Canadian miner Barrick Gold announced onThursday it will start building a massive mining project, to produce 750,000 to 800,000 ounces of gold a year in the Chilean-Argentine border area.

The company said in a statement that Chile and Argentina had reached an agreement to approve the project, and have both issued permits for the construction.

The project involves building a mine called "Pascua Lama" and its complementary facilities. It is scheduled to start operating at the end of 2012, and will begin production in 2013.

Once completed, the mine will also produce 35 million ounces of silver a year.

The construction costs of the project were estimated at 2.8 to 3 billion U.S. dollars.

Located 5,500 meters above the sea level, Pascua Lama extends from Chile’s Atacama region across the border into Argentina’s San Juan Province. The area, rich in glaciers and ice rivers, is regarded as one of the continent’s most important areas for water resources.

The project aroused objection and protests from environmental protection groups a few years ago when it was first put forward by Barrick. Those organizations said the project would pollute water supplies and affect the ice fields and glaciers in the area.

The mine, solely owned by Barrick, has an estimated deposit of 17.5 million ounces of gold, with 70 percent in Chile and 30 percent in Argentina.

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