By Miguel A Heredia
During the 14th week of the year (April 04th to April 10th, 2022), at least 22 press releases were announced by companies working in Mexico, and one news published by the media, with nine reporting resources and developments of their properties, seven informing on exploration results, five communicating production and financial results, one disclosing deals and corporate issues, and one discussing social issues. ON MEXICO ISSUES, no relevant news. ON EXPLORATION, In Sonora, Silver Spruce reported the approval of an Informe Preventivo for its second drilling permit at its Mezquite project, Ranchero Gold released results from its inaugural drilling program at its Santa Daniela project, and Starcore presented results from its drilling program conducted at its Opodepe project. In Chihuahua, Mammoth presented results from three holes drilled at its Tenoriba project, and Reyna Silver announced results from its 8,000m phase 2 drilling program conducted at its Guigui project. In Durango, Silver Wolf released results from 88 samples collected at its Ana Maria project. In Nayarit, Sierra Madre commenced a maiden drilling program at its La Tigra project. ON MINING, Gatos Silver reported Q1, 2022 production results from its 70%-owned Cerro Los Gatos mine, Chihuahua. GoGold announced Q1, 2022 production results from its Parral Tailings mine in Chihuahua. Mexus completed an open pit test heap leach Au recovery process that produced 278 Oz Au from 6 test pits at its Santa Elena mine in Sonora. Minera Alamos announced Q1, 2022 production results from its Santana mine in Sonora. Orla presented Q1, 2022 production results from its Camino Rojo project in Zacatecas. ON FINANCING, no relevant news. ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT, Vizsla reported that it filed on the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR) an independent technical report on its Panuco project in Sinaloa. Azucar Minerals commenced to drill test a large lithocap target discussed previously at its El Cobre project, Veracruz. GR Silver reported results from three underground drill holes collared at its San Marcial project, Sinaloa. Avino published results from 110 holes drilled on the oxide tailings project at its Avino property in Durango. Golden Tag released results from hole 22-64 drilled at its San Diego mine, Durango. Silver Dollar announced that phase 2 exploration drilling program is underway at its la Joya project in Durango. Silver Viper conducted a TITAN-MT deep-penetrating geophysical survey centered on the El Rubi deposit, Paredones, and El Molino target areas at its La Virginia project in Chihuahua. Starcore provided an update on the diamond drilling program conducted at its San Martin mine in Querétaro. Zacatecas Silver announced results from its ongoing diamond drilling program on the Panuco North and Panuco Central Veins at its Zacatecas project in Zacatecas state. ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, Sailfish provided an update on its previously announced Swordfish silver transaction (Gavilanes project, Durango). ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, Esperanza Silver has a Community Engagement Plan to meet the objectives proposed by the New Socially and Environmentally Responsible Mining Model.
ON MEXICO ISSUE
- No relevant news.
ON EXPLORATION
- Silver Spruce Resources Inc., reported the approval of an Informe Preventivo by the Mexican government Environmental Authority (SEMARNAT) for its second drilling permit at its Mezquite project in Sonora. The second drilling program will consists of 1,500-2,500m of Reverse Circulation (RC), which include twenty-four new pads on the northern, northwestern and southeastern sections of the property.
- Ranchero Gold Corp., released results from its 16 holes, Phase 1 inaugural drilling program at the Maíz Azul prospect within its Santa Daniela project in Sonora. All of the 16 holes intersected Au mineralization and were planned to drill test shallow-near surface mineralization. Highlights include hole MA22-10 with 4 g/t Au over 31.5m; hole MA21-14 with 1.2 g/t Au over 21.2m; hole MA22-25 with 1.2 g/t Au over 15.6m, and hole MA21-11 with 1.1 g/t Au over 21m. Mineralization remains completely open at depth since it was only tested at depths of 100-150m below surface. The company is currently designing a second phase of drilling. The plan of this drilling program is to expand La Colmena zone eastward, initiate drill testing of the X-structure target, initiate drilling of new targets identified by the on-going modelling, and start definition drilling. In addition, Ranchero Gold is also advancing its regional reconnaissance program on the entire property. The company has identified from a previous Aster study, nine high-priority targets that warrant follow-up field work. “Ranchero Gold will continue its field investigation in parallel with the work conducted at Maíz Azul with the objective of identifying new drill targets by year-end.
