Te encuentras en la páginas de Blogsperu, los resultados son los ultimos contenidos del blog. Este es un archivo temporal y puede no representar el contenido actual del mismo.
Canadian exploration company Duran Ventures announced positive results of copper and molybdenum mineralization at Aguila project, located in the department of Ancash, after completing the preliminary work of metallurgical testing in its property.
Said company stated that G&T Metallurgical Services Ltd. completed the preliminary program of laboratory flotation testing on Aguila drill core composite samples.
The locked cycle flotation test on the intrusive composite indicated that 93 percent of the copper and 91% of the molybdenum in the feed was recovered into a final copper concentrate containing 28 percent copper.
This concentrate also contained 1.5 percent molybdenum, and 82 g/tonne silver, according to report entitled "Preliminary assessment of the two composite samples from the Aguila deposit KM3161" dated December 21, 2011 and prepared by G&T Metallurgical Services Ltd.
"The initial metallurgical work has been successful. Mineralogy and locked cycle flotation test results indicate that the copper and molybdenum essentially occur as primary sulphides that can be readily recovered to a commercial concentrate by standard flotation techniques," as quoted in such report.
The metallurgical test program included batch rougher and open circuit cleaner flotation tests on each composite, as well as locked cycle flotation tests.
Likewise, the locked cycle flotation test on the sedimentary composite indicated that 83 percent of the copper and 82% of the molybdenum in the feed was recovered into a final copper concentrate containing 24 percent copper.
This concentrate also contained 1.7 percent molybdenum, and 110 g/tonne silver.
Further metallurgical work is recommended by G&T and will follow in accord with the development of the project.
"The high recoveries and the lack of any deleterious elements indicate that the process flow sheet should be conventional and straightforward," consulting firm G&T reported.
The Aguila project is located in the department of Ancash, as well as the Antamina copper and zinc deposits, from Antamina mining company, and gold mine Pierina of Barrick Gold.
Duran Ventures is a Canadian exploration company focused on the exploration and development of porphyry copper, precious metal, and polymetallic deposits in Peru.
The company's principal project is the Aguila Copper-Molybdenum Porphyry Project with related silver-lead-zinc mineralization. (Andina)
The Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (Mincetur) on Wednesday estimated that 500,000 Peruvians will follow the 2012 Dakar Rally from Tacna to Lima.
The rally, which began in Argentina on January 1, will pass through Chile and is to arrive in Peru on January 12 through Tacna, to end in Lima three days later.
“We expect 500,000 Peruvians to travel to the different places [along the route] to see the competition. In addition, there will be a significant number of foreigners who are coming as part of the crews of the rally,” the head of Mincetur Jose Luis Silva said.
He added that the Dakar Rally is a unique opportunity to promote the country’s tourist destinations as the television signal will reach 190 countries and will serve for hundreds of small and medium enterprises to showcase their products at the campsites that will host competitors.
According to Silva, as a result of this event a delegation of 200 Dutchmen booked a hotel in Lima, and it is expected that the same happens in other hotels of the capital.
“Therefore, the impact will be significant in these four days. However, the most interesting thing is what’s going to happen in the following months because since a billion people in the world will be watching images of Peru, there will be some interested in visiting the country.” (Andina)
Peruvian consumer prices rose 4.7 percent in 2011, the fastest pace in three years, the national statistics agency said.
Inflation was forecast to accelerate to 4.8 percent last year, according the median estimate of nine analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Prices increased 0.27 percent in December from the previous month, compared with an estimate of 0.3 percent.
Inflation, which outpaced the central bank’s target range of 1 to 3 percent, was spurred by fuel prices, which jumped 14 percent, and food and clothing, which increased 8 percent and 4.8 percent, respectively, the agency said yesterday in an e- mailed statement.
To contact the reporter on this story: Alex Emery in Lima at aemery1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Joshua Goodman at jgoodman19@bloomberg.net
Head of the European Union Delegation in Peru, Hans Allden. Photo:ANDINA/Carlos Lezama
Peruvian President Ollanta Humala has been invited to visit Brussels, Belgium in the first quarter of 2012 to meet the highest authorities of the European Union (EU), the head of the EU delegation in Peru, Hans Allden said Sunday.
Allden said that the EU has proposed the Peruvian government to hold these meetings during the first days of February.
"We have a date for President Ollanta Humala's visit to Brussels scheduled for February 1-2. We are working with this target date. But it is a date which must be confirmed by the Peruvian government," he told Andina.
He stated that during the official visit, the Peruvian leader would meet with European Commission President Jose Manuel Durao Barroso and European Council President Herman Van Rompuy.
