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Ecuador's mining history is a story of unrealised potential, shaped by geography, politics, and shifting global economic priorities. For centuries, the country's vast mineral wealth—copper, gold, silver, and other metals—remained largely untapped, overshadowed by the dominance of agriculture and petroleum in its national economy. Yet, the roots of mining activity reach deep into Ecuador's past, dating back long before the modern state emerged. Indigenous cultures across the Andean highlands and Amazonian foothills extracted and worked gold, both for ceremonial use and trade. Archaeological findings indicate that goldsmithing in ancient Ecuador was highly sophisticated, featuring intricate alloys and casting methods that later impressed early European explorers.
When the Spanish arrived in the 16th century, they quickly recognised the abundance of mineral resources. Still, Ecuador never became a centre of large-scale colonial mining on the scale of Peru or Bolivia. Several factors contributed to this: the region lacked the massive, easily accessible silver deposits that fuelled Spanish exploitation elsewhere, and the logistical challenges of Ecuador's rugged terrain limited infrastructure development. While placer mining for gold occurred in areas such as Zaruma and Nambija, extraction remained relatively small-scale and seasonal, relying heavily on Indigenous and enslaved labour but never becoming a central pillar of the colonial economy. Agriculture, cattle ranching, and later cacao production proved far more profitable and predictable.
After independence in the early 19th century, the mining sector saw sporadic attempts at expansion. Foreign companies—British, Chilean, and later North American—experimented with industrialising gold extraction in southern Ecuador. Zaruma became one of the earliest hubs of mechanised mining, with underground works that endured for decades. Still, the country lacked capital, technical expertise, and a cohesive national policy. Successive governments have oscillated between promoting and restricting foreign investment amid concerns over sovereignty and exploitation. The absence of consistent regulation, combined with difficult terrain and limited transportation networks, meant that most mining operations remained artisanal and informally organised.
By the mid-20th century, Ecuador's economic focus had shifted decisively toward oil. The discovery of large petroleum reserves in the Amazon basin in the 1960s and 1970s redirected state investment and political attention almost entirely toward hydrocarbons. Compared to the high returns and rapid revenue generation of oil, mining appeared costly and slow to develop. Exploration stagnated, and although geologists continuously pointed to Ecuador's exceptional mineral potential—given its location on the Andean Copper Belt, one of the world's great metallogenic zones—few major projects advanced beyond preliminary surveys.
In the 1980s and 1990s, a global resurgence in mining investment prompted new interest in Ecuador's subsurface resources. International companies carried out exploratory work in copper-rich regions such as the southern provinces of Zamora-Chinchipe and Morona-Santiago. However, political instability, shifting regulatory frameworks, and emerging environmental and Indigenous rights movements complicated the development process. The tragic 1990 collapse of the informal mining settlement at Nambija, which killed hundreds, highlighted the dangers of unregulated extraction and placed intense scrutiny on the industry's social and environmental impact.
By the turn of the millennium, Ecuador's mining sector remained largely underdeveloped. Its mineral potential was widely acknowledged but only lightly explored, with no world-class industrial mines in operation. The stage was set for the major policy and investment shifts that would transform the industry in the decades to follow—shifts that would propel Ecuador from a mineral-rich but neglected player into an emerging force within the Andean mining landscape.
Ecuador mining has shifted in just a few years from a marginal economic activity to a strategic pillar of the country's export profile. Large-scale industrial mining only really began in 2019, with the start-up of two flagship projects: the Mirador copper mine in Zamora-Chinchipe, Ecuador's first large-scale open-pit copper operation, and Fruta del Norte, a high-grade underground gold mine in the southeast operated by Canada's Lundin Gold. (1) These two projects now anchor the formal sector and underpin the country's export statistics.
