Investors, save the date of March 2nd for Ecuador Day at the annual PDAC event this year in Toronto, where you will learn about the country's new vision to make the mining industry one of Ecuador's main economic engines.
Though still seen as a risky place for investment by many due to a hefty tax imposed on mining projects, some have recently invested big in the area on the belief that the country is wrongly perceived, including chief executive officer of newly formed Lundin Gold, Lukas Lundin.
The all-day event, taking place at the Metro Toronto Convention Center, room #205D, will host a series of sessions and round tables, beginning with the National Mining Company of Ecuador's project portfolio, as well as national and foreign companies' participation in the country.
Round tables will include discussions on state-owned projects, social and environmental practices, the legal mining sector and mining potential and mineral deposits in Ecuador.
Javier Cordova, Minister of Mines in Ecuador, will also speak about the country's new mining framework, with the government announcing plans last summer to modernize its mining laws and offer tax incentives designed to attract foreign investors, including an abolishment of the windfall tax.
Featured companies at the event will include Lundin Gold (TSE:LUG), Cornerstone Capital Resources (CVE:CGP), which has been exploring in Ecuador since 2005, and SolGold (LON:SOLG).
The event will continue into the night, with a cocktail reception at Stratus Restaurant, 79 Wellington Street West, Toronto. Lukas Lundin, chief executive of Lundin Gold, will start off the night with his presentation, followed by CEO of Odin Mining and Exploration, Marshall Koval, and Rafaeal Poveda, the coordinating minister for strategic sectors.
Kinross Gold (TSE:K) last October sold its Fruta del Norte mine in Ecuador to Fortress Minerals -- a company in the Lundin family stable that is now known as Lundin Gold --- for US$240 million, after Kinross failed to agree on economic terms with the Ecuadorean government following two years of negotiations. The windfall tax was a main reason for the contention.
The project has given the Lundin family a foothold in the gold industry, providing it with one of the largest and highest grade undeveloped gold projects in the world. The property, which has had more than US$275 million invested in it since its discovery in 2006, has an indicated mineral resource of 7.26 million gold ounces and an inferred mineral resource of 2.55 million ounces.
The Ecuadorean government has so far been supportive of Lundin Gold, with CEO Lundin saying construction can hopefully start at Fruta del Norte in the next 24 months. The target is to be in production by 2018, with the project expected to produce 600,000 ounces of gold annually during the first five years of production.
Ecuador is one of the last largely unexplored mining frontiers. With Colombia to the north, Peru to the south, the minerals-rich Andes Mountains straddles all three countries.
For more information and to register, please contact ecuador.event@apexcap.ca
We look forward to seeing you there!