Humala will also hold talks with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Catherine Ashton as well as authorities of the European Parliament, a body that has been discussing the ratification of the trade agreement with Peru. (Andina)
Pacific Alliance Members
The Peruvian government is negotiating an agreement with Chile, Colombia and Mexico to form part of the Pacific Alliance and allow Panama to join it.
According to the president of Peru's Exporters Association (ADEX), Juan Varilias, the incorporation of Panama to the Alliance will allow greater freedom for the transit of Peruvian products in the countries that form part of the group.
During the last meeting of the Alliance, held in Merida, Mexico, the president of Panama, Ricardo Martinelli, expressed his wish that his country forms part of the group.
For the first half of 2012 it is expected that the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signed between Peru and Panama comes into force, recalled Varilias.
ADEX President argues that the agreement will be beneficial to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) of the Peruvian fishing sector, among others.
"On Tuesday, Panama's Legislative Assembly unanimously approved the FTA, which will help strengthen bilateral trade ties," Varilias was quoted as saying by FIS.com.
He added: "Geographically, Panama is near Peru, we have the same language, I think both countries will benefit substantially," the agency Andina reported.
According to the data provided by ADEX Economic Studies Management, the FTA with Panama will allow the 93.1 per cent of total tariff lines to enter immediately or to do so in a maximum of five years during which there will be reduced tariffs.
In the fisheries sector, the most favoured products are sardines, trout and mackerel, among other resources.
Between January and October 2011, Peru sent products to the Panamanian market for USD 244.9 million, that is to say, 12 per cent more than in the same period of 2010.
Of that total, 69 per cent (USD 169.6 million) were traditional products, mainly oil products, and the remaining 31 per cent (USD 75.3 million) were non-traditional products.
Canadian-based St. Elias Mines said Monday it has doubled the ongoing diamond drilling program at its Tesoro gold project in Peru to 20,000 metres.
In order to do this, the company said it is taking all necessary steps to mobilize a second diamond drill rig to the project - expected to come on site at the start of the new year.
Additional mechnical trenching on the both the Main Structural Corridor and the Parallel Structural Corridor is due to begin in January, Proactiveinvestors.com reported.
St. Elias said it is also in the process of hiring three more geologists for the project, with necessary project infrastructure being expanded to accomodate the plan.
The drilling program has been designed to test near-surface and deeper-seated geophysical anomalies identified by Titan 24 geophysical surveys, the company added.
The Tesoro gold project is 100 percent owned by the company with no underlying royalties, and covers roughly 6,974 hectares as part of the prolific 300 kilometre by 30 kilometre Nazca-Ocoña gold belt parallel to the Pacific coast of southwestern Peru.
While the veins in the belt tend to be narrow, the grade is significant and the mineralized structures typically extend along strike for several kilometres and to depths of up to 1,000 metres.
To date, the company has identified five mineralized zones with more than 50 quartz veins, having a total combined length of nine kilometres at Tesoro. Underground and development work has been carried out on three of these veins so far. (Andina)
Canadian-based Duran Ventures has expanded the areas of known copper and molybdenum mineralization of its Aguila project located in the department of Ancash in north-central Peru, after finishing the final eleven drill holes of the 2011 drill program, the company reported.
Drilling has intersected mineralization over 800 metres in an approximately east-west direction, 400 metres in a north-south direction, and over 1000 metres vertically.
Limits on the size of the mineralized system have not been fully established, with numerous geological, geochemical, infill, and geophysical targets remaining to be drill tested at this large property, added the company.
Further drilling is required to define the ultimate shape, size and orientation of the Aguila Copper-Molybdenum Porphyry system.
According to Duran Ventures, a total of 15,175 metres were drilled in 27 diamond drill holes from April 18th to October 19th, 2011. Meanwhile, a cumulative total of 23,929 metres of core have been drilled by the company at the Aguila project from 2007 to 2011.
Data from all the holes will be included in the preliminary NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate now being prepared by SRK Consulting. The company expects to receive the SRK report in the first quarter of 2012.
The preliminary metallurgical test work currently being carried out by G & T Metallurgical Services Limited of Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada is expected to be available at the same time.
The 119.5 metre interval from 161.5 to 281.0 metres depth returned 0.32% Cu and 0.008% Mo (0.38% Cu equivalent).
At the same time, Compañia Minera Milpo S.A.A. is advancing development work at the Magistral copper – molybdenum porphyry and skarn deposit, located some 40 kilometres to the north of Aguila.
The Aguila area infrastructure is robust and constantly improving, with a large regional hydroelectric plant located on the Santa River approximately 40 kilometres from the project, abundant precipitation, and good road access available from several directions, the company says.
Duran Ventures, a Canadian exploration company focused on the exploration and development of porphyry copper, precious metal, and polymetallic deposits in Peru, plans to continue moving the Aguila project forward in 2012.
