You should read a little about the problems ACX and others are having in Ecuador. The company didn't handle their problems with the locals very well and riots have occurred.
Top this off with a change in government to the left in Ecuador, and a change in expectations of the people to foreign resource companies and you get a recipe for disaster until the government decides what they want from foreign companies operating in their country.
Corriente had an advanced stage copper project in Ecuador which was put on hold,...my interpretation is that more Ecuadorians want a piece of the pie, and until they get it they will disrupt operations. The current manner is to drive a bunch of banditos with guns onto the miners property which tends to stop operations,...the government provides no help to stop these shows of force.
This is going to affect all foreign companies in Ecuador. Aurelian and its area plays will no doubt be allowed to define their resource, but when they try a build a mine the ghosts of ACX and CTQ will come back to haunt them. Any ANALyst recommending ARU at this time (and there are many), must be looked at with a bit of skepticism.
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Corriente's Mirador production stalled to mid-2009
2007-01-25 08:49 ET - News Release
Mr. Kenneth Shannon reports
MIRADOR PROJECT TIMELINE EXTENDED
Corriente Resources Inc. is extending the timeline for its Mirador project. The accelerated Mirador project development plan was based on having key permits and government agreements completed by this time (for instance, the investment contract). Since the required agreements are still being processed and the company is still under a suspension order by the Ministry of Mines, the board of directors has elected to minimize its current project obligations with suppliers of key long-lead-time components to the Mirador project. The company is well supplied with capital in excess of $120-million in equity funds. Based on current information, it is estimated that the start of production at Mirador will be delayed from late 2008 as planned to mid-2009, largely due to adjustments to long-lead-time equipment deliveries as a result of this decision.
Corriente has been in constructive discussions with the incoming administration of Ecuador's President Raphael Correa regarding the resumption of fieldwork at the Mirador project site (see Stockwatch news dated Dec. 8, 2006). While the government has indicated support for such resumption, it has yet to provide clear and sufficient indications of when this will be achieved. Corriente will continue to meet with the Correa administration over the near term so that the goal of restarting fieldwork can be achieved as soon as possible.
Over the next few months, management expects to firm up a revised project construction timeline and reschedule equipment deliveries. In addition, management will continue work on optimization of the Mirador project in such areas as waste rock dump design, hydrology and environmental studies, as well as other areas of potential capital-cost savings that have been identified in an independent review of the project.
Ken Shannon, chief executive officer, stated: "We remain committed to our stakeholders at the Mirador project, and the nearby communities in Zamora Chinchipe and Morona Santiago provinces, especially the villages of Tundayme, Valle de Quimi and the Shuar people of Zamora, with whom we have worked over the last six years to improve their medical care, housing, education and employment. Ultimately, it is our belief that the will of the local communities to provide a better future for their children will be a deciding factor to proceed with the development of responsible, long-term mining activities at Mirador."
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orriente asked to shut down Mirador temporarily
2006-12-08 13:54 ET - News Release
Mr. Kenneth Shannon reports
CORRIENTE RESOURCES INC.: MIRADOR PROJECT UPDATE
Corriente Resources Inc. is reviewing activities at the Mirador project in Ecuador.
Over the last two months, a series of protests have been held in the Morona-Santiago and Zamora-Chinchipe provinces against resource development in general.
In the Mirador project area, many of these protesters appear to be from outside communities that have been brought into the region in an effort to disrupt resource development activities.
After a number of ineffective negotiating sessions with the protesters, the federal government has asked Corriente to temporarily suspend its Mirador project camp activities to aid in the negotiating process.
Ken Shannon, chief executive officer, stated: "To ensure the safety and security of our local communities and supporters, we have agreed to a temporary halt to our field project work for the Christmas period. Our company has and will always be committed to full environmental responsibility and to our local communities, who are counting on us for jobs and other benefits such as significantly improved housing, medical services and education. Protests against mining activities are not unique to Ecuador, and are usually based on misinformation and ulterior motives."
The vice-president of Ecuador's Chamber of Mines, Cesar Espinosa, said the communities in the mine's zone of influence are not the ones instigating the protests. "Those communities are pro-mining and I would calculate that the majority of the population is in favour of mining," he stated.
Mr. Espinosa stressed that the movement against mining activity over the past several days is basically being directed by international NGOs and activists who oppose mining "in Ecuador and everywhere." In his view, the problem arose due to a lack of information about mining, and said the CME is going ahead with an aggressive campaign to inform the communities "of what the modern, responsible mining that we are promoting really is."
Engineering, project planning and procurement activities for the Mirador project are continuing and on schedule.
The company also working with representatives of the incoming administration of Mr. Correa, the newly elected President of Ecuador, on its plan to develop Mirador and to ensure that the Mirador project construction activities and mine development will continue to have the full support of the government of Ecuador.
Following the Christmas break the company will provide a further update on the company's Mirador project development timetable.
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