Tristar sees judge decline injunction in Castelo case

Executive Summary

• Tristar Gold received a positive court decision regarding the Civil Public Action filed by the Federal Prosecutor's Office (MPF) seeking to suspend the environmental license for the Castelo de Sonhos gold project.
• The Judge declined to rule on the injunction request, allowing the case to proceed through the normal litigation path rather than granting an immediate suspension of the license.
• The preliminary environmental license (Licenca Previa) for the project remains effective and unrestricted while the legal proceedings continue.

Key Details

• Court Ruling: The Judge ordered the MPF and FUNAI (National Foundation of Indigenous Peoples) to file a reply and identify evidence within 30 working days.
• Litigation Schedule: Following the MPF and FUNAI filings, the State of Para has 10 working days and Tristar Gold has 5 working days to indicate evidence they wish to utilize.
• Projected Timeline: This sequence of evidence production is estimated to conclude in March 2026.
• License Status: The Licenca Previa (preliminary license) for Castelo de Sonhos remains effective with no restrictions.
• Project Context: The company notes that the Bau and Menkragnoti Indigenous Lands are over 20 km from the directly affected area of the project, exceeding the reach of potential impacts and the threshold in Federal Interministerial Ordinance No. 60/2015.
• Defense Strategy: The State of Para has announced its defense that the injunction must be denied and will request a technical expert report to demonstrate no impact.

Notable Quotes

• "We view the judge's decision to move the case along the typical litigation path as very positive, with evidence-production being the next phase. The state of Para has already announced in its defence that the injunction must be denied, and it will request a technical expert report to show there is no impact. It will be an important stage of the case, as we are very confident in the robustness and reliability of our studies." — Nick Appleyard, President and CEO
• "As we head into the evidence production, it is important to keep in mind that the Bau and Menkragnoti Indigenous Lands are over 20 km from the directly affected area of the Castelo de Sonhos gold project, which exceeds the reach of any possible future impacts from the project and the threshold in the Federal Interministerial Ordinance No. 60/2015. Although the project is located far from indigenous lands, a fact that was confirmed by FUNAI, distance was not Tristar's guiding factor, Tristar also carried out technical studies that confirmed there are no impacts of any kind." — Nick Appleyard, President and CEO