Alvaro Ordonez, Denver Law LLM in Environmental and Natural Resources Law Graduate, Involved in Major Ecuadorian Mining Contract

Undersecretary of State for Ecuador Alvaro Ordonez was involved in negotiating the first large scale mining contract in Ecuador.

Mr. Ordonez, an Ecuadorian attorney, is a 2009 graduate from Denver Law's Environmental and Natural Resources Law LLM program.

Wilson Pastor, the Ecuadorian government's Nonrenewable Resources Minister, said, "With this project Ecuador will be the world leader in terms of how much revenue it will be obtaining," Mining.com reported.

The agreement was signed between Ecuacorriente, a Chinese-based firm, and Ecuador.

Don Smith, Director of the Denver Law program, said, "All of us in Denver were thrilled to learn about Alvaro's role in helping his native country establish its first major mining deal. This agreement seems likely to benefit Ecuador and enhance its status as a key location for the production of natural resources."

Lucy Daberkow, Administrative Director of the LLM program, said, "Everyone associated with Denver Law is proud of the accomplishments in which Alvaro is involved. When Alvaro studied in Denver he often talked about his love of his country. Now he is in a position to put what he learned here to work for the benefit of all Ecuadorians."

Ecuadorean Natural Resources Lawyer and DU LLM Graduate Alvaro Ordoñez Quoted in Leading Latin American Legal Publication

Alvaro Ordoñez, an attorney in Quito, Ecuador, was recently quoted in one of Latin America's leading legal publications about proposed changes to Ecuador's water law.

In LatinLawyer ("Ecuadorean Water Law Will Complicate Investment, Say Lawyers," May 17, 2010) Mr. Ordoñez said, "There is no doubt that obtaining water permits will become more complicated with the new water law, which will most likely be modified again." Commenting about the proposed law's requirement for consultation with indigenous groups Mr. Ordoñez made the following observation: "On the other hand, these consultations with indigenous communities are non-binding, so the future of the law is still uncertain."

Mr. Ordoñez, a May 2008 graduate of the Sturm College of Law Environmental and Natural Resources Law & Policy Graduate Program, is an associate attorney with the firm of Tobar and Bustamante. His main areas of practice are mining law, environmental law, and sustainability. Currently his firm is working on a large-scale mining project in Ecuador for Kinross Gold Company.