Doe Run Peru’s Creditors Turn Down Restructuring Plan, Support Liquidation

Creditors of Doe Run Peru, the metals producer that has operated the La Oroya metallurgical complex since 1997, turned down the company’s restructuring plan and opted instead for “liquidation in process,” the government said.

The creditors met Thursday to vote on the restructuring plan. Rosario Patiño, the legal representative of the Mines and Energy Ministry, which is the biggest creditor, said the restructuring plan presented by Doe Run Peru on Thursday was “unfeasible,” which led the board of Read more…

Minas Conga Opponents Hold Protest Awaiting Environmental Review

Opponents of the huge Minas Conga copper and gold project in Cajamarca region held a 24-hour protest on Wednesday, only days ahead of when the government is expected to make public a review by three independent consultants on the project’s environmental viability.  The review was handed in to the government at the end of last week.

Premier Oscar Valdes said the government would respect the right to protest, but that acts of violence would not be tolerated. “What we aren’t going to allow are acts of violence that threaten the freedom of transit for other Peruvians who are not participating in the demonstration,” Radio Programas reported Valdes as saying.

The Minas Conga project was suspended in November amid protests against the project. Opponents, who include the regional president of Cajamarca, Gregorio Read more…

Peru’s Non-Traditional Exports To Canada Seen Up 20 Percent This Year

Peruvian non-traditional exports to Canada, the country’s fourth biggest trade partner, could rise by more than 20 percent this year thanks to a free trade agreement that came into force in 2009, a top Peruvian government official said.

Jose Luis Silva, Peru’s Trade and Tourism Minister, said that Peru’s non-traditional exports to Canada have increased to $96 million in 2011 from $48 million in 2009 as products from the fishing sector jumped 118 percent, 48 percent from agriculture and 23 percent from textiles.

“In the agriculture, there is a lot to still develop because the volume of total Read more…

Peru Exports Total $3.67 Billion In February, Up 9 Percent On Year

Peruvian exports totaled $3.67 billion in February, up 9 percent from the same month last year, according to the exporters’ association, Adex.

The growth rate in exports, however, was significantly slower than in January, when shipments abroad increased 27 percent year-on-year, state news agency Andina reported.

The slowdown in growth was the result of a slowdown in mineral exports due to concerns about the economic crisis in Europe and a decrease in demand from Read more…

Peru Miners Rescued Unharmed in Ica

The nine miners who had been trapped 250 meters underground for six days began to emerge from the Cabeza de Negro mine shaft just before 7am Wednesday, helped by rescue teams and welcomed by President Humala at the entry to the mine shaft.

The rescue was expected to be completed late Tuesday , but a large rock in the tunnel blocked access to the miners.  The rock, some two meters deep, had to be broken down slowly to Read more…

Indigenous Communities Reject Prior Consultation Law Rules

Indigenous leaders on Wednesday came out against the regulations of the Prior Consultation Law, enacted Tuesday, daily El Comercio reported.

One of the main reasons why some indigenous community organizations are against the law, which is intended to provide the communities with better consultation rights on natural resource projects, is that the legislation is not binding.

Instead, the government has reserved the right to make the final decision on whether a project will be developed if the indigenous communities reject it in the consultation process. The law is intended to prevent social conflicts by improving Read more…

Peru Approves Prior Consultation Regulations

Peru’s government published on Tuesday regulations that govern the “Prior Consultation Law,” new legislation that is intended to improve dialogue with indigenous communities that are affected by development projects, especially mining and energy projects.

The regulations, which were published in the official newspaper El Peruano, point out that the seven-stage consultation process should take approximately 120 days. Government entities will be responsible for carrying out the consultation, which indigenous groups can choose to do in their native languages or in Spanish.

The Prior Consultation Law (Law 29785) was enacted in September last year by President Ollanta Humala during a ceremony in the jungle town of Bagua, a gesture Read more…

Gov’t Accepts Resignation Of Official Connected To Illegal Mining

Peru’s government has accepted the resignation of a high-ranking government official who was linked in a media report to illegal gold mining.

Luis Zavaleta, the former director general of hydrocarbons, submitted his resignation to the Ministry of Energy and Mines on Friday, daily Peru.21 reported.

The resignation followed an investigative report published in newspaper El Comercio on the same day that said Zavaleta owned a company called Universal Metal Trading SAC.

Universal Metal Trading was founded in 1999 and describes itself as a company Read more…

Peru’s Pulgar-Vidal Proposes Greater Regional Cooperation On Illegal Mining

Peruvian Environment Minister Manuel Pulgar-Vidal proposed that nations in the Amazon basin share experiences on confronting illegal mining, which has been blamed for causing serious environmental damage in the world’s most bio-diverse rainforests.

“It (illegal mining) is not a problem that is exclusive to Peru, but also countries like Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia and Brazil,” Pulgar-Vidal said, according to state news agency Andina.

“We are going to see how we can exchange experiences to confront this problem,” Read more…

Illegal Mining Should be Paying Government 500 M Soles A Year – Sunat

Illegal mining in Peru is costing the country more than 500 million soles (about $190 million) a year, according to tax agency Sunat.

Sunat said Friday that illegal mining produces some 18,000 kilograms of gold per year, which has a value of more than 2.2 billion soles, daily El Comercio reported.

If taxes were paid by the illegal miners, it would be equivalent to more than 500 million soles, or almost 0.1 percent of the country’s gross domestic product.

About 85 percent of informal gold mining in Peru is centered in the south-eastern Read more…

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