Just doing a quick search on Rusoro and the author of this article Jack Daniel this is what I found..interview with Salamis and talking about LC Jan 14, anyone want to buy in tomorrow?:

INTERVIEW-Rusoro shy on Las Cristinas, says no startup date
Wed Jan 14, 2009 9:37pm GMT
By Frank Jack Daniel

CARACAS, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Russian-funded miner Rusoro has a fresh
stamp of approval from Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to develop
some of Latin America's largest gold deposits, but the company is coy
about when it plans to begin digging.

Chavez said on Tuesday that Venrus, a joint venture between the
government and Rusoro (RML.V), would begin extraction from the
legendary Las Cristinas and Brisas deposits in 2009, but the Canadian-
based company's president, George Salamis, distanced himself from
that timeline.

"If there is going be a development scenario put together for Las
Cristinas, or anything in the Km 88 district, it's going to take some
time," Salamis told Reuters. "Very little has been discussed in terms
of specific moves to advance development scenarios."

Km 88 is a gold-rich region in southeastern Venezuela that is home to
both Las Cristinas and Brisas, a neighboring gold concession
belonging to Toronto-listed Gold Reserve (GRZ.TO), currently the
target of a hostile take-over bid by Rusoro.

Containing at least 17 million ounces of gold, Las Cristinas is
infamous in mining circles for passing from company to company for
decades without ever being developed into a mine.

In November, Venezuela's mining minister told Rusoro it would operate
Brisas and Las Cristinas, but the government has yet to inform the
current owners of the change.

Canadian company Crystallex (KRY.TO) currently holds a license to
operate the project, but final permission to start extraction was
never given and in recent months the government has made it clear it
wants to produce gold with Rusoro.

Salamis said Rusoro's bid for Gold Reserve was "step one," but
declined to say if Crystallex would be the next target.

Chavez has close relations with Russia, buying billions of dollars of
weaponry and offering oil and gas deals to Moscow's leading
companies. Russia's Agapov family holds a large stake in Rusoro and
the company appears to benefit from the warm ties between the two
countries.

Socialist Chavez is not averse to joint ventures with foreign firms,
especially those from nations he believes help his goal of countering
the influence of the U.S. "empire."

After years of dithering about whether to exploit its vast gold
reserves, Venezuela last year announced it wanted to industrially
develop its deposits under a joint venture model already applied to
oil, steel and cement companies.

Las Cristinas sits in the Belgium-sized Imataca forest reserve, home
to hundreds of small-scale illegal gold miners. Crystallex, the most
recent in a string of companies with plans to make a fortune from the
deposit, said on Wednesday it had not been informed of any change to
its legal status.

Salamis said Rusoro's 50-50 joint venture with Venezuela did not mean
it would automatically receive the environmental permits needed to
begin production.

He said the joint-venture agreement stated the government and Rusoro
would share all capital costs related to developing assets.

Salamis, a former Placer Dome geologist who in the past has worked on
Las Cristinas, said he was confident Rusoro would convince Gold
Reserve shareholders to accept its offer.

"They shouldn't consider sitting there waiting and trying to battle
with Chavez in international courts," he said. "What should be viewed
as a valid strategy is investing in actual gold production in
Venezuela.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/tnBasi...
SP/idUKN1448024820090114?pageNumber=...