The Company's principal project is the Aguila Copper-Molybdenum Porphyry Project with related silver-lead-zinc mineralization. (Andina)
Peru’s exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) might rise 330.6% up by US$ 1.23 billion this year fueled by rising demand in Spain, Japan, Republic of Korea, Thailand and Mexico, consultant firm Maximixe reported.
This increase ahs been possible despite expectations of a lower global energy demand that has reduced the prices of Peru's natural gas exports, from a maximum of US$ 175.7 per cubic metter in May to a minimum of US$ 115.7 in September.
This year, Taiwan, China, Japan and Thailand have become new markets for this Peruvian product.
It is expected that exports continue increasing in the coming years fueled by Pluspetrol's investments, which might increase its tested reserves through a project to expand the development drilling program on block 56.
Between January and October 2011, total exports of natural gas reached US$ 1.02 billion, an increase of 588% compared with the same month in 2010.
Peru LNG consortium (the only Peruvian natural gas exporter) has made 60 shipments, while Spain was the main market concentrating 36.8% of total exports and an increase of 437.7%.
Spain is followed by Korea (22%), Japan (12.7%), Thailand (12%), Mexico (5.9%), US (3.8%), China (3.7%) and Taiwan (3%).
In terms of volume, Peruvian gas exports added up to US$ 7.3 billion of cubic meters. (Andina)
Dubai Port (DP) World, concessionary of Muelle Sur in the port of Callao, is expected to start the second phase of investments in said terminal in approximately 11 months, that is, in September next year, president of the National Port Authority Frank Boyle announced Thursday.
"We, as well as the Supervisory Agency for Investment in Public Infrastructure (Ositran), are convinced that DP World exceeded the rate of employability during the first phase of operations, which triggers a second phase of investments in the terminal" said Boyle.
Ositran recently announced that operations at Muelle Sur surpassed 80 percent of its operating capacity; which is why, in compliance with the contract signed with the government, the company must start the second phase which requires an investment of US$240 million.
Boyle explained that in the next 11 months, DP World will have to develop the technical file, as a first step for the beginning of works.
"During that time they must also obtain a certificate of absence of archaeological remains and pass the environmental impact report, with which they would be ready to start building the second phase," he said. (Andina)
Peruvian film “Las Malas Intenciones” (Bad Intentions) won Sunday the best Latin-American feature film award at the Mar de Plata International Film Festival in Argentina.
Rosario García-Montero's film beat out nine other nominees, including “El Campo” (Argentina) by Hernan Belon, “Porfirio” (Colombia) by Alejandro Landes and “El velador" (Mexico) by Natalia Almada.
According to the festival’s website, the exceptional thing about The Bad Intentions is that disturbing and at the same time innocent childhood view, when the eyes start to open in order to decipher what is going on and to try to understand it.
"Difficult for an adult, pitiless for a child. The Bad Intentions is that moment when we all stop being naive and uncover our eyes," the festival's website said.
The film is about a nine year old girl, named Cayetana de Los Heros, who fights against the world to become an adult. She lives in a beautiful middle-xclass home with her father and governess. Her mother is often abroad and might not even miss her.
At school she studies the period of Peru's struggle for independence. When her mother returns home from one of her trips, she is pregnant and unhappy. She does not even see her daughter.
And so Cayetana, who is convinced she will die when her younger brother is born, starts fighting alongside the heroes that made history in her country, entering an imaginary world that will teach her how to escape from solitude and the sense of abandonment to find the path that leads to the sun. Just like the heroes hidden in her surname. (Andina)
video:
http://www.youtube.com/user/TrailerPeruanoJulio Velarde
Peru’s policy makers yesterday kept their benchmark interest rate at a two-year high as above-target inflation outweighs concern about slowing global demand.
The central bank’s seven-member board, led by bank President Julio Velarde, left the overnight rate unchanged at 4.25 percent, matching the forecasts of all 16 economists surveyed by Bloomberg.
“There continues to be a heightened uncertainty in international financial markets and the potential negative impact on global growth,” policy makers said in their statement posted on the central bank’s website.
The threat of stagnation in Europe and the U.S. has dimmed the outlook for Peru’s commodity-dependent economy and led the government to announce what it has called “preventive” stimulus measures. At the same time, while prices rose more- than-expected last month, inflation expectations remain within the central bank’s target range, which gives policy makers room to room to maneuver, Eduardo Cavallo, Latin America vice president at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in New York, wrote in a research note after the decision.
“The bank maintained the conditional easing bias going forward which shows that despite the still robust performance of the Peruvian economy, the bank is concerned about the potential spillovers of the global backdrop on Peru,” Cavallo wrote.
