Concesiones Mineras

The Mining and Exploration News in Mexico: Highlights on the Fifth Week of October 2024

/ Gambusino Prospector / Leave a comment

By Jorge Cirett
During the 44th week of the year (October 28th to November 3rd, 2024), companies working in Mexico posted at least 23 press releases. Not a single company informed on exploration advances on its properties, two companies presented quarterly results and one other actualized its production forecast for 2024. Two companies released drilling results from their advanced properties while one also provided channel sample results and one more informed on the advance of mine construction. Two companies disclosed the status of their merger process, one the acquisition of a company with a past producing mine, one the sale of a project and one other on the optioning of a property. Two companies presented the results of their AGMs, one the appointment of a well-known industry leader, one the optioning of several adjacent mining concessions to their property and one more on the final approval for transferring assets. ON MEXICO ISSUES, a Supreme Court minister commented on the Judiciary Reform. ON EXPLORATION, no relevant news. ON MINING, Agnico Eagle and Capstone Copper released Q3 production results. Torex Gold increased its forecast on production for 2024. ON FINANCING, Mithril Gold and Silver is to raise A$12.5 M. Pinnacle Silver and Gold intends to make a private placement for US$800 K. Americas Gold and Silver completed a bought deal private placement for C$50 M. Guanajuato Silver closed a private placement for C$8.7 M and settled a US$1.8 M debt with shares. Defiance Silver paid a minor debt with shares. ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT, Heliostar Metals reported drilling results from Ana Paula, in Guerrero. Mithril Gold and Silver presented drilling results and channel sample results from Copalquin, in Durango. Torex Gold informed on the construction status at Media Luna project, in Guerrero. ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, Minera Alamos entered into an agreement to acquire Sabre Gold Mines, which owns the past producing Copperstone mine in Arizona. Reyna Silver completed the acquisition of Reyna Gold. Golden Minerals is selling its Yoquivo project in Chihuahua to Advance Metals. Pinnacle Silver and Gold signed a LOI to acquire a mining property in Durango. Florida Canyon Gold received final approval on the sale of its Mexican assets to Heliostar Metals. Defiance Silver acquired six mining concessions adjacent to its Tepal project in Michoacan. Silver Spruce Royalties and Orogen Royalties informed on their AGMs. Capitan Silver informed on the appointment of Fernando Alanís to its board. ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, Vizsla Silver received the Socially Responsible Company Distinction (ESR) for the third year since 2022.

ON MEXICO ISSUES

  • Juan Luis González Alcántar Carrancá, a Supreme Court minister, stated that México is to be left without a Supreme Court if the federal government (the Ejecutive branch) does not abide by the Supreme Court ruling on the invalidation of the recent Judiciary Power Reform, adding that the sudden changes on the appointment of judges and ministers can impact on economic matters.

ON EXPLORATION

  • No Relevant News.

ON MINING

  • Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. reported third quarter 2024 results, including information on its Mexican operations. At San Nicolás (50% AEM, 50% Teck), in Zacatecas, “Progress continues on the feasibility study work and execution strategy development, with plans to begin detailed engineering in the first half of 2025. Project approval is expected to follow, subject to receipt of permits and the results of the feasibility study”. At Pinos altos, in Chihuahua, 446 K tonnes were milled at a 4,848 tpd rate, grading 1.58 gpt Au, to produce 21,371 Oz Au at $2,174 per Oz Au production cost and total cash cost of $1,532 per Oz Au. At La India, in Sonora, residual leaching produced 4,259 Oz Au with a production cost of $2,300 per Oz Au and a total cash cost of $2,872 per Oz Au.
  • Torex Gold Resources Inc. increased the forecast production for 2024 from 400 K – 450 K to 450 K – 470 K Oz Au at its Morelos Complex in Guerrero. The total cash cost estimate remains at $860 – $910 per Oz Au and the AISC at $1,100 to $1,160 per Oz Au (El Limón-Guajes, Guerrero).
  • Capstone Copper Corp. reported financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2024. The company produced a total of 47,460 tonnes Cu at cash cost $2.83 per Lb Cu. At Cozamin, in Zacatecas, 6 K tonnes were produced, driven by a milling rate of 3,609 tpd and having a cash cost of $1.82 per Lb Cu. The company has a total debt of $750.7 M, presenting $138.6 M in cash and short-term investments by the end of the period, as well as $377 M of undrawn amounts on the corporate revolving credit facility.

