Gold, Guns and Gina Rinehart’s mining concessions in Ecuador

August 1, 2020

Carlos De Miguel III, the General Manager of Hanrine Ecuadorian Excploration and Mining SA, a subsidiary of Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting, was apprehended by police for an alleged illegal weapons cache. Mr De Miguel was found with several pistols, rifles, and more than 9,500 rounds of ammunition. A spokesman for Hancock in Australia said in … Read More

HPPL offer for Llurimagua

April 28, 2020

Hancock Prospecting Pty Ltd. (HPPL) put in an offer in 2017 to buy ENAMI stake in the Llurimagua project in northern Ecuador, according to Via Minera. Full article here (in Spanish) with explosive commentary on situation at Llurimagua as well as information on issues with ENAMI/Codelco partnership, the collapse of copper, and interest from both … Read More

Australian company offer for controversial Llurimagua project

April 14, 2020

A major Australian company has reportedly put in a US$420 million offer for the controversial Codelco-ENAMI Llurimagua project in the Intag region of Ecuador according to mineral expert lawyer. Minerals expert lawyer Stevie Gamboa Valladares said in Prensa Minera on April 10: “Llurimagua is a mining project located near the Intag forest, an area of … Read More

Australian mining companies complicit in unrest

October 8, 2019

The Rainforest Action Group is deeply concerned about the implications of the State of Emergency declared by Ecuadorian president Lenin Moreno on October 3rd. The action gives police and military the power to use extreme force to repress the widespread mobilisation of the populace occurring throughout Ecuador after the implementation of austerity measures known as … Read More

SolGold joins Rinehart with trouble in Ecuador

August 6, 2019

SolGold joins Rinehart with trouble in Ecuador August 6, 2019 SolGold joins Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting as the latest Aussie company to face challenges on their Ecuadorian mining concessions. Illegal miners who were evicted from Rinehart’s concession at Buenos Aires in July, have been active on SolGold concessions in the Imbabura and Carchi provinces, while … Read More

Mafia gunfight over Rinehart concession

June 25, 2019

At least 19 people were injured in a twelve-hour shoot-out between rival organised crime gangs in Hanrine’s lucrative gold mining concession in northwestern Ecuador. The gunfight near Buenos Aires killed an unknown number of people, with bodies reportedly hastily buried or dumped down mine shafts where the confrontation took place. A truck transporting local residents … Read More