After holding the rate steady for a fifth straight month at the Oct. 6 meeting, policy makers highlighted areas of the $153 billion economy that had begun to slow.
Government Steps
Prices for copper, Peru’s top export, have fallen 23 percent since July on concern that Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis may lead to a global recession.
An uncertain global outlook has damped domestic investment and may lead Peru to grow below potential in the fourth quarter, Velarde said today in an interview in Santiago.
“Consumption continues to be strong but investment isn’t showing the same vigor as before because of international fears,” he said. “If the problems are overcome, there could be a major bounce in confidence and commodity prices. That can’t be ruled out, although everyone is pessimistic now.”
There are no inflationary pressures at the moment, Velarde said.
The sol strengthened 0.2 percent 2.7025 per U.S. dollar at 11:06 a.m. in Lima, from 2.7075 yesterday.
Stimulus Measures
The government is spending over the next six months the equivalent of 1 percent of gross domestic product on stimulus measures that focus on infrastructure projects.
“As the Euro zone struggles to resolve its debt issues and uncertainty about contagion remains, we expect the bank to keep its benchmark rate at 4.25 percent in its next meeting,” Roberto Flores, head of research at Inteligo SAB, a Lima-based brokerage, wrote in a research note e-mailed to investors.
The government is tapping a wider-than-expected budget surplus to finance a stimulus plan aimed at safeguarding Peru’s commodity-dependent economy from global market turmoil.
Though a “sizeable” budget surplus makes President Ollanta Humala’s stimulus package feasible, in a context of faster-than-expected growth, the move “can also be read as reflecting a higher marginal propensity to spend and a lower weight on inflation objectives on the part of the Humala administration,” said Bank of America in a Oct. 26 report.
‘Transitory’ Factors
Rising domestic food and clothing costs pushed the annual inflation rate to 4.2 percent in October, a 29-month high and above the central bank’s target range of 1 percent to 3 percent.
On the month, prices rose 0.31 percent, higher than the 0.2 median estimate of analysts in a Bloomberg survey. October’s inflation rate was affected by “transitory supply factors,” policy makers said yesterday.
Though international grain and crude oil prices are mainly to blame for higher inflation, pressures stemming from domestic demand are intensifying, said Mario Guerrero, an economist at Scotiabank Peru.
Velarde had said Sept. 16 that monthly inflation would be less than 0.2 percent in the months ahead and forecast periods of deflation as global commodity prices eased.
Economists expect inflation will be 4 percent this year, according to the latest central bank survey, up from a forecast of 3.5 percent a month earlier. The analysts expect the economy to expand 6.5 percent this year, before slowing to 5.5 percent growth in 2012.
Peru’s gross domestic product rose 8.8 percent in 2010, which ranks as the country’s third-fastest annual growth rate in 16 years.
Inflation Outlook
Economists in the central bank’s survey see inflation slowing to 2.6 percent in 2012 and 2.5 percent in 2013, prompting the central bank’s monetary policy manager, Jorge Estrella, to say Nov. 9 that inflation expectations remain “anchored” in policy makers’ target range.
Growth has rebounded along with consumer and business confidence following the country’s June 5 presidential election. Peru’s stock index, bonds and sol had declined ahead of the election on concern that a Humala government might boost state control of the economy, raise mining royalties and deter investment.
The economy expanded 7.5 percent in August from a year earlier, after rising 6.5 percent in July and 5.3 percent in June.
If Europe contains its debt crisis and domestic inflation pressures don’t ease as quickly as the central bank anticipates, rate increases are possible next year, according to Scotiabank and Barclays Capital Inc.
Peru’s sol rose to its highest level in more than three years Nov. 7 as rising prices and quickening growth reduces the possibility of the central bank lowering rates, said Gonzalo Navarro, head trader at Banco Santander in Lima.
“If the crisis dissipates, the pressure will be for the bank to raise rates,” Navarro said.
To contact the reporter on this story: John Quigley in Lima at jquigley8@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Joshua Goodman at jgoodman19@bloomberg.net.
Hillary Clinton
Peru’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism Jose Luis Silva and of Foreign Affairs Rafael Roncagliolo discussed Thursday with United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Trade Representative Ron Kirk the future of the negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP).
In the context of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum, the government representatives of Peru and the United States evaluated the process of the TPP talks, Minister Silva said from Honolulu, Hawaii, where the APEC Leaders’ Summit is to take place this weekend.
"Both Kirk and Clinton expressed their interest in continuing the TPP negotiations and bet on APEC, as well as increasing trade in the region," he told Andina news agency.
He stated that all members of the TPP countries are keen to continue negotiations and agree on the issues yet to resolve.
Negotiation on a TPP includes New Zealand, Chile, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, Peru, United States, Australia, Malaysia and Vietnam.
