Lumina Gold Corp (TSX-V:LUM, OTCQX:LMGDF). said it has successfully completed the reorganization and consolidation of its concession package comprising the Cangrejos project in Ecuador.
The consolidation has streamlined permitting and development of the Cangrejos and Gran Bestia deposits which previously straddled multiple concessions. Lumina retains its total land package of 6,373 hectares but that land will now be across seven concessions instead of ten previously, the Canada-based precious and base metals exploration and development company said.
“Not only does this bring Cangrejos and Gran Bestia onto one consolidated concession; it also brings in all the unexplored peripheral targets onto the main concession that will be permitted. This consolidation is an important step towards advancing and permitting the project,” said Lumina SVP Diego Benalcazar in a statement.
READ: Lumina Gold has drills turning at their Cangrejos Project
The maximum size for a concession under Ecuador's mining code is 5,000 hectares. The consolidated main Los Cangrejos concession has been designed to maximize the area that would fall under current and future permits and will be 4,999 hectares in size.
The reorganization process also brings the benefit of changing the concession classification to the start of the advanced exploration stage under the rules for industrial large-scale mining in Ecuador.
“This gives Lumina up to four years in the Advanced Exploration stage, then two years in the Economic Evaluation stage, with the option to extend an additional two years,” Lumina said.
“In aggregate, this allows for up to eight years before a mining production Title is required to advance to exploitation,” it added.
Lumina currently has two valid environmental impact studies, including one on the 3,498-hectare original Cangrejos concession. It has an additional environmental impact study on the original 779-hectare C20 concession, allowing for all required drilling and development work required for the pre-feasibility study. The company plans to unify the two studies into a single study that covers the new main concession.
The Cangrejos project is located in El Oro province in the southwest of Ecuador, 30 kilometres from the provincial capital of Machala.