ON FINANCING

  • Mithril Silver and Gold Ltd. informed firm commitments for an oversubscribed capital raising of A$12.5 M, with Jupiter Gold and Silver Fund confirming Mithril shareholding at 16% and 1832 Fund (Bank of Nova Scotia) maintaining 8% post placement. The proceeds are to be used to complete the current 9,000 m drill program to expand the JORC resource, the upgrade of the access road and prepare targets Las Brujas-El Peru and Constancia-Jabali for drilling in 2025 (Copalquin, Durango).
  • Pinnacle Silver and Gold Corp. will be arranging a private placement to raise up to US$800 K in gross proceeds (El Potrero, Durango).
  • Americas Gold and Silver Corp. completed its previously announced “bought deal” private placement raising C$50 M in gross proceeds, which included 12.5 M subscription receipts issued pursuant to the exercise, in full, of the underwriter’s option agreement granted to the underwriters in connection with the private placement (Cosala, Sinaloa).
  • Guanajuato Silver Company Ltd. closed the previously announced private placement for gross proceeds of C$8.72 M. “The Private Placement includes an anchor order of C$3,000,000 by a corporation beneficially owned and controlled by Mr. Eric Sprott”. Additionally, the company has settled a US$1 M contingent payment upon the production of 3 M Oz AgEq at El Cubo mine, entirely with shares. Also, Guanajuato Silver settled US$1.8 M in outstanding liabilities to Ocean Partners UK Ltd. by issuing shares, and C$77.5 K in outstanding liabilities to three arm’s length third party entities (El Cubo, Guanajuato).
  • Defiance Silver Corp. entered into an agreement with a non-arm’s length administrative services agreement for services provided by an officer of the company for $7,980 (Zacatecas Silver, Zacatecas; Tepal, Michoacan).

ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT

  • Heliostar Metals Ltd. reported results from the 2024 drill program at Ana Paula, in Guerrero. The focus of the program is to extend the High Grade and Parallel panels to the west, testing the down-dip extension of the High Grade Panel while infilling the Parallel Panel target. Highlighted core length intercepts comprise 6.05 m @ 8.24 gpt Au; 5.00 m @ 2.10 gpt Au; 16.0 m @ 1.74 gpt Au, 16.0 m @ 16.7 gpt Au; 2.5 m @ 3.57 gpt Au. “Drilling is ongoing, with five holes completed to date for a total of 1994.8 meters”.
  • Mithril Silver and Gold Ltd. on October 18, 2024, released further results from resource expansion drilling at El Refugio mine target at its Copalquin project in Durango. Highlighted core length intervals comprise 4.60 m @ 5.51 gpt Au, 182 gpt Ag (including 0.60 m @ 28.0 gpt Au, 997 gpt Ag); 9.00 m @ 2.06 gpt Au, 90 gpt Ag (including 1.00 m @ 2.14 gpt Au, 259 gpt Ag); 1.60 m @ 5.09 gpt Au, 299 gpt Ag (including 0.50 m @ 12.15 gpt Au, 758 gpt Ag). Drilling the second half of the 9,000 m program is to recommence late in October. The 2021 MRE stands at 691 K tonnes @ 5.43 gpt Au, 114 gpt Ag, containing 121 K Oz Au, 2.5 M Oz Ag as indicated resources and 1.7 M tonnes @ 4.55 gpt Au, 152 gpt Ag, containing 252 K Oz Au, 8.4 M Oz Ag.
  • Mithril Silver and Gold Ltd. provided results from channel sampling from remnant wall rock of historic workings on the El Refugio area of its Copalquin project in Durango. At La Soledad, reported results comprise 1.75 m @ 9.19 gpt Au, 653 gpt Ag; 1.50 m @ 13.6 gpt Au, 545 gpt Ag at Lumbrera vein, 2.00 m @ 8.99 gpt Au, 736 gpt Ag; 0.90 m @ 9.57 gpt Au, 361 gpt Ag; 0.80 m @ 6.87 gpt Au, 267 gpt Ag; 1.50 m @ 1.72 gpt Au, 22 gpt Ag at Soledad Level 1, 0.94 m @ 8.81 gpt Au, 51 gpt Ag; 0.80 m @ 5.36 gpt Au, 143 gpt Ag; 1.80 m @ 4.58 gpt Au, 193 gpt Ag; 3.40 m @ 1.56 gpt Au, 101 gpt Ag; 2.00 m @ 4.23 gpt Au, 481 gpt Ag; 2.80 m @ 1.62 gpt Au, 106 gpt Ag at Soledad Level 2, 1.90 m @ 0.38 gpt Au, 17 gpt Ag; 1.80 m @ 0.83 gpt Au, 42 gpt Ag; 2.70 m @ 1.21 gpt Au, 56 gpt Ag at Soledad Level 3, 0.70 m @ 6.00 gpt Au, 76 gpt Ag at Leon vein and 2.00 m @ 2.10 gpt Au, 94 gpt Ag; 3.50 m @ 2.89 gpt Au, 180 gpt Ag; 2.00 m @ 0.94 gpt Au, 42 gpt Ag; 4.00 m @ 2.28 gpt Au, 78 gpt Ag at El Cometa underground workings.
  • Torex Gold Resources Inc. informed development and construction at Media Luna in Guerrero now stands at 87%. Detailed engineering is now complete “and procurement is nearing completion at 97%. Underground development/construction and surface construction are advancing, with completion levels at 77% and 70%, respectively.” First copper concentrate it scheduled to be produced on Q1 2025.

ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES

  • Minera Alamos Inc. entered into a definitive agreement to acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Sabre Gold Mines Corp., which owns the past producing Copperstone gold mine in Arizona. (Santana, Sonora).
  • Reyna Gold Corp. and Reyna Silver Corp. announced the completion of the previously announced acquisition of all the issued and outstanding common shares of Reyna Gold by Reyna Silver (La Gloria, Sonora; Guigui, Chihuahua).
  • Golden Minerals Co. signed a binding agreement to sell to Advance Metals Ltd. its Yoquivo project in Chihuahua. The agreement involves the payment of US$20 K on October 24, 2024, US$275 K on November 1, 2024 and US$275 K on November 21, 2024, for a total consideration of US$570 K plus VAT.
  • Pinnacle Silver and Gold Corp. singed a letter of intent (LOI) on a staged option to acquire the 1,074 ha El Potrero project in Durango. The property lies within 35 km of four operating mines, including Fresnillo plc’s La Cienega, Luca Mining’s Tahuehueto and Guanajuato Silver’s Topia. The property is said to host a low sulfidation epithermal breccia system in andesitic rocks of the Lower Volcanic Group, with an historic resource of 45.6 K tonnes @ 8 gpt Au, 186 gpt Ag. The property has never been explored by modern methods and a 100 tpd plant on site can be rehabilitated. The deal comprises US$50 K on signature, 500 K shares and the payment of US$160 K back taxes on the property; US$200 K and 1 M shares at eight months from signature; US$750 K in cash and 1 M in shares on the first anniversary; US$ 1 M and 1 M shares at 2.5 years from signature, or when a 350 K Oz Au inferred resource is established; US$ 1 M in cash at the fourth anniversary, or when the plant is ready and permitted to start production, with Pinnacle obtaining 50% of the property; US$ 1.5 M in cash on the fifth anniversary, or one year after commencing production, receiving a further 20% of the property; US$3 M after the seventh anniversary or two years after starting production, with Pinncale receiving a further 20% interest, to a total of 90%; The vendor has the option to convert the remaining 10% interest to a 2% NSR royalty. The total is US$7.5 M, US$160 K in back taxes and 3.5 M shares for a 100% interest subject to a 2% NSR royalty.
  • Silver Spruce Resources Inc. informed that its annual general meeting has been adjourned to the new date of November 5, 2024, as the 10% requisite quorum was not achieved on the October 29 meeting (Pino de Plata, Chihuahua).
  • Orogen Royalties Inc. held its annual general meeting (AGM) on October 29, 2024, with all matters approved (Ermitaño, Sonora).
  • Capitan Silver Corp. announced the appointment of Fernando Alanís Ortega to its board of directors. Fernando Alanís is a past CEO of Industrias Peñoles, one of Mexico’s most emblematic mining companies, and is also past president of the Mexican Mining Chamber known as CAMIMEX (Cruz de Plata, Durango).
  • Defiance Silver Corp. extended the San Acacio project (in Zacatecas) option agreement and acquired six additional mining concessions at its Tepal project in Michoacan. At San Acacio, the scheduled payment to be made in September 24, 2024, has now been changed to December 31, 2024.
  • Florida Canyon Gold Inc. received the final order of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice with respect to the pending arrangement transaction with Integra Resources Corp., the final substantive approval required prior to closing the arrangement, anticipated to occur in November and which includes the sale of Florida Canyon Mexican assets to Heliostar Metals Ltd. (La Colorada, Sonora).

ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

  • Vizsla Silver Corp. received the Socially Responsible Company Distinction (ESR) for the third year since 2022. The distinction is awarded jointly by the Mexican Center for Philanthropy (CEMEFI) and the Foundation for Sustainability and Equity (ALIARSE).

On the image below: Drilling under the scarp in Sonora. Picture by Jorge Cirett.

The Mining and Exploration News in Mexico: Highlights on the Third Week of October 2024

/ Gambusino Prospector / Leave a comment

By Jorge Cirett                                             

During the 42nd week of the year (October 14th to October 20th, 2024), companies working in Mexico posted at least 17 press releases. One company informed on exploration advances on its property, six companies posted quarterly results, two companies closed private placements, one company bought back shares advanced on a failed option deal outside Mexico, one company fully paid debt, one company reported a new MRE, three companies announced appointments to the board, one company informed on AGM results and one more completed the acquisition of a mining district. ON MEXICO ISSUES, no relevant matters. ON EXPLORATION, in Sinaloa, Prismo Metals has an ongoing drill program at Palos Verdes. ON MINING, GoGold Resources, Endeavour Silver, First Majestic Silver, Avino Silver & Gold Mines, Sierra Metals and Bear Creek Mining released Q3 production results. ON FINANCING, Osisko Development and Heliostar Metals closed private placements, Starcore International Mines bought back shares issued as payment for an option agreement, Orla Mining paid US$58.5 M to become debt free. ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT, Prime Mining presented a new mineral resource estimate for its Los Reyes project in Sinaloa. ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, Santacruz Mining, Heliostar Metals and Starcore International Mines informed on board appointments. Florida Canyon Gold shareholders were advised to vote in favor of the deal with Integra Resources. Vizsla Silver presented results of its AGM. Vizsla Silver completed the acquisition of La Garra-Metates District in Sinaloa. ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, no relevant news.

ON MEXICO ISSUES

  • No Relevant News.

ON EXPLORATION

  • Prismo Metals Inc. has an ongoing drill program at Palos Verdes, in Sinaloa. “The first hole is designed to cut both the Palos Verdes vein as well as the high-grade gold-silver vein about 50 meters downdip from the previous intersections. Assays reported from last year’s drilling include hole PV-23-25 with 102 g/t gold, 3,100 g/t silver and 0.26% zinc over 0.5 meters…”

