Intag says no to mining
Sunstone Metals concession El Palmar an ecological and financial nightmare
Constitutional Court could save Australian Government funded Reserve in Ecuador from mining
Sunstone Metals Ltd are an Australian exploration company based in Queensland and Western Australia. Their focus in Ecuador is the Bramaderos Gold Copper Project. The company was previously known as Avalon minerals and based in Perth. At that time it had a series of Malaysian-based directors. Sunstone has been active in exploring for minerals in three countries: Ecuador, Sweden and Finland.
CEO & Managing Director Malcolm Norris, was involved in the discovery of copper and gold at Cascabel when he was employed by Solgold.
The Bramaderos Gold Copper project is located in southern Ecuador on a 4949ha concession. The concession is owned by La Plata Minerales S.A. (“PLAMIN”), owned 87.5% by Sunstone (the project operator) and 12.5% by Cornerstone Capital Resources (which holds a 12.5% interest through to the start of commercial production).
Bramaderos is located in the Loja Province, west of the town of Catacocha. In October 2017 Sunstone raised up to $4.8m to fund exploration at Bramaderos. In January 2017, a subsidiary of Cornerstone, La Plata Minerales S.A. (Plamin), had been awarded the Bramaderos concession. In April 2017, Plamin then signed a binding letter of intent with Avalon Minerals. Bramederos has been sporadically explored since 1970. The initial focus is on the Espiritu gold-silver target where the first trench has been completed. Drilling at the Brama and Porotillo porphyry gold-copper targets is expected to begin in September.
On August 12, Sunstone announced the intention to acquire El Palmar, a concession bordering on Los Cedros Biological Reserve, a scientific observational and research site. The area forms the watershed for a number of important rivers, including the Rio Manduriacu which runs at the base of the El Palmar concession. The steepness of the site means contamination of the waterways are inevitable. Elevations at the Sunstone concession climb from 800m to 1400m in less than a kilometre. The challenge of establishing and transporting mineral ore in the area are enormous, with the main road barely wide enough to take a single vehicle. Additionally, new laws by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Mines prevent mining companies from establishing tailings dams upstream.
Overview of Sunstone and their operations
(2 page PDF)
Resumen de Sunstone, sus exploraciones en Ecuador.
(Documento de 2 páginas)