The following article talks about the cancellation of the in-progress development of the Galore Creek Mine in Canada. It ties in to previous discussion of Canada becoming a higher cost mining centre as the dollar rises, metal prices drop and capital costs increase. This make Ecuador look better as its operating costs will be lower given its pricing is US$ and the general cost of labour in Ecuador vs Canada and the US. I've only included the first two paragraphs below. The full article can be found at: http://ca.today.reuters.com/news/new...

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Teck and NovaGold suspend Galore Creek as costs soar
Mon Nov 26, 2007 10:17 AM EST

By Jonathan Spicer
TORONTO (Reuters) - Teck Cominco Ltd (TCKb.TO: Quote) and NovaGold Resources (NG.TO: Quote) said on Monday they would suspend construction at the Galore Creek copper-gold-silver project as the construction schedule had lengthened, and capital costs had spiralled and could reach C$5 billion ($5.1 billion).

NovaGold's shares plunged nearly 40 percent and Teck's edged lower in early trading after the companies said the rising costs -- coupled with reduced operating margins due to the strong Canadian dollar -- made the 50-50 venture in northwestern British Columbia uneconomical.