Silva said that the heads of the negotiating teams met previously and drafted a document summarizing the progress of the negotiations, which was presented to the ministers of foreign trade, and that will be presented to the leaders of these nine economies.
"The document is ready and was presented to us ministers. It will be now presented to the presidents of the countries of the TTP, who will decide whether to approve it and make it public." (Andina)
Italian builder Astaldi, in a joint venture with Peru's Grana y Montero S.A., has been awarded a US$ 680 million contract for developing the Cerro del Águila hydroelectric project in Peru.
The project – to be carried out in accordance with the EPC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction) scheme – calls for building a 380,000 m3 concrete dam, an underground power plant with 510MW of installed power, 9 kilometres of tunnels, and 60 kilometres of roads accessing the site.
The initiative was commissioned by Peru’s KALLPA Generación S.A., which works in the power distribution sector. The project will be carried out by the joint venture set up by Astaldi (at 50% and leader of the JV) and by the Peruvian Group GyM - Grana y Montero S.A.
Astaldi said in a statement it would develop the project over four years, with the preliminary activities to be started before the year end.
Cerro del Águila, together with Santa Teresa (98MW) recently acquired also in Peru, brings to six the number of hydroelectric projects that Astaldi is carrying out in Latin America, including El Chaparral (66MW), Huanza (90MW) and Pirris (125MW), which are under construction respectively in El Salvador, Peru and Costa Rica while in Chile Astaldi is a shareholder of the concession company owner of the Chacayes hydroelectric power plant (111MW) which since the month of October has started the energy production phase. (Andina)
Interoceanic Highway Brazil Peru
With the implementation of the economic stimulus plan and the search for greater competitiveness in the medium term, Peru guarantees an annual growth rate of at least six percent for the next years, Maximixe consulting firm said.
“If in the coming years, conditions are similar to the current ones, without tightening of financial conditions abroad and without adverse climate impacts, the economy could grow six percent annually over the five years," Jose Razuri analyst at Maximixe estimated.
Last Wednesday, the Executive approved the second package of measures that will prevent an economic slowdown in Peru in the coming months, in case of global uncertainty.
Economy and Finance Minister Luis Miguel Castilla said that the country has officially relaunched its competitiveness agenda and expects to grow at rates of six percent in the next years, with sustained increase in productivity.
He added that said relaunch of the competitiveness agenda seeks to achieve continuous growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
In this regard, Razuri said that after the agreement made this week among the eurozone countries to overcome their fiscal debt crisis, the international outlook is friendlier for Peru, at least in the short term. (Andina)
Peru will become one of the largest producers of wind energy in Latin America, renewable energy expert at the European University of Madrid Alberto Rios said.
Rios, who was a guest speaker at a wind farm integration seminar, organized by Concytec in Lima, praised the construction of three new wind farms for 2012, which would significantly benefit the country, as it would reduce dependence on natural gas.
He said that the development of wind energy in Peru will boost social inclusion of rural populations - and by not emitting Co2, the country could reduce the emissions of greenhouse gasses.
In addition, the three new wind farms are being built in the towns of Talara, Cupisnique and Marcona, which are expected to be completed by the end of 2012.
"The importance of wind energy is that in countries with great potential, such as Peru, it becomes a fantastic vehicle to hook up to electrical generation systems, which are modern, sophisticated and highly competitive," he said. (Andina)
Peru could benefit from the diversity of its fauna and cater to the approximately 69 million bird-watchers in the United States, said Jose Koechlin, president of Peru’s Hotel Society.
Koechlin told Andina that these visitors could have a positive impact on creating jobs and improving the quality of life in rural areas in Peru.
"We have 84 of the 104 ecological zones in the world, which allows for a large presence of birds. Therefore it is necessary to insist on the protection of natural areas that are home to this legacy," Koechlin stated.
According to the country’s export and tourism promotion agency Promperu, Peru has one of the largest varieties of birds in the world.
Ideal spots for bird watching are the Manu National Park, between Cusco and Madre de Dios, and the Pantanos de Villa, in Lima. A 15-day tour at the Manu National Park can cost around $3,000.
Peru holds two world records: 331 bird species spotted in one day in the Manu, and 569 species sighted in one location at the Tambopata National Reserve, peruthisweek.com reported today. (Andina)
video: http://www.youtube.com/user/PROMIXvideo: http://www.youtube.com/user/hotelscuscoPeru is becoming an attractive destination for foreign investment because, amid the difficult international context, it is a very friendly country for development projects and guarantees political and macroeconomic stability as well as energy supply.
The chief executive of oil company Repsol, Antonio Brufau, said this week that investing in Peru is a great advantage and luck because it is a tremendously friendly country to develop investment projects.