ON MINING

  • GoGold Resources Inc. reported production from its operation at the Parral tailings in Chihuahua, for the quarter ending on September 30, 2024. During the period 167 K Oz Ag, 2,232 Oz Au, 132 tonnes Cu, 100 tonnes Zn (or 406.2 K Oz AgEq) were produced.
  • Endeavour Silver Corp. reported third quarter 2024 production of 874.7 K Oz Ag, 9,290 Oz Au (or 1.6 M Oz AgEq). At Guanaceví, in Durango, 67.1 K tonnes were processed at a rate of 729 tpd, grading 402 gpt Ag, 1.46 gpt Au, recovering 88.7% Ag, 89.8% Au, to produce 768.9 K Oz Ag, 2,828 Oz Au. At Bolañitos, in Guanajuato, 108 K tonnes were processed at a rate of 1,174 tpd, grading 36 gpt Ag, 2.00 gpt Au, recovering 84.7% Ag, 93.1% Au, to produce 105.8 K Oz Ag, 6,462 Oz Au. Production at Guanaceví “decreased in August and September due to a trunnion failure of the primary ball mill ….. Estimated fabrication timing remains at 15 weeks with the mine being back to full operations in December 2024”.
  • First Majestic Silver Corp. announced the production of 5.5 M Oz AgEq during Q3, 2024. At Santa Elena, in Sonora, 259.9 K tonnes were processed at a rate of 2,856 tpd, grading 68 gpt Ag, 3.50 gpt Au, recovering 67% Ag, 94% Au, to produce 376.2 K Oz Ag, 27,435 Oz Au (or 2.68 M Oz AgEq). At San Dimas, in Durango, 195.3 K tonnes were processed, at a rate of 2,146 tpd, grading 188 gpt Ag, 2.12 gpt Au, recovering 89% Ag, 95% Au, to produce 1.05 M Oz Ag, 12,582 Oz Au (or 2.11 M Oz AgEq). At La Encantada, in Coahuila, 223.2 K tonnes were processed at a rate of 2,453 tpd, grading 110 gpt Ag, 0.01 gpt Au, recovering 69% Ag, 90% Au, to produce 545 K Oz Ag, 59 Oz Au (or 550 K Oz AgEq). The rest of the production came from the Jerrit Canyon mine in Nevada. Seven surface rigs and two underground rigs completed 14,796 m at Santa Elena.   Four surface rigs and 10 underground rigs completed 29,172 m of drilling at San Dimas. Two surface rigs completed 1,862 of drilling at La Encantada.
  • Avino Silver & Gold Mines, Ltd. reported production for third quarter 2024. During the period 156.5 K tonnes were processed, grading 63 gpt Ag, 0.46 gpt Au, 0.58% Cu, recovering 89% Ag, 69% Au, 88% Cu, to produce 281.8 K Oz Ag, 1,625 Oz Au, 1.77 M Lb Cu (or 670.9 K Oz AgEq) at the Avino mine in Durango. The operations team is in the final stages of approval to move forward with underground development at La Preciosa, also in Durango.
  • Sierra Metals Inc. reported third quarter 2024 production results, including figures from its Mexican operations. At Bolivar, in Chihuahua, 401.7 K tonnes were processed, grading 0.78% Cu, 201.4 gpt Ag, 0.38 gpt Au, recovering 91.5% Cu, 85.5% Ag, 69.4% Au, to produce 6.31 M Lb Cu, 222 K Oz Ag, 3,361 Oz Au.
  • Bear Creek Mining Corp. released production figures for the third quarter 2024. At the Mercedes mine, in Sonora, 103.9 K tonnes were mined, 102.5 K tonnes processed, grading 3.40 gpt Au, recovering 96% Au to produce 10.751 Oz Au, 76.9 K Oz Ag.

ON FINANCING

  • Osisko Development Corp. closed its previously announced non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of US$34.5 M, to be invested in a project not in Mexico (San Antonio, Sonora).
  • Starcore International Mines Ltd. bought back 8.67 M common shares previously issued as partial consideration for an option agreement with K Mining SARL regarding several mineral properties in Cóte d’Ivoire. “Starcore negotiated to acquire the Shares from the sole shareholder of K Mining at $0.10 per share, payable in 12 equal tranches over 33 months” (San Martin, Querétaro).
  • Orla Mining Ltd. repaid the entirety of the outstanding balance on its revolving credit facility totaling US$58.4 M. “With this repayment, the Company is now debt free with cash on hand of approximately $120 million”. The US$150 M credit facility will remain in place and available until its expiry in August 2027 (Camino Rojo, Zacatecas).
  • Heliostar Metals Ltd. closed a non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of C$6 M, with Eric Sprott being subscribed for the entire private placement. Following the placement, Mr. Sprott owns approximately 13% of the outstanding common shares on a non-diluted basis and 15.9% on a partially diluted basis, assuming the exercise of warrants. On a different press release Heliostar announced that almost 4 M warrants of the company have been exercised since September 16th, 2024, adding 1.19 M to the treasury.  (Ana Paula, Guerrero).

ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT

  • Prime Mining Corp. reported significant open pit expansion and new underground resources in its 2024 mineral resource estimate (MRE) at Los Reyes, in Sinaloa. The Los Reyes resource is on low sulfidation epithermal structures hosted in volcanic rocks, within the Z-T Trend, the Gudalupe Trend, the Central Trend and three Generative areas: Las Primas, Mariposa and Fresnillo. The resource is subdivided in open pit, underground and mill and heap leach operations, with 49.0 M tonnes @ 0.95 gpt Au, 34.2 gpt Ag in indicated resources containing 1.49 M Oz Au, 54 M Oz Ag (or 2.19 M Oz AuEq), and 17.2 M tonnes @ 0.97 gpt Au, 39 gpt Ag in inferred resources, containing 538 K Oz Au, 21.6 M Oz Ag (or 817 K Oz AuEq). “The updated Resource statement reflects a mixed approach that considers open pit versus underground mining on an area-by-area basis”. Highlighted results from 21 unpublished drill holes comprise 2.35 m @ 4.57 gpt Au, 62 gpt Ag; 1.35 m @ 7.87 gpt Au, 105 gpt Ag; 10.45 m @ 0.98 gpt Au, 29 gpt Ag (including 2.75 m @ 2.51 gpt Au, 57 gpt Ag); 5.54 m @ 1.12 gpt Au, 42 gpt Ag; 1.85 m @ 1.71 gpt Au, 121 gpt Ag.

ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES

  • Santacruz Mining Ltd. informed Mr. Gregg Orr, CFO, has resigned and Mr. Andres Badregal has been appointed as the interim CFO of the company (Zimapan, Hidalgo).
  • Florida Canyon Gold Inc. announced that proxy advisors, Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. and Glass, Lewis & Co. LLC. have both recommended that company shareholders vote in favor of the special resolution authorizing the resolution under the provisions of Section 192 of the Canada Business Corporations Act (CBCA) involving Florida Canyon Gold Inc. pursuant to the resolution between FCGI and Integra Resources Corp. (San Agustin and El Castillo, Durango; La Colorada, Sonora).
  • Heliostar Metals Ltd. announced the appointment of Mr. Hernan Dorado and Vice President Sustainability and Special Projects. (Ana Paula, Guerrero)
  • Vizsla Silver Corp. completed the acquisition of the La Garra – Metates District situated on the center of the Panuco – San Dimas corridor in Sinaloa. Vizsla is to pay US$3.075 M in cash and issue shares for US$7 M over a period of 24 months from the closing date of the acquisition, with partial restrictions on the subsequent sale of shares ranging from 1 to 3 years. A 1% NSR granted to the sellers can be repurchased at any time for US$750 K. The company paid US$1.6 M in back taxes owed on the mining concessions comprising the deal (Panuco, Sinaloa).
  • Starcore International Mines Ltd. announced the election of all directors nominated on its annual general meeting (San Martin, Querétaro).

ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

  • No Relevant News.

On the image below: Drilling under the scarp in Sonora. Picture by Jorge Cirett.

¿Qué pasa con el litio de Sonora? Un proyecto estancado

/ gambusinoprospectormexico / Leave a comment

A casi dos años de la creación de Litio para México (LitioMx) son nulos los avances que se tienen para la explotación de ese material, el cual se concentra en cantidades importantes en Sonora, sólo los procesos legales y la falta de claridad por parte de las autoridades prevalecen hasta la fecha.

En junio del 2024 se reveló que la empresa asiática, Ganfeng Lithium inició un litigio legal ante el Centro Internacional de Arreglo de Diferencias Relativas a Inversiones (CIADI) del Banco Mundial, por no haberse respetado los Tratados Bilaterales de Inversión (BIT, por sus siglas en inglés) que hay entreMéxico y China.

El alegato del consorcio asiático es que se les impide manejar dicho elemento tras la cancelación de sus concesiones, bajo el argumento de que el Estado Mexicano es el único facultado para ello, de ahí que aún y cuando cuentan con los permisos desde el 2010 para realizar exploraciones, y a partir del descubrimiento de al menos 8 millones de toneladas del mineral, no han podido extraer un solo gramo.

Autoridades de distintos niveles de gobierno estiman que esa cantidad se encuentra en la localidad de Bacadehuachi, Sonora, y representa la posibilidad de explotarla para beneficio de los mexicanos, lo cual no ha sucedido.

De validarse el arbitraje que interpuso Ganfeng Lithium, el Gobierno de México debe cumplir con …….

