VANCOUVER, Nov. 20 /CNW/ - Copper Mesa Mining Corporation ("Copper Mesa" or the "Company") (TSX:CUX) announced that it has received a notice from the Regional Director of Mines of Pichincha, Ecuador, that again purports the annulment of the Company's Golden 1 and Golden 2 concessions that form part of the Company's Junin project in Ecuador, now on the basis that the Company does not have an Environmental Impact Assessment ("EIA") for drilling.
In January 2008, the Company received a similar notice from this same lower office within the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum (the "MMP") contending that the same concessions had been nullified. The Company appealed the January 2008 nullification to the Constitutional Tribunal of Ecuador, which found in favor of the Company. The National Director of Mines confirmed in September 2008 that the Golden 1 and Golden 2 concessions were to be reinstated to the Company and instructed the applicable government agencies to take all necessary steps to put that reinstatement order into effect.
"To our knowledge, the Company is in compliance with applicable laws in Ecuador, particularly those regarding the development and approval of an EIA for drilling on the Junin project," said Gary E. Davis, President and CEO of Copper Mesa. "Although we cannot provide assurance that the Company will again prevail in its challenge to this most recent action, as was the case when the concessions were purportedly annulled earlier this year, we do not believe there is any legal basis for this latest action."
The Company submitted an EIA for the Junin project to the MMP in September 2006. As part of its review process, the MMP subsequently asked the Company to provide further clarification on certain items. The items were in the process of being addressed when the government issued an administrative decree in April 2008 mandating that no mining activities be conducted by any company until such time as a new Mining Law is approved by Ecuador's legislature. The new Mining Law is expected to be approved within the next few weeks.
Mr. Davis further stated "We treat all of the Company's dealings with governmental authorities seriously. We will vigorously defend the Company's rights and will take appropriate action upon further study with our Ecuadorian and Canadian legal counsel, and in cooperation with the appropriate officials and authorities in Ecuador, to favorably overturn this latest action. The Company has already provided a formal response to the MMP and expects to resolve this matter in the near term."
Copper Mesa Mining Corporation
Copper Mesa is a mineral exploration and development company focused on advancing into production its two key past-producing copper properties, the Zonia and Emerald Isle Mines, in Arizona. The Company is continuing to evaluate additional opportunities and properties of merit in the Americas.