During the 34^th week of the year (August 20^th to August 26^th, 2017), at least 20 press releases were announced by companies working in Mexico, including two quarterly reports. ON MEXICO ISSUES, no relevant news. ON EXPLORATION, in Sonora, Azure is soon to release drilling results from the Oposura project, while Colibri is planning to drill the Pilar property near Suaqui. In Hidalgo Prospero intends to drill the El Petate property. In Zacatecas Arian Silver completed the drilling of three lithium salars. ON MINING, Impact Silver and Santacruz Silver reported second quarter production results for 2017. ON FINANCING, no relevant news for the first time in the year.  ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT, Monarca is trying to secure surface rights at its Tejamen property in Durango. Mexican Gold is to realize a geophysical survey at Las Minas in Veracruz. Telson Resources has received permits for tailings facilities in Durango. Silver Bull identified a new zone of sulfide mineralization at Sierra Mojada, Coahuila. Almaden released drilling results from inside the planned pit at Tuligtic, Puebla. Consolidated Zinc released high-grade drilling intercepts at Plomosas, Chihuahua. Bacanora Minerals provided an update on the FS of the Sonora Lithium project. Americas Silver released drilling results from the Cosalá mine complex in Sinaloa. ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, Sonora Metals started trading on the OTCQB Venture Market.  Azure Minerals acquired the gold-cobalt Sara Alicia property in Sonora.

ON MEXICO ISSUES

• No Relevant News.

ON EXPLORATION

• Azure Minerals Ltd. is advancing on the planning and approval process of an upcoming drilling campaign at its newly-acquired Oposura Zn-Pb-Ag project in Sonora. The previous owner drilled 994 m in 16 diamond drill holes, assay results for which are expected shortly. “Significant sulphide mineralisation, including massive, banded and disseminated, was observed in most holes.”
• Azure Minerals Ltd. acquired the Sara Alicia property in Sonora (see note below). The 9 hectares concession covers all the historical mine workings and observed Au-Co and Cu-Zn-Ag manto mineralization exposures related to the intrusion of a granodiorite porphyry into a thick limestone sequence. Sampling on the Au-Co zone returned 2.5 m @ 39.0 g/t Au, 6.1% Co; 2.5 m @ 12.5 g/t Au, 6.9% Co; 3.0 m @ 5.7 g/t Au, 2.4% Co; 2.1 g/t Au, 3.2% Co; while sampling at the Cu-Zn-Ag zone returned 2.4 m @ 2.2% Cu, 2.4% Zn, 84 g/t Ag; 1.0 m @ 3.4% Cu, 3.1% Zn, 124 g/t Ag; 3.5 m @ 2.1% Cu, 4.2% Zn, 54 g/t Ag; 2.5 m @ 5.2% Cu, 2.5% Zn, 170 g/t Ag; 1.5 m @ 2.1%Cu, 3.2% Zn, 133 g/t Ag.
• Prospero Silver Corp. intends to begin drilling in September at the El Petate project in Hidalgo, funded by strategic partner Fortuna Silver Mines Inc. High level epithermal alteration is exposed over a 5×4 km area, showing a robust mineralized system with additional potential to host a carbonate replacement deposit at depth. Surface sampling returned a continuous channel sample of 67.5 m @ 0.93 g/t Au. A total of 2,800 m on 29 holes has been proposed to Fortuna.
• Colibri Resources Corp. is planning three tranches of RC drilling (10,000 m) at its recently acquired Pilar gold project in Sonora. The surface rights agreement has been signed on friendly terms.
• Arian Silver Corp. completed the first phase of auger drilling on its three lithium projects in Zacatecas. The drilling of 28 holes resulted in 214 samples that have been sent for assay at ALS Global. The results are expected in about three or four weeks.

ON MINING

• Impact Silver Corp. released its financial and production results for the second quarter of 2017. Most of the production was from the San Ramon Deeps, Cuchara, Mirasol and San Patricio mines at its Zacualpan property in Mexico State. The average silver feed to the mill was 173 g/t Ag, to produce 227.5 K ounces of silver. Exploration work is focused on larger and higher-grade targets at Alacran and Alacran North. The cash position at the end of the period was $6.8 M, with net working capital of $8.6 M.
• Santacruz Silver Mining Ltd. reported second quarter 2017 production results. At the Rosario project in San Luis Potosi 28 k tonnes were milled @ 42 g/t Ag (172 g/t AgEq), recovering 87% Ag, to produce 33.2 K Oz Ag, 298 Oz Au, 40 tonnes Pb, 408 tonnes Zn (124.7 K Oz AgEq). At Veta Grande in Zacatecas 29.7 k tonnes were milled @ 102 g/t Ag (218 g/t AgEq), recovering 64% Ag, to produce 56.1 K Oz Ag, 174 Oz Au, 198 tonnes Pb, 317 tonnes Zn (145.9 K Oz AgEq). At Rosario the focus has been on increasing the input from the Membrillo vein and the Cinco Estrellas property. At Veta Grande the focus is in through-put maximization and grade control.

ON FINANCING

• No Relevant News.

ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT

• Monarca Minerals Inc. is trying to secure the surface rights at Tejamen, Durango. To date Monarca has met with senior government officials at the Federal, State and Municipal level, earning full support for the project, and contact with the leaders of the community has been initiated aiming to become a responsible Community partner. A new deeper drilling program is being planned to follow high grade feeder veins and test the base of the volcanic rocks over sedimentary rocks where manto and carbonate replacement mineralization might occur; initial work is to involve re-logging all drilling samples of the previous campaigns.
• Mexican Gold Corp. has commenced field work preparation for ground magnetic and time domain electromagnetic surveys at its Las Minas project in Veracruz. The surveys aim to identify targets for the upcoming 3,000 m diamond drill program by contractor K.D.L. Mexico S.A. de C.V. at the Cinco Señores, Las Minillas and El Dorado/Juan Bran zones.
• Telson Resources Inc. has received permits from Semarnat for reactivation of the existing tailings disposal facility and for the construction of a new larger tailings facility for the Tahuehueto project in Durango. The permitted capacity of over 13 M cubic meters can accommodate more than 30 years of production at the planned 1,000 tonnes per day mining rate.
• Silver Bull Resources Inc. identified a new massive sulfide zone at its Sierra Mojada project in Coahuila. This zone lies within a 1.4 km long chargeability anomaly within which other two zones of sulfide mineralization that present high grade Zn-Pb-Cu. Approximately 280 m of previously non-accessible workings were opened and 19 samples collected with results like: 2.34 m @ 1,315 g/t Ag, 9.0% Cu; 2.32 m @ 392 g/t Ag, 0.4% Zn, 1.8% Cu; 1.4 m @ 329 g/t Ag, 42% Zn, 3.2% Cu; 1.52 m @ 713 g/t Ag, 3.4% Zn, 0.1% Pb, 1.1% Cu; 1.13 m @ 1,130 g/t Ag, 22.2% Zn, 3.3% Pb, 12.9% Cu; 2.00 m @ 495 g/t Ag, 7.1% Zn, 2.7% Pb, 1.1% Cu; 2.00 m @ 33 g/t Ag, 8.1% Zn, 3.4% Pb, 0.1% Cu; 2.0 m @ 42 g/t Ag, 1.5% Zn, 2.4% Pb, 0.2% Cu; 2.0 m @ 73 g/t Ag, 19.2% Zn, 4.8% Pb, 0.3% Cu: 2.0 m @ 491 g/t Ag, 24.7% Zn, 0.4% Pb, 1.6% Cu; 2.0 m @ 277 g/t Ag, 19.6% Zn, 18.3% Pb, 0.7% Cu.
• Almaden Minerals Ltd. released high-grade drilling results from a previously undrilled area inside the planned pit at its Tuligtic project in Puebla. The hole reported intersected 74.5 m @ 0.66 g/t Au, 45 g/t Ag; 64.30 m @ 0.79 g/t Au, 74 g/t Ag; 46.85 m @ 0.49 g/t Au, 68 g/t Ag.
• Consolidated Zinc Ltd. reported new high-grade results from underground sampling from the Las Espadas West stope area. Significant assays include 1.0 m @ 22.2% Zn, 3.5% Pb, 20 g/t Ag; 1.5 m @ 28.8% Zn, 13.2% Pb, 41 g/t Ag; 1.2 m @ 36.3% Zn, 12.8% Pb, 50 g/t Ag; 1.5 m @ 37.9% Zn, 12.3% Pb, 36 g/t Ag; 1.0 m @ 33.2% Zn, 6.9% Pb, 32 g/t Ag; 1.0 m @ 20.4% Zn, 10.8% Pb, 25 g/t Ag. Mineralization is coarse grained massive sulfides, comprising low iron sphalerite and galena at a ratio of around 2 to 3:1.
• Bacanora Minerals Ltd. provided an update on the feasibility study (FS) for a 35,000 tonnes per year lithium carbonate operation that is to be completed in late 2017. A sodium sulfate (Na₂SO₄) roast has been developed over the more expensive gypsum (Ca₂SO₄) roast previously contemplated. “Ausenco Engineers is currently undertaking final plant layout, capital equipment tenders and flow sheet optimization work.” Mechanical and metallurgical optimization of the Hermosillo plant is underway, while the mine plan optimization continues. On the energy supply side five independent proposals have been received, including gas and electrical sources. Long term debt funding is being sought for the construction phase, which should take 18 months.
• Americas Silver Corp. released results from drilling at the Zone 120 deposit, adjacent to the San Rafael development project, part of the Cosalá property in Sinaloa. Highlighted true width (TW) recent intercepts include 61.4 m @ 306 g/t Ag, 0.23 g/t Au, 0.8% Cu (including 9.4 m @ 932 g/t Ag, 0.82 g/t Au, 1.9% Cu and 9.4 m @ 479 g/t Ag, 0.29 g/t Au, 1.1% Cu); 39.6 m @ 205 g/t Ag, 0.28 g/t Au, 0.5% Cu; 22.8 m @ 138 g/t Ag, 0.22 g/t Au, 0.37% Cu; 18.1 m @ 113 g/t Ag, 0.08 g/t Au, 0.2% Cu.

ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES

• Sonora Metals Corp. has started trading on the OTCQB Venture Market. The company owns the over 1,000 ha San Marcial property in Sonora, which contains the old Soledad and San Marcial mines.
• Azure Minerals Ltd. has acquired the Sara-Alicia gold-cobalt project in southern Sonora. The property saw limited underground mining of gold and cobalt in the 1930’s. To get hold of the property the company successfully obtained the revocation of the recently cancelled mining concession, and a further payment of US$125,000 will be made to the family once commercial production is achieved, no NSR to be paid. The company is to wait for the liberation of a recently expired surrounding 22,000 has tenement to apply for further terrain.

Content like what you have just read can be seen at https://gambusinoprospector.com/ and at LinkedIn’s Mexico Mineral Exploration Group.

On the picture below, artisanal rock mill, or “tauna”, in the Sierra Madre of Chihuahua. Photo by Jorge Cirett.