Nice15 Dec 2018 19:23
Authorities of the Ministry of Energy and the company SolGold carried out this Tuesday December 11, 2018 a tour of the Cascabel mining project, located in the province of Imbabura. Advanced exploration drilling is done in the Alpala gold and copper deposit, considered the largest in Ecuador. According to the latest estimates, this deposit contains more than 10.9 million tons of copper and more than 23 million ounces of gold. It is estimated that the mine will have a durability of at least 40 years from the moment it begins to produce, which places it as a "world class" project, underlined Jason Ward, president of SolGold, the firm with the greater participation in the project. During the advanced exploration phase, which is about to culminate, about 95 wells have been drilled, totaling 170,000 meters in depth. 70% of the value of the project is copper and 30% is gold. It is estimated that by 2021 it will enter construction. In the project, located between the Lita and Carolina parishes, up to now USD 95 million has been invested, of which 51 million were channeled this year, informed the Deputy Minister of Energy and Non-Renewable Resources, Fernando Benalcázar. Tier 1 copper projects are very rare and scarce, but contribute more than half of the world's production of the metal, the Ministry of Energy reported. Cascabel has three times more reserves than Mirador, a large-scale copper project located in Zamora Chinchipe. This project reported reserves of 3.18 million tons of copper up to January this year. In addition, it has 3.39 million ounces of gold. This concession is in charge of the Chinese company Ecuacorriente. The Fruta del Norte project, located in Zamora Chinchipe and run by mining company Lundin Gold, was the country's largest gold project. Until January of this year, gold reserves estimates were 4.94 million troy ounces. But Cascabel contains almost five times more reserves than Fruta del Norte. In Cascabel 12 drilling machines operate, dedicated to constructing wells up to 2,400 meters deep. The perforations allow to delimit the mineralized body and confirm the existence of these resources. These jobs have generated 413 jobs so far, 90% of which are from the area of influence. "When the Alpala mine finally begins construction, we estimate that it will require about 7,500 people," Ward said. The executive explained that the mine will be underground and "will be developed with the most advanced technology to minimize the environmental impact." The Vice Minister of Mining pointed out that for 2019 an additional USD 70 million is expected in investments in this area. Around the works in this project have been developed ventures for the provision of supplies, preparation of food, transportation cooperatives, hardware stores, among others, said Benalcázar. With the Cascabel project, the mining frontier could expand in the country. Currently, mining projects of medium and large scale, which are in full development, are concentrated in th
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