"Mines that do not explore come to an end and, with it, foreign exchange inflows, canon, work and social responsibility; therefore, we have to explore, this is an important matter for us", declared Vice-Minister Montero.

Furthermore, the official considered that mining exploration represents a very high risk investment, because there is no certainty about the proven, probable or inferred reserves.

"I would say that out of every 100 exploration projects, only 1 becomes a mine. In addition, during an exploration we are not talking about canon, about employment, we cannot talk about a local supplier because we do not know if there is something there, maybe there are resources, but they do not justify a mine," he said.

In view of this and regarding the development of prior consultation at this stage of mining activity, Vice-Minister Montero explained that the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MINEM), headed by Minister Jaime Gálvez, has been working on the issue from a technical perspective.

"Thinking about prior consultation in this business scenario with such a high risk really seems to be an opportunity for improvement. We are trying to understand where the opportunity for improvement lies so that we can streamline processes and promote exploration in Peru more effectively without infringing on rights", he said.

Two More Core Aspects

The Vice-Minister of Mines, Jorge Luis Montero, informed that his administration, apart from exploration, will also focus on managing conflicts..

"It is the second most important issue for us; because if we don't manage conflicts what we have are mines that are halted, blocked, stopped and the effect in the end is the same, we lose foreign currency, royalties (canon) and development opportunities," he emphasized.

Similarly, he commented that the third most important issue is the closure of mines due to environmental impacts.

"We are in an interesting and dynamic exchange of ideas with the Ministry of the Environment and we are looking at ways to promote a deeper discussion with normative forecasting for a more effective mine closure, a mine closure that takes place in stages as the mine evolves and the final mine closure," he revealed in Rumbo Minero TV.