- Mammoth Resources Corp., presented results from three holes drilled at its Tenoriba project in Chihuahua. The most significant mineralized interval was encountered in hole TEN-21-13 on the Moreno Zone with 0.98 g/t Au and 15 g/t Ag (1.18 g/t AuEq) over 37.5m, including 1.13 g/t Au, 21 g/t Ag, and 0.55% Cu (2.34 g/t AuEq) over 18m.
- Reyna Silver Corp., announced results from its 8,000m phase 2 drilling program conducted at its Guigui project in Chihuahua. Drilling highlights include hole GG21-31 with 130 g/t Ag, 0.2% Pb, and 0.2% Zn over 2.62m, including 338 g/t Ag, 0.4% Pb, and 0.4% Zn over 0.7m, including 1,040 g/t Ag, 1.5% Pb, and 0.5% Zn over 0.18m, plus 54 g/t Ag, 2.2% Pb, and 9.9% Zn over 3.15m, including 128 g/t Ag, 3.7% Pb, and 16% Zn over 1.85m; hole GG21-30 with 233 g/t Ag, 0.02% Pb, and 0.02% Zn over 2.11m; hole GG21-31 with 105 g/t Ag, 4.9% Pb, and 0.6% Zn over 1.20m; and hole GG21-33 with 106 g/t Ag, 0.9% Pb, and 0.1% Zn over 4.51m. The company reported that the mineralized skarn footprint now exceeds 0.5km2.
- Silver Wolf Exploration Ltd., released results from 88 grab samples collected at its Ana Maria project in Durango. Highlights include 246 g/t Ag, 0.03% Cu, 4.5% Pb, and 1.7% Zn; 578 g/t Ag, 0.03% Cu, 11.9% Pb, and 0.3% Zn; 442 g/t Ag, 0.04% Cu, 11.4% Pb, and 1.5% Zn; 163 g/t Ag, 0.04% Cu, 6.2% Pb, and 0.5% Zn; 168 g/t Ag, 0.01% Cu, 4.1% Pb, and 0.2% Zn; 1,227 g/t Ag, 0.06% Cu, 25.7% Pb, and 0.6% Zn; 309 g/t Ag, 0.03% Cu, 2.3% Pb, and 4.8% Zn; 1,306 g/t Ag, 0.09% Cu, 20.4% Pb, and 7.4% Zn; and 792 g/t Ag, 0.04% Cu, 16.9% Pb, and 0.6% Zn. Silver Wolf is waiting for the final geophysical data interpretation to better define drill targets for later this year.
- Sierra Madre Gold and Silver Ltd., commenced a maiden drilling program at its La Tigra project in Nayarit. This is the first ever drill program undertaken within the district and is focused primarily on areas defined by the ongoing trenching program. Trenching highlights include 1.22 g/t Au and 7 g/t Ag (1.3 g/t AuEq) over 11.6m, including 2.52 g/t Au and 10 g/t Ag (2.7 g/t AuEq) over 4.3m; 1.45 g/t Au and 9 g/t Ag (1.57 g/t AuEq) over 12.8m, including 3.22 g/t Au and 35 g/t Ag (3.69 g/t AuEq) over 5.3m; 1.59 g/t Au and 3 g/t Ag (1.63 g/t AuEq) over 24.2m, including 5.58 g/t Au and 4 g/t Ag (5.64 g/t AuEq) over 4.7m; and 1.78 g/t Au and 6 g/t Ag (1.85 g/t AuEq) over 22.9m, including 2.2 g/t Au and 7 g/t Ag (2.3 g/t AuEq) over 7.1m.
- Starcore International Mines Ltd., presented results from its drilling program conducted at its Opodepe project in Sonora. The drill program consisted of 3,289.6 m in 25 short holes. Drilling highlights include hole OPDS-21-001 with 4.79 g/t AuEq over 6.73m; hole OPDS-21-018 with 2.3 g/t AuEq over 1.91m; and hole OPDS-21-021 with 1.96 g/t AuEq over 2.19m. The first stage of drilling was focused on the upper part of the veins and has been considered as recognition drilling. “However, in this year 2022, the drilling is focused on the zone of the veins which the geologists have considered as favorable zones to find economic reserves”.
