Adventus and Salazar Highlight Corporate Social Responsibilities in Ecuador

TORONTO, Nov. 13, 2019 /CNW/ – Adventus Mining Corporation ("Adventus") (TSX-V: ADZN; OTCQX: ADVZF) and Salazar Resources Limited ("Salazar") (TSX-V: SRL) (collectively the "Partners") are pleased to provide an update on the ongoing community and economic development activities in Ecuador, at the Curipamba copper-gold project ("Curipamba") as well as similar plans for the earlier stage Pijili and Santiago projects. Local community, exploration, and project development activities at Curipamba are carried out by the Ecuadorian company: Curimining S. A. ("Curimining"), which employs an all in-country Ecuadorian team.

The Partners and Curimining are committed to providing tangible benefits to the communities closest to the Curipamba project, which covers 21,537 hectares in central Ecuador. The local programs aim to encourage education and capacity building, environmental protection, economic development and diversification, and improved opportunities for employment either directly with Curimining or by other sectors and industries in the region. The Curimining staff are active members of the communities, with many who are local residents with their families. It is in this co-operative spirit that the Partners and Curimining continue to work hand-in-hand with the communities to advance the Curipamba project and development in the region.

Adventus recognizes that the global investment community is increasingly focused on environmental, social and governance criteria for potential investments ("ESG"). The management and board of Adventus have proactively begun to reference the World Gold Council’s Responsible Gold Mining Principles as ESG guidelines for the company’s exploration and project development activities. Adventus has evaluated its various business activities and has begun to measure ESG progress by initiating an internal report card. Together with Salazar and Curimining, Adventus aims to continually advance the understanding and applications of ESG standards to its projects, teams and local stakeholders in Ecuador.

Below are highlights of some of the ongoing community development initiatives at Curipamba and in Ecuador.

Partnership with ESPOL University

In June 2019, Curimining signed an inter-institutional agreement with Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral ("ESPOL"), a public university in Guayaquil, Ecuador. The agreement aims to strengthen research and development programs in mathematics, science and particularly geology, in conjunction with the development of the modern mining sector in Ecuador. The agreement also emphasizes the advancement of tools and systems to support innovation, training, collaboration between business and civil society, technology transfer and skills development for Ecuadorians. Through the partnership, both Curimining and ESPOL will develop academic and field projects relating to the mining sector, which promote and contribute to sustainable economic development in Ecuador. For example, the feasibility level environmental and socioeconomic baseline work underway at Curipamba is being conducted with international best-practices standards and specialized consultants. These work programs are allowing Curimining and ESPOL to commence several projects that focus on environmental management and protection for the project communities and as positive case studies for future projects in Ecuador. The Partners and Curimining are also exploring additional research and skills development opportunities with other Ecuadorian and international institutions.

Entrepreneurship Cooperative for Agricultural Products

In collaboration with a local agroindustry producer: CAPLAT, and a local business with food production equipment: Agrosaturno S.A., Curimining continues to support the development of a co-operative of young professionals and recent graduates focused on value added production of local agricultural products. The objectives of the co-op are to promote local agribusiness and utilize competitive advantages of existing agricultural production in the Curipamba region. The co-op currently counts 17 members who are primarily local women and young entrepreneurs. Since 2018, the co-op has been manufacturing and selling products locally, including banana chips, banana flour, and sauces under the brand: El Naveñito. For the future, the co-op aims to work with the Nobis Foundation (Fundación Nobis) of the multi-sector Nobis Group (Consorcio Nobis) to strengthen its business models and expand the production and export capacities of the co-op.

Community Plants Nursery and Greenhouse Facility

As part of the existing environmental management plan for exploration activities at Curipamba, Curimining has built and maintained a local plant-life nursery and greenhouse facility over the last decade. The purpose of the facility is to preserve and grow local native species for reforestation as well as to produce some agricultural plants for harvest and local consumption. The facility houses approximately 12,000 native plants. The ongoing program also provides an educational opportunity to improve knowledge about sustainability and how members of the project communities can help protect the local ecosystems. Greenhouse facility management is led by an agricultural engineer from the National Agricultural Research Institute of Ecuador (INIAP) and employs four local community members. With the purchase of a new property in 2017, Curimining has been upgrading the facility infrastructure with the intention of expanding the program to further support sustainability, education, and local economic development in the region.

