The chairman of Bougainville Copper says the company is negotiating with land owners in PNG's Bougainville Province over its plans to reopen the Panguna mine.
For the past 10 years, landowners in Bougainville have been seeking compensation from the Rio Tinto mining group in a court case in the United States.
Bougainville Copper, a Rio Tinto subsidary, owns the Panguna mine.
The Australian television station SBS reports Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare signed an affidavit in 2001 which was presented as evidence in the court case accusing Rio of driving the PNG government's involvement in the war on Bougainville.
Rejected Its chairman, Peter Taylor, has rejected all the allegations in the affidavit.
He told Radio Australia's Pacific Beat he is hopeful negotiations can soon begin with landowners on re-opening the mine.
"There has been an agreement between the national government, the Bougainville government and the company to sit down and have discussions," he said.
"But we've also agreed that an essential element is to have the landowner representatives at the table, and they are still in the process of forming a single body.
"And once that's done there is nothing, really to prevent us from all getting around the table."
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