UPDATE 1-Ecuador assures Canada miners on assets -Corriente

(Recasts with comments from Corriente, Iamgold, and government source; adds details, updates stocks)

TORONTO, April 25 (Reuters) - Corriente Resources (CTQ.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Friday that Ecuador's government had assured it and some other miners operating in the Andean country that they would not lose assets, despite a decree issued last week that revokes hundreds of concessions and freezes exploration.

The comments came after Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa called a meeting with the miners on Thursday in a bid to calm the fears of companies shaken by the surprise freeze, which could last up to six months.

"What we were told in the meeting (is that) no one in that room was going to be losing their assets," Corriente's senior vice-president, Dan Carriere, told Reuters.

Corriente, as well as fellow Canadian Iamgold Corp (IMG.TO: Quote, Profile, Research), Aurelian Resources (ARU.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) and Dynasty Metals & Mining (DMM.TO: Quote, Profile, Research), issued statements earlier on Friday saying that, together, they had met with the president and other members of the government.

The statements noted that Ecuador, which is moving to tighten its grip on its mineral resources, needed time to write new mining laws. The statements did not mention government assurances on assets.

Ecuador Oil and Mines Minister Galo Chiriboga said earlier this week that companies will be able to choose which properties to keep out of the three-concession limit.

A top mining ministry official said the government will impose the property restrictions, but companies will most likely get to keep those projects in which they have made their most important findings.

"The president called the meeting to tell companies what we plan to do and to stay calm," said the official who participated in the meeting, and asked not to be named. "The decree will not be applied the same for everyone."

Shares of the junior miners shot up on the Toronto Stock Exchange, with Corriente up 19.2 percent, Aurelian up 29.3 percent and Dynasty up 30.0 percent. The larger Iamgold climbed 1.9 percent amid an overall rise in TSX materials stocks.

The smaller companies' shares had been in a freefall for most of the week after a special assembly in Ecuador voted to halt activity in medium- and large-scale exploration projects.

Shares of Corriente shot up 62 Canadian cents to C$3.85, while Aurelian rose 96 Canadian cents to C$4.24. Dynasty climbed 75 Canadian cents to C$3.25, and Iamgold was up 11 Canadian cents at C$5.93.

"The companies welcomed President Correa's repeated statements that responsible mining will go ahead in Ecuador," Aurelian said in its statement.

"The president invited the mining companies to meet with the ministry to help formulate the new mining law starting this coming Monday, April 28."

Iamgold Chief Executive Joseph Conway was not available for comment, but company spokeswoman Lisa Doddridge, who was not present at the meeting, said she did not want to read much into Correa's statement.

"I think that every company is entitled to their interpretation of Correa's comments," she said, adding that Iamgold was still unsure of the timing of the feasibility study for its Quimsacocha gold deposit.

"I don't think any company got any specific information that pertained to their specific projects, so we're continuing to seek clarity."

The group of companies meeting with officials also included International Minerals (IMZ.TO: Quote, Profile, Research), Ecometals Ltd (EML.V: Quote, Profile, Research), Salazar Resources (SRL.V: Quote, Profile, Research), and Cornerstone Capital Resources (CGP.V: Quote, Profile, Research).

($1=$1.02 Canadian) (Reporting by Jonathan Spicer and Cameron French in Toronto, and Alonso Soto in Quito; editing by Rob Wilson)

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