Mining exports have climbed from a few hundred million dollars in 2019 to between $2.7 billion and $2.8 billion in 2022, after Mirador and Fruta del Norte reached full capacity. (2) By 2023, sector exports surpassed the $3 billion mark and have since hovered in the low-to-mid $3 billion range, accounting for roughly 8–9% of total exports and ranking just behind shrimp and bananas among non-oil products. (3) For a country historically dependent on oil, that is a rapid reweighting of the export basket. The government also touts more than $700 million a year in tax and royalty revenue from mining, along with tens of thousands of direct and indirect jobs, particularly in poorer provinces. (4)
Copper and gold dominate Ecuador mining exports. Mirador produces copper concentrate with gold and silver by-products and has been ramping up through a second expansion phase. Fruta del Norte ships doré bars and concentrates and is on track for annual production in the 450,000–500,000-ounce range, with guidance to edge higher in 2025, reinforcing gold as the country's leading mineral export. (5) The pipeline is copper-heavy: SolGold's Cascabel/Alpala project in northern Ecuador is being fast-tracked with first production targeted around 2028, backed by major streaming deals and interest from global miners such as BHP and Newmont. (6) Other advanced projects, including Los Cangrejos, Curipamba and La Plata, could further deepen the portfolio if they clear permitting and social hurdles.
Yet, Ecuador's mining industry is unfolding against a backdrop of legal uncertainty, social conflict, and environmental concern (read more about responsible mining). The country's 2008 constitution enshrined the "rights of nature," and in 2021, the Constitutional Court applied that doctrine to halt mining in the Los Cedros cloud forest, establishing a national precedent that licenses can be revoked when ecosystems face serious or irreversible harm. Local referendums have also been weaponised: in 2023, voters in Quito approved a ban on metallic mining in the Chocó Andino biosphere reserve, reflecting deep mistrust of mining in sensitive watersheds. (7) More recently, the government revoked the environmental licence for Dundee Precious Metals' Loma Larga gold project after sustained opposition over impacts on a key water reserve, underscoring how court challenges and local politics can derail investments even at an advanced stage. (8)
At the same time, illegal and small-scale gold mining has surged, particularly in Amazonian and coastal regions, creating what authorities now frame as a national security issue. A 2023 Reuters investigation detailed military-style crackdowns on clandestine operations, while the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative has warned that gold smuggling is financing organised crime and undermining formal revenues (see also: Mine security). President Daniel Noboa's administration is trying to respond on two fronts: reopening the national mining cadastre after a seven-year freeze to attract legitimate investment, and tightening oversight to curb illegal extraction.
For investors tracking Ecuador mining, the picture is therefore double-edged. The country sits on a prospective section of the Andean Copper Belt and has demonstrated that world-class projects can be permitted, financed and built. But the pace and shape of future growth will depend on whether the state can reconcile an ambitious export and fiscal agenda with increasingly assertive courts, empowered local communities and the political potency of environmental protection.
The future of Ecuador mining is shaped by a tension between immense geological promise and a complex socio-political environment that continues to test the industry's stability. As one of the most prospective yet underdeveloped jurisdictions on the Andean Copper Belt, Ecuador holds the geological ingredients to become a regional heavyweight. Yet unlocking that potential will depend on strengthening regulatory certainty, managing environmental and Indigenous concerns, and ensuring that mining revenues translate visibly into local development.
One of the defining challenges ahead is legal predictability. Over the past decade, Ecuador's shifting regulatory landscape has created hesitancy among investors, with changes to permitting procedures, taxation models, and environmental oversight affecting long-term planning. Decisions by Ecuador's Constitutional Court—particularly those applying the "rights of nature" doctrine—have established new precedents that companies must navigate carefully. For the industry's future, a more transparent framework that reconciles environmental protections with the requirements of large-scale mining will be essential. Without this clarity, capital-intensive projects may slow, regardless of how favourable market conditions may be for copper and gold.