ON MINING
- Gatos Silver Inc., reported Q1, 2022 production results from its 70%-owned Cerro Los Gatos mine, Chihuahua. The company milled 234,985 tonnes of 353 g/t Ag, 0.3 g/t Au, 2.2% Pb, and 4.1% Zn at metallurgical recoveries of 89.7%, 57.1% , 89.2%, and 64.3% respectively, to produce 2.39M Oz Ag, 1.3K Oz Au, 10.3M Lb Pb, and 13.8M Lb Zn. Gatos reported over USD $40M in cash as of March 31, 2022.
- GoGold Resources Inc., announced Q1, 2022 production results from its Parral Tailings mine in Chihuahua. The company produced 186,655 Oz Ag, 2,791 Oz Au, and 280K Lb Cu (455,991 Oz AgEq).
- Mexus Gold US completed an open pit test heap leach Au recovery process that produced 278 Oz Au from 6 test pits at its Santa Elena mine in Sonora. The company is looking for a mining company to joint venture with at its Santa Elena mine. Mexus believes that the property contains > 1M Oz Au. It stated that is open to also JV its Ures Au-Ag-Cu property in Sonora.
- Minera Alamos Inc., announced Q1, 2022 production results from its Santana mine in Sonora. It mined 600K tonnes to produce 3,390 Oz Au. Cumulative Au recovery from mineralization under leach for more that 30 days is now approximately 75% with additional recovery ongoing. The company reported that the total of Au inventory moved to leach pad to date is 14K Oz. In addition, the company announced that site preparation activities were initiated at the Nicho Main Zone with a goal to start mining activities at that deposit later in Q2-2022.
- Orla Mining Ltd., presented Q1, 2022 production results from its Camino Rojo project in Zacatecas. The company mined 684,255 tonnes and processed 539,379 tonnes of 0.8 g/t Au to produce 23,031 Oz Au. Gold guidance for the full year 2022 is maintained by Orla at 90-100 Oz Au.
ON FINANCING
- No relevant news.
ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT
- Vizsla Silver Corp., reported that it filed on the System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR), an independent technical report containing a maiden mineral resource estimate on its Panuco project in Sinaloa.
- Azucar Minerals Ltd., commenced to drill test a large lithocap target discussed previously at its El Cobre project, Veracruz. The lithocap target was outlined by several exploration techniques, including geophysics, mineralogy, geochemistry and past drilling campaigns at the property.
- GR Silver Mining Ltd., reported results from three underground drill holes collared at its San Marcial project, Sinaloa. The most significant drill intercepts were encountered in holes SM121-07 with 201 g/t Ag, 0.02 g/t Au, 0.2% Pb, and 0.3% Zn over a true width (TW) of 3.7m, including 1,413 g/t Ag, 0.11 g/t Au, 0.9% Pb, and 1.3% Zn over a TW of 0.2m, plus 124 g/t Ag, 0.01 g/t Au, 0.1% Pb, and 0.1% Zn over a TW of 8.5m, including, 223 g/t Ag, 0.01 g/t Au, 0.1% Pb, and 0.1% Zn over a TW of 2.4m, including 553 g/t Ag, 0.03 g/t Au, 0.2% Pb, and 0.4% Zn over a TW of 0.5m. Results confirmed a significant expansion of high-grade Ag mineralization approximately 300m down dip below the lower limit of the pit-constrained San Marcial mineral resource. A two phase 4,500m drilling program is planned for 2022 at San Marcial to support future resource expansion and an updated NI 43-101 mineral resource estimate.
- Avino Silver & Gold Mines Ltd., published results from 110 holes drilled on the oxide tailings project at its Avino property in Durango. The drilling program consisted of 3,645m. The drill density of the current program should be sufficient to upgrade most of the existing inferred mineral resources to the measured and indicated categories, and to potentially expand the resources. Selected highlights are shown below:
· Silver Dollar Resources Inc., announced that phase 2 exploration drilling program is underway at its la Joya project in Durango. Phase 2 drilling will remain focused on the underexplored Noria portion of the Property and new targets that were identified in the results received to date from the Phase 1 drilling program, which consisted of 11 holes for a total of 2,424 m of drilling. Assays for the first seven holes were reported and results for the remaining holes are expected shortly.
