Brazil's Tocantins state, Aura Minerals discuss US$70mn gold project

Representatives of the Brazil’s Tocantins state and the country manager of Canadian gold miner Aura Minerals, Plínio Cardoso, discussed the company’s US$73mn Almas gold project as part of a strategy to attract investments.

“We have this closer connection with investors because we work with transparency in our actions, and within this transparency process we focus on all production chains, including mining,” Tocantins’ industry, commerce and services secretary, Carlos Humberto Lima, said in a press release.

"Our biggest focus is to build a business ecosystem that is more suitable for investments, and we are working with public policies that give us the conditions to promote and stimulate the socioeconomic development of our state, and this only happens when we work hand in hand with the productive sector," he added.

More details were not reported.

Aura Minerals's Almas asset comprises the Paiol, Cata Funda and Vira Saia deposits in a 15km corridor of the Almas Greenstone belt.

According to BNamericas’ database, mine life is 17 years, with capacity of 51,000oz/y. Production should start in April.

Recently, miners have tried to maintain closer dialog with local governments in response to calls from officials to increase taxes.