RE: Update27 Jun 2019 08:05
RNS Number : 5291D
SolGold PLC
27 June 2019
27 June 2019
SolGold plc
("SolGold" or the "Company")
Constitutional Court Update
Further to the announcement on 21 June 2019, SolGold advises that the full judgement has now been received reviewed and interpreted from the Constitutional Court in Ecuador following the petition that was heard on 5 June 2019.
The Court unanimously and definitively rejected the petition by the applicant to consider whether the future of mining in the Carchi and Imbabura Provinces in Northern Ecuador (in which SolGold's 85% owned Cascabel project and other wholly owned exploration projects are located), is valid and legal in accordance with the Ecuadorean Constitution, on technical grounds in that;
1.
it did not comply with Ecuador's values,
2.
it was too broad and
3.
did not have a purpose that was in compliance with the constitution.
In making a decision on such a question the Constitutional Court of Ecuador follows a two-step process. Firstly, assessing the procedural merits of the petition and secondly, and only if the first test is passed , a test on its form and substance. This petition was subject to the first formal test as noted above, whereby the Court considered the motivation and rationale of the petition, its relevance and connection with the purpose of the consultation and, the structure of the question itself. This is to ensure that it is clearly and objectively formulated, doesn't imply double questions, is not misleading to the potential voter, doesn't by-pass other constitutional procedures given the matter at hand and the intended effects of the intended consultation (referendum) in the event it could be allowed to proceed.
The Court found that this petition did not pass any of the formal criteria and was therefore rejected. As a result it did not proceed to be assessed by the second set of criteria.
Based on this process SolGold understands that this decision by the Court has set a precedent of significantly higher standards and legal robustness if future popular consultation (referendum) requests are to pass firstly the tests of procedure and form in order to be secondly considered by the Court on substance or merit.
In this decision, the Court also highlighted that it is unconstitutional to ask the inhabitants of certain provinces about the matters relevant to other provinces, and that mining is a matter of national interest ( that cannot be opined upon by the inhabitants of a particular province ) . A popular consultation in a region or province that is not a national referendum may not consist of a question that would imply legal reform by amending or new legislation. The future of mining in Ecuador is therefore to be determined by the Ecuadorean Federal government.
In this regard SolGold is heartened by the strong presentations by the Government showing the importance of a properly regulated mining industry to the develop
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