Local Arts and Sports Training

The Partners and Curimining are also strong supporters of the arts, culture and sports in the project communities through a variety of youth and adult programs. For over ten years, Curimining has held an annual elementary school art competition and a quarterly bursary program which provides economic support to local children. Curimining is also the proud sponsor of the Grupo de Danza in Las Naves, which actively promotes and supports local culture through performance arts. Youth teams have gone on to represent project communities in dance competitions across Ecuador and in Peru. In 2017, Curimining in partnership with local professional football club: Mineros Sporting Club S.A., established a youth football program which has grown substantially to seven communities in the Curipamba region. The community program includes both a competitive program for adults and a skills development program for youth, which involves more than 200 local boys and girls. The Curimining programs provide an important opportunity particularly to underprivileged youth and women in communities where support is otherwise limited.

Nobis Foundation and Future Plans

In 2019, Adventus and Salazar welcomed a new strategic investor and long-term supporter of the Curipamba project in the Nobis Group, one of Ecuador’s largest business conglomerates with interests across agricultural, real estate, industrial, commercial, construction and tourism sectors. The Partners and Curimining are actively working with the Nobis Foundation (Fundación Nobis) to explore new regional economic development and educational opportunities in conjunction with the development of the Curipamba project. Other strategic shareholders of Adventus have also expressed interest in providing ancillary funding contributions to further various initiatives, particularly alongside the Nobis Foundation. Curimining staff and local community members are excited for the opportunity to work with and learn from the Nobis Foundation and build on their successful development record in other communities across Ecuador.

About Adventus

Adventus Mining Corporation is a well-financed exploration and project development company, focused in Ecuador. Its strategic shareholders include Altius Minerals Corporation, Greenstone Resources LP, Resource Capital Funds, Wheaton Precious Metals Corp., and the Nobis Group of Ecuador. Adventus is leading the exploration and engineering advancement of the Curipamba copper-gold project in Ecuador as part of an earn-in agreement to obtain a 75% ownership interest. In addition, Adventus is engaged in a country-wide exploration alliance with its partners in Ecuador, which has incorporated the Pijili and Santiago projects to date. Adventus is based in Toronto, Canada, and is listed on the TSX-V under the symbol ADZN and trades on the OTCQX under the symbol ADVZF.           

About Salazar

Salazar Resources Limited is a mineral resource company engaged in the exploration and development of mineral deposits in Ecuador. The company has a proven Ecuadorian discovery team led by ex-head of Newmont Ecuador, Fredy Salazar; a team of 40 people including 15 geologists; three drill rigs and an unrivalled Ecuadorian ‘grass roots’ network. The Salazar team has been involved with many discoveries in Ecuador, including Aurelian’s Fruta Del Norte discovery, the Mozo deposit, ex-Newmont’s Cangrejos Project and International Minerals’ Rio Blanco; and Gaby Deposit.

Salazar aspires to be Ecuador’s leading project generator with the right partners at the right time making the company self-funding. Salazar has an earn-in agreement on the Curipamba volcanic massive sulphide project, whereby its partner can earn 75% of the project by funding exploration and development expenditures of US$25 million before 2023. A feasibility study is expected to be completed during 2021, after which the partner is required to fund 100% of the development and construction expenditures to commercial production. In addition, Salazar has a funded exploration alliance with its partner on two other projects, Pijili and Santiago, within a defined Area of Interest. Salazar is advancing its 100% owned Rumiñahui, Macara, Los Osos and Alisales projects with the aim of making Ecuador’s next significant copper-gold discovery.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

This press release contains "forward -looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, identified by words or phrases such as "believes", "anticipates", "expects", "is expected", "scheduled", "estimates", "pending", "intends", "plans", "forecasts", "targets", or "hopes", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "will", "should" "might", "will be taken", or "occur" and similar expressions) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking information herein includes, but is not limited to, statements that address activities, events or developments that Adventus and Salazar expect or anticipate will or may occur in the future. Although Adventus and Salazar have attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Adventus and Salazar undertake to update any forward-looking information except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

SOURCE Adventus Mining Corporation