After holding a meeting with Peruvian President Ollanta Humala Tasso on Thursday at the Government Palace, Brufau expressed confidence in Peru and announced that the Spanish company will invest three billion dollars in the Andean country over the next five years.
Previously, the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM) reported that mining investments totaled US$ 4.04 billion between January and August 2011, a 70 percent increase over the same period in 2010, noting also the importance of Peru as a destination for global investments.
The presence of capital in our country, as well as announcements of new millionaire investments, are being registered in parallel to the energy matrix change that Peru has taken towards natural gas. (Andina)
Large gold mines play a dominant role in the Peruvian economy, a study by gold-mining-industry group the World Gold Council said Friday.
The report, which examined the economic impact of the country's four largest gold mines over a period of 14 years, found that they accounted for 60% of the $5.6 billion in gold exports in 2008.
The WGC's research focused on Newmont Mining Corp.'s Yanacocha, Barrick Gold Corp.'s Lagunas Norte, Gold Fields Ltd.'s Cerro Corona and Compania de Minas Buenaventura's Orcopampa. The mines represented nearly 10% of foreign direct investment in Peru and accounted for over 20% of mining exports and 12% of total exports from Peru in 2009, the group said.
Gold mining also plays an important role in government revenues, with the government collecting around $800 million from the four mines in 2009, Dow Jones Newswires quoted the industry body as saying.
While aggregate employment across the four mines is seen peaking at 5,000 employees this year, 99% of the work force is made up of Peruvian nationals, while community salaries represent nearly half the $250 million expected to be paid in wages in 2011 through 2014, WGC said. It added that around 90% of total procurement spending by the four mines was on national suppliers. (Andina)
A Canadian mining giant will soon operate in Peru as the Canadian federal government have given approval for White Tiger Gold's takeover of Century Mining, which already operates in the Andean country and which is owner of the Lamaque mine in Quebec and other mines in the world.
Under the planned transaction, Century Mining will be acquired by a wholly owned subsidiary of White Tiger, a company that trades on the TSX but operates mainly in Russia, reported The Canadian Press.
The deal has received some of the necessary approvals, including from shareholders, but is still subject to final approval of the Toronto Stock Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange where the companies' shares are listed.
"We appreciate the approval given by the Government of Canada. We are now one step closer to creating a larger, more diversified gold mining company with multiple properties in various stages of production and development in Canada, Russia, and Peru" said Daniel Major, president and chief executive officer of Century and Geoffrey Cowley, White Tiger's CEO, in a joint statement.
Century's stock closed at 21.5 cents, up half a cent, on the Venture Exchange while White Tiger's ended trading Wednesday at 62 cents, down three cents on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
White Tiger Gold Ltd. is a TSX-listed mining and exploration company, focused on the development of mineral resources in the Russian Federation and which currently operates the Savkino heap leach gold operation located in southeastern Siberia.
In addition to Ildikan, Nasedkino/Uryum and Pridneprov, White Tiger Gold Ltd. also holds gold exploration licences in Zolin-Arkinsk and Takhtamygda which are prospective geological environments in south central Siberia.
Century Mining Corporation is a Canadian gold producer and holds strategic land positions in Canada, the United States and Peru.
Its strategy is to grow to its gold production through existing mine expansions and acquisitions of other strategic and synergistic gold opportunities. (Andina)
Mining companies in Peru invested US$4.44 billion in the first eight months of 2011, up 70% from the same period last year, the government said.
In the January-to-August period, mining companies invested US$679 million in infrastructure, US$597 million on mining equipment, US$555 million on processing plant equipment and US$547 million on preparation activities for projects, the Mines and Energy Ministry said Wednesday.
According to marketwatch.com, companies also spent US$533 million on production and US$520 million on exploration, the ministry said.
Cajamarca region had investments of US$745 million, while Apurimac had investments at US$554 million, Cuzco at US$507 million and Ancash at US$459 million.
Companies investing in the sector include gold producer Minera Yanacocha, which is 51.35%-owned by Newmont Mining Corp., and Xstrata PLC.
Yanacocha invested US$556 million in the period, while Xstrata invested US$514 million at its Tintaya mine and US$489 million at its Las Bambas project, the ministry said. (Andina)
Peru's Antamina Mine
Peruvian base metals miner Compania Minera Antamina expects to increase production next year following the completion of a large-scale expansion at its mine, company Chief Executive Abraham Chahuan told business newspaper Gestion.
In an interview published Monday, Chahuan said the US$1.3 billion expansion of the mine is "practically in the final stage."
"We could be starting the new equipment by the end of the year, and we expect that our capacity will increase in 2012," he noted.
Antamina the biggest producer of copper in Peru, with output of 1.2 million metric tons of copper concentrate a year. It is also the largest producer of zinc, with 600,000 tons a year of concentrates, he said.