· Silver Viper Minerals Corp., conducted a TITAN-MT deep-penetrating geophysical survey centered on the El Rubi deposit, Paredones, and El Molino target areas at its La Virginia project in Chihuahua, to assist in targeting for deeper portions of the mineralized system. The TITAN Magnetotelluric (MT) survey is capable of acquiring information from depths in excess of 1,500m below surface. Geologist of the company have reviewed preliminary 2D imaging from the first of the MT survey lines and believe the method will be very effective at La Virginia property. Silver Viper expects to receive final deliverables in the coming weeks.
· Starcore International Mines Ltd., provided an update on the diamond drilling program conducted at its San Martin mine in Querétaro. A total of 9,410m were drilled in 2021 until the end of March, 2022 which focused on two areas of the mine: the first focusing on the northwest part of the operating mine, and the second searching for the extension of the orebodies of high – grade discovered during the 30 years of the mine’s life. Highlights on the area 33 include hole DC3221-10 with 7.36 g/t Au and 28 g/t Ag over 3m; hole DC3221-11 with 2.21 g/t Au and 26 g/t Ag over 8m; hole DC3221-12 with 16.27 g/t Au and 7 g/t Ag over 0.5m; and hole DC3221-15 with 12.2 g/t Au and 10 g/t Ag over 0.60m. Highlights on the area 28 include hole DC2820-214 with 2.14 g/t Au and 57 g/t Ag over 2.4m; hole DC2820-215 with 2.42 g7t Au and 21 g/t Ag over 2.95m; and hole DC2821-217 with 8.08 g/t Au and 15 g/t Ag over 2.15m.
· Zacatecas Silver Corp., announced results from its ongoing diamond drilling program on the Panuco North and Panuco Central Veins at its Zacatecas project in Zacatecas state. Drilling highlights include hole PAN2022-042 with 1,423 g/t Ag and 0.28 g/t Au (1,440 g/t AgEq) over 1.25m; hole PAN2022-044 with 353 g/t Ag and 0.29 g/t Au (379 g/t AgEq) over 4.35m; hole PAN2022-043 with 358 g/t Ag and 0.28 g/t Au (379 g/t AgEq) over 1.55m; hole PAN2022-046 with 201 g/t Ag and 0.28 g/t Au (222 g/t AgEq) over 1.05m; and hole PAN2022-045 with 115 g/t Ag and 0.85 g/t Au (179 g/t AgEq) over 5.96m. “Following the recent grant of 27 additional drill pads, Zacatecas Silver will be able to test the depth extension of mineralization at south-eastern Panuco North over a strike length of 600 m and to complete a maiden drill program along the central part of the Panuco North vein over a strike length of 1.4 km”.
ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES
· Sailfish Royalty Corp., provided an update on its previously announced Swordfish silver transaction. The proposed transaction is expected to result in the transfer of the Company’s wholly owned Gavilanes silver property located in Durango, Mexico. Closing of the Gavilanes Acquisition is subject to, among other things, Swordfish acquiring the Commonwealth Silver-Gold Project in exchange for shares of Swordfish, a concurrent private placement financing for proceeds of USD $5M.
ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
· Esperanza Silver has a Community Engagement Plan to meet the objectives proposed by the New Socially and Environmentally Responsible Mining Model. It has the objective of developing a gold and silver mine in the lands of common use of the community of San Agustín Tetlamam, located in the municipality of Temixco in the state of Morelos. “This new way of developing mining, prioritizing social bonding and the use of techniques that allow avoiding, minimizing, mitigating and compensating for environmental impacts, is due to the genuine interest of Esperanza Silver de México and Alamos Gold Inc. in responding to the demands of a society interested in caring for the environment and the social environment.”
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On the picture above, flow banded rhyolite in Durango, Mexico. Photo by Miguel A Heredia.