143888 | 92 | 83 | 61 | 0 | Bartica NW, Quartz stone NW |
| Ronaldo Alphonso | 91 | 0 | 98 | 0 | Akarabisi NE, Oranapai NE,Oranapai SE, Puruni SE, Puruni SW |
| Alfro Alphonso TINO Alfro Alphonso & Sons Enterprises | 109 | 0 | 2 | 0 | Bartica NE |
| Bissoondial Mahdu TIN 135721916 | 84 | 121 | 48 | 0 | Ituni SW, Kaburi NE, Knoawaruk NE, Knoawaruk NW, Knoawaruk SW, Kurupukari NE, Kwakwani NW, Pakani NW |
| Raymond Khan TIN 132889710 | 77 | 5 | 120 | 0 | Aurora SE, Bartica NW, Imbaimadai SW, Issano NE, Issano NW, Matthews Ridge NE, Oranapai SE, Oranapai SW, Puruni NE, Puruni SE, Puruni SE,Issano NE, Puruni SW, Supenaam SW, Tiboku NE |
| Joseph Orlando Adams TIN 108252971 | 85 | 27 | 68 | 0 | Kokerite NE, Kokerite NW, Kokerite NW,Kokerite NE, Kokerite SE, Oranapai NE |
| Carl Adams | 83 | 0 | 85 | 0 | Tiboku NE, Tiboku NW |
| Chunilall Baboolall TIN 143027471 | 67 | 101 | 71 | 0 | Aurora SE, Bartica NW, Knoawaruk NW, Quartz stone SE, Quartz stone SW, Supenaam SW |
| Ryan Pereira TIN 132533817 | 53 | 249 | 65 | 0 | Ekereku SW, Imbaimadai NW, Kurupukari NE, Kurupukari NW, Kurupung NE, Kurupung SW,Imbaimadai NW, Oranapai SW, Peaima NW |
| Correia Mining Company Limited TIN 010069548 | 55 | 275 | 45 | 0 | Kurupung NE, Kurupung NE,Kurupung SE, Kurupung SE, Oranapai SW, Peaima NE, Peaima NW |
| Donna Charles | 70 | 0 | 78 | 0 | Kaikan SE, Knoawaruk SE, Kwakwani SW, Matthews Ridge NE, Parish Hill NE, Parish Hill SE |
| Azeem Baksh-Snr. | 80 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Akarabisi NW, Ankoko SE, Aurora SE, Kaieteur NE, Kaieteur NW, Kamarang NW, Knoawaruk NW, Knoawaruk SW, Kurupukari NW, Kwakwani NW, Kwakwani SW, Matthews Ridge NE, Oranapai NW, Parish Hill NW, Peaima NE,Kurupung NW, Quartz stone NE, Quartz stone NW, Quartz stone SE |
| Brock Inc. | 54 | 0 | 90 | 0 | Ekereku SE, Kokerite NW, Kokerite NW,Kokerite SW, Waini SW |
| Donna Lyn Charles | 55 | 0 | 73 | 0 | |
| George Griffith | 59 | 0 | 52 | 0 | Akarabisi SE, Aurora SW, Puruni SE, Puruni SE,Bartica NE, Siparuni SE, Tiboku NE |
| Azeem Baksh- Snr Baksh Diamond Enterprise/ G-Star Mining | 57 | 0 | 49 | 0 | |
| Deonarine Sookram TIN 143872244 | 34 | 216 | 44 | 0 | Kaieteur NE, Knoawaruk NE, Knoawaruk NW, Knoawaruk SE, Potaro |
| Bryan Stephens | 49 | 0 | 63 | 0 | Aurora SE, Bartica NW, Quartz stone SW |
| Henry Alphonso | 46 | 0 | 72 | 0 | Aurora SE, Mazaruni Mining District, Oranapai NW, Oranapai SW, Puruni SE, Puruni SW, Tiboku SW |
| Dabria Marcus TIN 132053279 | 49 | 5 | 54 | 0 | Akarabisi NW, Aurora SW,Oranapai NW, Cuyuni Mining District, Ekereku SE, Issano SE, Kaieteur NE, Kaieteur NW, Kaieteur SE, Knoawaruk SW, Kokerite NE, Oranapai NW, Peaima NW, Potaro Mining District, Puruni NW, Quartz stone SW |
| Aditya Singh | 54 | 0 | 28 | 0 | Bartica NE |
Ranked by press events, permits, tenure polygons and claims. Every holder has a page; this table shows the top of the ranking, with the TIN where a claim printed it.
Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (ArcGIS FeatureServer) — Mineral_Property_Data_For_Download: Mineral Licences, Large Scale, Special mining permit, Quarry Licences: 19,929 records, fetched Sep 15, 2026. →
Guyana Geology and Mines Commission — Property Status Search (Claim, MP, PPMS, SMP, PL, QL, ML): 25,073 records, fetched Sep 15, 2026. →
The register is read through GGMC's WordPress search form (a nonce per session, 200 rows a page, one probe per year of property number plus vowel probes on the holder for rows without a year); the map through GGMC's anonymous ArcGIS FeatureServer (four tenure layers, 1,000 rows a page); the press through Google News RSS.