Last checked at 
* First 22,000 tonne cargo left South America earlier this
month
* Chinese smelter Tongling Nonferrous to take delivery in
late Feb
(Adds comment from Tongling Nonferrous in paragraphs 5 and 6)
QUITO, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Ecuador made its first export of
22,000 tonnes of copper concentrate from the Chinese-owned
Mirador mine, the energy ministry said on Wednesday, marking a
new milestone in the country's effort to develop a large-scale
mining industry.
Ecuador, an Andean country neighboring No. 2 copper producer
Peru, has large mineral reserves but is only beginning to
establish industrial-scale mining projects.
Mirador is run by Ecuacorriente, a subsidiary of the Chinese
consortium CRCC-Tongguan, which has a 30-year concession. It
started production in July 2019.
The shipment of copper concentrate has a value of about 25
million dollars, according to the ministry, and was transported
to the Port of Guayaquil and then by sea to the Chinese city of
Tongling.
Tongling Nonferrous Metals Group, one of China's
top copper smelters and a partner in Mirador,will take delivery
of the concentrate shipment in late February at the port of
Tongling on the Yangtze River, an official from the Chinese firm
said on Thursday,adding that the cargo left Ecuador on Jan. 6.
The project will supply Tongling Nonferrous, based in
eastern China's Anhui province, with around 96,000 tonnes
annually of copper concentrate, on a metal content basis, for 30
years, he added.
Mirador, located in the Zamora Chinchipe province in
Ecuador's Amazon, foresees a total investment of more than $2
billion during the concession period. The Chinese company has
paid some $100 million in early royalties to the Ecuadoran
government.
The CRCC-Tongguan consortium bought the company with the
concession for the open-pit mine under former leftist President
Rafael Correa, who deepened Ecuador’s economic ties with China.
Environmental groups and local authorities have opposed
mining activity in the country and are promoting popular
consultation in some mineral-rich areas to prohibit their
development and reverse concessions already granted to foreign
companies.
Ecuador has other projects in the advanced exploration phase
such as Cascabel, awarded to Australia's SolGold, and
the Llurimagua project, which will be operated by Ecuadoran
state mining company Enami and Chile's Codelco.
(Reporting by Alexandra Valencia; additional reporting by Tom
Daly in Beijing; Writing by Sarah Kinosian; Editing by Sonya
Hepinstall and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