Social licence will remain another critical factor. Many of Ecuador's most prospective deposits lie in areas inhabited by Indigenous communities or within environmentally sensitive zones. Building trust in the mining sector will therefore depend on transparent consultation processes, equitable royalty distribution, and credible commitments to environmental mitigation. Past failures—ranging from unregulated artisanal mining to the destruction of sensitive ecosystems—have left deep scars. To secure long-term operational continuity, companies operating in Ecuador's mining sector must demonstrate that industrial mining brings net benefits that surpass the costs borne by local populations.
On the other hand, the potential rewards are significant. The global pivot toward electrification and renewable energy has placed copper at the centre of long-term commodity demand. With world-class deposits such as Cascabel/Alpala and multiple advanced exploration targets across the southern and northern provinces, Ecuador is positioned to become a major supplier of the critical minerals that underpin the energy transition. If the country manages to bring just a handful of its large, undeveloped deposits into production, it could see mining exports double within a decade. This trajectory could reshape the national economy, diversifying away from its traditional reliance on oil and boosting fiscal revenues in a way that is more resilient to commodity shocks.
Another area of potential lies in formalisation and technology. Illegal mining, while deeply problematic today, underscores the existence of substantial surface-level gold resources. With better enforcement, improved traceability, and incentives for artisanal miners to join formal schemes, Ecuador's mining industry could expand its legal gold output while curbing environmental damage and reducing criminal involvement. Meanwhile, the adoption of modern technologies—automation, satellite monitoring, real-time environmental sensors—offers an opportunity for Ecuador to position itself as a model for responsible mining in high-biodiversity regions.
Ultimately, the future of Ecuador mining will depend on political will as much as geological potential. If the government can stabilise its regulatory regime, enforce environmental standards consistently, and ensure that communities directly benefit from mining activity, the sector could become one of the country's most dynamic engines of growth. If not, Ecuador risks missing the window created by soaring global demand for critical minerals (see also: Critical minerals strategy). The coming decade will determine which path it chooses.
Ecuador sits on the Andean Copper Belt, one of the richest mineral zones in the world, and has only recently begun developing large-scale industrial mines. This combination of high geological potential and relatively limited prior exploration makes the country attractive for companies seeking major new copper and gold discoveries.
Copper and gold dominate the country's mining exports. The Mirador copper mine and the Fruta del Norte gold mine are the two largest contributors, supported by a growing pipeline of copper-focused projects in exploration and development.
Key issues include legal uncertainty, environmental protections that can halt or delay permits, social opposition in Indigenous and protected areas, and a surge in illegal gold mining. Addressing these challenges is essential to ensuring stable investment and sustainable sector growth.
Ecuador's mining sector stands at a pivotal moment, with world-class deposits offering significant economic opportunities alongside increasing environmental and social scrutiny. As the industry expands, its long-term success will depend on demonstrating that modern operations can meet global expectations for responsible development. This is especially critical underground, where rigorous safety systems, real-time monitoring and stronger site security will be essential to protecting workers, preventing accidents and reducing the risks of illegal intrusions that continue to challenge mining regions across the country.
Delve deeper into one of our core topics: Miner safety
An alloy is a material made by combining a metal with one or more other elements (metallic or non-metallic) to improve properties such as strength, hardness, corrosion resistance, or workability. The components are usually mixed in the molten state so that, on solidifying, they form a uniform metallic material. Common examples include steel (iron–carbon) and brass (copper–zinc).
References:
(1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirador_mine
(2) https://www.mining.com/web/ecuador-mining-export-revenues-jump-nearly-33-in-2022/
(3) https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/ecuadors-copper-lead-exports-drop-through-q3-2024/
(5) https://www.mining.com/lundin-gold-raises-gold-guidance-costs-for-fruta-del-norte/
(7) https://catapa.be/en/victory-in-the-popular-consultation-for-the-choco-andino-on-20-august-2023/
(9) W. D. Callister & D. G. Rethwisch, Materials Science and Engineering: An Introduction, Wiley.
Note: This article was partly created with the assistance of artificial intelligence to support drafting. The head image was created by AI.