Chahuan also told Gestion that Antamina is the second-largest producer of silver and the largest producer of molybdenum in Peru.
Chahuan said the new windfall taxes placed by the Peruvian government in the mining sector have put the mining industry at the limit of what can be placed before competitiveness declines.
The owners of Antamina are BHP Billiton, with a 33.75% stake; Xstrata Copper with another 33.75%; Teck Cominco Corp. with 22.5% and Mitsubishi Corp. with 10%.
The mine, located in the central Andes Mountains region, started operations in 2001. (Andina)
A second-half brace from Paolo Guerrero earned Peru a hard fought victory over Paraguay in their first 2014 World Cup qualifier on Friday.
Peru continued their superb Copa America form in their first match of qualification, defeating visiting Paraguay 2-0 at a packed National stadium in Lima.
The best chance for the Peruvians in the first half came moments before the break when Juan Vargas was sent into the box on the left side.
The Fiorentina star delivered a low, swift ball across the face of the goal, perfectly finding the right foot of Guerrero, but the striker's effort from five metres flew by the wrong side of the right post, passing the by-line, Goal.com reported.
The striker earned back the confidence of the fans a minute into the second half after a fantastic pass from Jefferson Farfan sent the attacker through. Guerrero did the rest, taking a touch by Diego Barreto and a defender, finishing into the open goal with ease.
The Hamburg striker added his second 27 minutes into the second half. Farfan sent Claudio Pizarro on goal, and the Werder Bremen man chipped the ball in front of net, falling right to the the feet of Guerrero, who made no mistake, finishing with a low effort, sealing the victory. (Andina)
Rotisserie chicken. Photo: Hector Vinces.
La Granja Peruvian restaurant has opened two new locations in Florida, United States, one in Port St. Lucie and the other in Okeechobee.
The Port St. Lucie La Granja is the 30th store for the Margate-based regional chain and the second location on the Treasure Coast. A Fort Pierce store opened at 7040 Okeechobee Road in 2005.
Monica Castillo, manager of the Fort Pierce store and general manager of La Granja's north district stores, is a franchisee at the Port St. Lucie location.
Castillo's partner in the franchise is Paul McNesky of Port St. Lucie, a longtime customer of the Fort Pierce store who said he saved up to buy a franchise because the food is good and the price is right, according to a news release.
La Granja, meaning "the farm," specializes in rotisserie chicken and other Peruvian specialties served with a number of different fresh salsas, Castillo said. (Andina)
Peru’s central bank will probably leave borrowing costs unchanged for a fifth month as the threat of recession in Europe and the U.S. outweighs concern about accelerating inflation.
The seven-member board, led by central bank President Julio Velarde, will keep the overnight rate at 4.25 percent today, according to 17 of 18 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. One analyst predicts a 0.25-point cut to 4 percent. The board will announce its decision at about 7 p.m. New York time.
The threat of stagnation in Europe and the U.S. has dimmed the outlook for Peru’s commodity-dependent economy and led the government to announce what it has called “preventive” stimulus measures. Though the central bank has indicated it will cut rates if global risks intensify and domestic activity slows, rising prices and stronger-than-expected domestic growth indicate there’s no need for laxer policy yet, said Juan Pablo Fuentes, a Latin America economist at Moody’s Analytics Inc.
“There’s a risk of a hard landing, so the government is preparing its tools for a negative scenario,” Fuentes said in a telephone interview from West Chester, Pennsylvania. “The central bank will be paying attention to the very fluid global situation and change its stance if necessary.”
Stimulus, Sentiment
The Andean nation is tapping its first fiscal surplus in three years to finance stimulus measures worth about $470 million as it seeks to reverse a decline in public infrastructure spending in the first half of this year.
The stimulus will become more “aggressive” should a global slowdown cause exports and company spending to ease, Finance Minister Miguel Castilla said Sept. 22.
The International Monetary Fund on Sept. 20 cut its 2011 growth forecast for Peru to 6.2 percent from 6.6 percent previously. Growth will slow to 5.6 percent next year, the Washington-based lender said.
The central bank’s latest survey shows companies are less optimistic about domestic demand and hiring prospects because the global outlook has darkened, said Carlos Durand, president of the Lima Chamber of Commerce, in a Sept. 27 interview.
Investor caution on the global outlook and “political uncertainty” following Peru’s presidential election is affecting medium and long-term investment, Luis Castellanos, chief executive of Banco Internacional del Peru, told reporters Sept. 29. Demand for consumer loans remains “vigorous,” he said.
