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Gold/Mining/Energy : Gold and Silver Juniors, Mid-tiers and Producers -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: mimur who wrote (61097)	9/10/2008 9:46:14 AM
From: Proud Deplorable	1 Recommendation Respond to of 78428

Ecuadorean official pledges fair rules for foreign miners ANDY HOFFMAN MINING REPORTER September 10, 2008 DENVER -- Ecuador is prepared to eliminate an onerous windfall tax on mining projects in order to attract foreign firms, a government official told the mining industry yesterday. Xavier Cordova, Ecuador's acting vice-minister of mines, said the country plans to introduce stable, transparent and fair rules for miners who want to tap the country's promising mineral resources. The South American country is expected to amend tax laws to exempt mining firms from a 70-per-cent windfall revenue tax applied to oil and gas companies operating there. A similar windfall tax introduced by Mongolia has created "not good results," Mr. Cordova told delegates in a speech at a major gold mining conference in Denver. While Ecuador does plan to create a national mining company, the state-owned entity will be subjected to the same rules as other mining firms, he said. Fears that Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa would use such a vehicle to nationalize mining assets are unwarranted, he added. "The intent of creating a national mining company has nothing to do with taking any concessions or projects," Mr. Cordova said. The comments stand in sharp contrast to the pessimistic stance many investors have taken since Ecuador unexpectedly halted all exploration activities in April and set to work drafting a new mining law. Shares of Ecuador-focused mining firms, including Aurelian Resources Inc., lost more than half their value after the surprise introduction of the so-called mining mandate. Aurelian discovered the Fruta del Norte project, which is believed to contain more than 13 million ounces of gold. In July, the company agreed to a friendly takeover offer from Kinross Gold Corp. valuing Aurelian at about $1.2-billion. Aurelian said the mining mandate created such political risk that the project was better off in the hands of a senior company such as Kinross. Mr. Cordova's speech was more positive than many analysts and investors at the conference expected. But Kinross chief executive officer Tye Burt said he wasn't surprised. "It's right on track with what we've seen and heard on the ground in Ecuador," he said. Mr. Cordova said the fact that a major gold producer such as Kinross is willing to invest in Ecuador is both encouraging and significant. "It makes us believe we are on the right path," he said. The government official said Ecuador's new mining law is expected to be in place by the end of October, following a referendum later this month on a new constitution. The new law will impose a royalty of as much as 8 per cent on revenue from mining projects. Mr. Cordera said it has not been determined if mining firms will have to pay more than the 35-per-cent corporate tax rate. President Correa still needs to personally approve the new mining law and could request changes to the legislation.

To: mimur who wrote (61097)	9/10/2008 9:58:20 AM
From: SARMAN	2 Recommendations Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 78428

mimur, talking about ARU is not psychotic rantings. If anything retail investor should learn from ARU's investors and not to repeat the same mistakes. I would pay a close attention to, what you call psychotic rantings, maybe it will save you few dollars. I am telling you the management of ARU should be hanged. They are the most spineless piece of scum on the face of the earth. Companies are rushing to Ecuador to mine the natural resources. It is unbelievable that ARU is running out of there. Here is an example of companies going to Ecuador despite the mining law uncertainty. FACTBOX-Key players in Ecuador's nascent mining sector Sept 9 (Reuters) - Global copper giants are turning their attention to Ecuador's rich southern copper belt, kicking the tires on the Panantza-San Carlos copper property owned by Canada's Corriente Resources Inc (CTQ.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz). Following are some of the key players in Ecuador's budding mining sector, which analysts say could be worth billions of dollars in gold, copper and silver deposits. Corriente Resources Inc. (CTQ.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Vancouver-based Corriente is seeking major partners to develop the multibillion dollar Panantza-San Carlos project that has inferred resources of around 14.4 billion pounds of copper. Xstrata, Chile's Codelco and China's Tongling Nonferrous Metals 000360.SZ, among others, are said to be eyeing the property. Corriente also owns the Mirador and Mirador Norte projects, which together have resources of 11 billion pounds of copper. The company has other minor exploration targets in Ecuador. All of Corriente's exploration projects have been suspended by the government since late 2006 to prevent violent clashes between communities that oppose or back mining activity in the jungle. Aurelian Resources (ARU.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Kinross Gold (K.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Kinross won approval earlier this month for its C$870 million ($815 million) bid for Aurelian Resources, allowing it to take control of the Fruta del Norte gold deposit in Ecuador. With inferred resource of 13.7 million ounces of gold and 22 million ounces of silver, Fruta del Norte is one of the world's top undeveloped deposits. Aurelian holds 39 concessions in Ecuador, or around 95,000 hectares (235,000 acres) of territory. IamGold Corp. (IMG.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Iamgold, a mid-tier gold producer, controls the Quimsacocha project in southern Ecuador with estimated resources of some 3.3 million ounces of gold. The company is one of the biggest miners exploring in Ecuador, and has operations in North America and Africa. Environmentalists and some local villagers have demanded the government shut down the Quimsacocha project to protect the environment and key water sources. Dynasty Metals (DMM.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Dynasty holds some of the most advanced exploration projects in Ecuador, the Jerusalem and Zaruma deposits that have combined resources of 3.8 million ounces of gold. In April, President Rafael Correa visited the company's Zaruma gold project and met with senior executives. The company's projects are currently suspended following a mining ban issued by the government in April as a new law is drafted. (Reporting by Alonso Soto; editing by Marguerita Choy) reuters.com