Selected companies will receive up to $500,000 cash payment from BHP, together with access to a network of internal and external experts to help guide development.
The resource and reserve estimate for Bloom Lake totals 1.25 billion tonnes with an average iron content of 28.7% in the measured and indicated categories.
According to Luminex, this agreement is "unprecedented in Ecuador and will serve as a model to be replicated in other projects facing development challenges from artisanal mining operations."