Policy, Trade, Growth
President Ollanta Humala on Oct. 3 confirmed Velarde’s appointment to serve a second five-year term, which Pedro Tuesta, a former Peruvian central bank analyst and current economist at 4Cast Inc. in Washington, said indicated policy continuity.
Growth in retail and services helped offset a slowdown in manufacturing and construction in July and fuelled a 6.5 percent rise in gross domestic product, beating analysts’ and the central bank’s expectations.
Cement demand rose for the first time in three months in August while electricity output climbed at the fastest annual pace in six months, which suggests growth is accelerating, Tuesta said.
Peru’s trade surplus will probably fall to $4.3 billion next year from $7.4 billion this year because of lower copper, zinc, gold and silver prices, Velarde said Oct. 4.
China’s growth will remain “strong” this year and next, which “will guarantee that the price of exports will remain relatively high,” he said.
Gross domestic product growth will slow to 5.7 percent in 2012 from 6.3 percent this year, the central bank chief said Sept. 16.
Europe, Precautions
Economic activity will slow in the next few months amid weaker construction and manufacturing output even though consumer demand remains “very strong” Velarde told congress Oct. 4. “In investment, there isn’t a lot of pessimism, but nor has there been such a strong recovery yet.” Investors “are waiting to see what will happen with the global outlook.”
Policy makers will probably give more weight to the fall- out from Europe’s debt crisis, which led global stocks and commodity prices to tumble since their last meeting, said Roberto Melzi, at strategist at Barclays Capital Inc. in New York.
“Risks to economic activity haven’t dissipated anywhere by any means,” said Melzi, who forecasts a 0.25-point rate cut today to be followed by similar cuts at the bank’s November and December meetings. “The global crisis is deepening.”
Higher fuel costs pushed Peru’s consumer prices up 0.33 percent in September from 0.27 percent in August, driving the annual inflation rate to 3.73 percent, a two-year high. The central bank targets annual inflation in a range of 1 percent to 3 percent.
Monthly inflation may slow to close to zero before year-end as some prices reverse recent increases, Velarde said Sept. 16. The annual inflation rate will converge toward the central bank’s target range next year, he said.
Peru’s sol posted the steepest quarterly decline since 2008 in the July-through-September period as copper prices fell and concern about slowing world growth wiped $10 trillion from global equities.
To contact the reporter on this story: John Quigley in Lima at jquigley8@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Joshua Goodman at jgoodman19@bloomberg.net.
Casa Concha - Cuzco Perú
Yale University officials are heading to Peru’s southeastern Cusco region this weekend to celebrate the opening of a new home for Inca artifacts long housed at the US university.
Provost Peter Salovey will join other members of the University in the Imperial city for the formal opening of the Universidad Nacional de San Antonio Abad del Cusco-Yale International Center for the Study of Machu Picchu next Thursday.
The ceremony follows this summer’s centennial celebration of Machu Picchu’s discovery in 1911, and will cement a collaborative relationship between the UNSAAC and Yale for the years to come, Salovey said.
“Yale is very pleased to be the UNSAAC’s partner in this project, and is delighted by the progress we have made together so far,” Salovey said in a Thursday email.
“We expect Yale faculty and students to travel often to the museum for research projects involving these objects, and we are very impressed by the beauty of Casa Concha and the way the objects will be housed and displayed there.”
Meanwhile, Yale archaeology professor Richard Burger ’72 said that hosting the artifacts in Cusco enabled greater protection and conservation than would have been available in Machu Picchu.
The Inca artifacts that will soon be on display in Peru caused decades of controversy between Yale and the Peruvian government, as both fought for control of the collection discovered between 1911 and 1916 by Yale archaeologist Hiram Bingham III 1898 and housed in Yale’s Peabody Museum for much of the past century, Yale Daily News reported.
The center’s opening comes after Harold Forsyth, the Peruvian ambassador to the United States, conferred the Order of “The Sun of Peru” — the nation’s highest civilian award for extraordinary services to Peru or contributions to the art, literature, culture or politics the country — upon University President Richard Levin at a ceremony in Washington, D.C.
Though the artifacts have not quite returned to Machu Picchu, they will reside just 50 miles southeast of their original home in a 16th century Cusco mansion known as Casa Concha, which serves as the site of the center jointly-run by UNSAAC and Yale.
Hosting the artifacts in Cusco enabled greater protection and conservation than would have been available in Machu Picchu, Yale archaeology professor Richard Burger ’72 said, adding that Cusco was the capital of the Inca empire.
“Casa Concha is a remarkable place because you have Inca architecture visible and you have colonial architecture from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries visible,” Burger said.
Planning for the Center has primarily been a collaborative process between Yale and UNSAAC, with the Peruvian government playing a secondary role, Burger said. The government has played an important role in helping import large dioramas and other supplies needed for the exhibits, he added (Andina)