The Ceará mining market may receive a new investment in the coming months that will diversify the sector for minerals metallic Canadian company.. According to the director of the National Mining Agency (ANM), Tomás Figueiredo Filho, the Canadian group Discovery Group will make a new research investment in the State.
Therefore, in order to better identify the potential for platinum extraction, representatives of the foreign company are expected to come to Ceará between March 23 and 24 to supervise studies that could help to size an extraction mine in the future.
Confirmation of the investment came during business rounds of the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC 2020), one of the largest mining conventions in the world. Figueiredo went to the event to represent the Brazilian government and present the national scenario for attracting new investments.
However, detailing the possibilities of the new regulatory framework for mining in Brazil. The company, however, did not indicate the value of the investment, which should be measured after feasibility studies.
In addition to investing in Ceará, the Canadian group is also known for gold mining in Guatemala.
“I had a meeting with a Canadian company that acquired a license to conduct research in an area in the interior of Ceará and is coming at the end of March to expand the research. Since then, it is aiming to make new investments and plan the implementation of the mine,” explained the ANM director.
For Figueiredo, the arrival of a large mining company in Ceará, also considering the metallic minerals market, could be important to consolidate Ceará as a “safe and stable port” for investments in this sector.
Scenario
The director also highlighted the current economic scenario as a driver of these new investments. The Brazilian basic interest rate (Selic) at a low level (4.5%) and the Federal Government's policies to encourage the private market in the country. These can be highlighted as factors to understand this more favorable moment for the economy.
“If (foreign companies) see Brazil as a politically stable environment, with a good regulatory environment, we can see an increase in the development of the sector, as companies seek safer places,” said Tomás.
He also highlighted the potential that Ceará has for the mining sector, with several studies already underway for different types of minerals. Still on the subject of the sector, Figueiredo highlighted the work of ornamental rock companies in Ceará. However, platinum should be used for the production of items related to new technologies, batteries and similar things.
Analysis
Despite the prospect of new investment in the state, the president of the Ceará Marble and Granite Industry Union (Simagran), Carlos Rubens Alencar, however, considered that investments in the metallic materials mining sector have a very high cost and generally require more time to present more practical results Canadian company.
Carlos Rubens also highlighted that Ceará needs to invest more in detailed studies on capacity and rock assessment. According to the president of Simagran, the most qualified study in the state indicates a potential specification based on kilometers (km). However, this could lead to several deposits being lost in the spaces without greater detail. The president of Simagran also highlighted the export potential of the ornamental rock sector in the state.
“Ceará is a state that has received very little research. It has a fair to good geological mapping base, but it needs to be expanded. This means that we have details every kilometer, so it is a very spaced base. A granite deposit can fit into 100 meters, so the level of detail is still very low,” said Rubens.