Para continuar leyendo ingrese al siguiente link:

https://www.elsoldehermosillo.com.mx/local/proyecto-de-litio-en-sonora-retrasos-y-desafios-en-la-extraccion-12632650.html

The Mining and Exploration News in Mexico: Highlights on the First Week of September 2024

/ Gambusino Prospector / Leave a comment

By Jorge Cirett                                             

During the 36th week of the year (September 2nd to September 8th, 2024), companies working in Mexico posted at least 17 press releases. One company informed on exploration advances on its property, one company closed a financing tranche and one other its intentions to make a private placement. A company granted stock options, one other informed on the purchase of debentures and one more on the inclusion of its stock in another index. Two companies released drilling results from its advanced properties, one more of the inclusion of a satellite deposit on its mining plans and one other on the test mining and processing of an historical operation. A company informed on the agreement to acquire another enterprise with a mining operation and a good land package. One company appointed a director, one other informed on the sale of its Mexican assets, and one other on the optioning of an interesting property. ON MEXICO ISSUES, the USA’s House of Representatives sent a letter to its Commercial Representative urging to seek assurance from the Mexican outgoing and incoming government to not pass rules on the proposed constitutional reforms that infringe T-MEC’s rules. ON EXPLORATION, In Durango, Silver Wolf commenced drilling at Ana Maria. ON MINING, no relevant news. ON FINANCING, Guanajuato Silver granted 330 K options. Argonaut Gold announced the total value of debentures to be purchased is US$58.2 M. Capstone announced its addition to another Stock Index. Colibri Resource closed a first tranche of private placement for $305 K. Luca Mining is seeking a “best efforts” private placement for C$8.5 M. ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT, Prime Mining reported expansion drilling results at Panuco, in Sinaloa. Alamos Gold reported surface drilling results for Cerro Pelon and Puerto del Aire, at the Mulatos district in Sonora, seeking to augment resources for underground mining. Torex Gold reported an updated mining plan to include the EPO deposit at the Morelos Complex in Guerrero, which is to allow mining at a 450 K Oz Au yearly rate up to at least 2030. Sierra Madre Gold and Silver updated on test mining and processing at its La Guitarra mine in Estado de Mexico. ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, Chesapeake Gold engaged automated market making services. Guanajuato Silver Company appointed a director. The note of the week was the announcement of the merger of Gatos Silver and/by First Majestic Silver. Riverside Resources optioned the Union property to Questcorp. Golden Minerals informed on the state of affairs of its Mexican assets. ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, Discovery Silver released its 2023 ESG report.

ON MEXICO ISSUES

  • An influential group in the USA’s House of Representatives sent a letter to Katherine Thai, Commercial Representative of USA urging her involvement with the actual president of Mexico, the elected president Claudia Sheinbaum and the recently installed Congress, to assure the proposed reforms by the actual president do no go against obligations under the T-Mex (formerly NAFTA). “We recognize the sovereign right of each government to update its constitution and deeply value the strong partnership between the United States and Mexico. However, many of the proposed reforms appear to compromise US investors’ access to a stable, predictable and impartial regulatory framework”. Of the ten signatories, nine are members of the Ways & Means Committee, which plays a crucial role in overseeing the implementation of the USMCA in the House of Representatives.

ON EXPLORATION

  • Silver Wolf Exploration Ltd. announced the commencement of drilling on the El Soldado claim at the Ana Maria project in Durango. The 2,500 m program envisages the drilling of 15 holes, targeting classic carbonate replacement deposits.

ON MINING

  • No Relevant News.

ON FINANCING

  • Guanajuato Silver Company Ltd. granted stock options to purchase 300 K shares at $0.25 (El Cubo, Guanajuato).
  • Argonaut Gold Inc. announced that more than 90% of its outstanding 4.625% senior unsecured convertible debentures were tendered to the offer to purchase de debentures launched by the company on July 24, 2024, in connection with the acquisition of all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Argonaut by Alamos Gold Inc. The total value of the debentures to be purchased or redeemed is expected to be US$58.2 M (La Colorada, Sonora).
  • Capstone Copper Corp. announced that the CHESS Depositary Interests (CDI) of the company will be added to the Standard & Poors/ASX 300 Index by the S&P Dow Jones (Cozamin, Zacatecas).
  • Colibri Resource Corp. closed the first tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement for aggregate proceeds of C$305 K. Certain insiders of the company acquired an aggregate of 550 K units of the offering for gross proceeds of C$27.5 K. Colibri also sold its RC drill rig to a private company in Hermosillo for a total consideration of C$395 K consisting in cash and drill credits. “A portion of the proceeds is expected to be applied to an upcoming drilling program at the EP Gold Project where the Company intends to complete its first drilling program at the high priority San Perfecto target”.
  • Luca Mining Corp. entered into an agreement with Stifel in connection with a “best efforts” private placement for aggregate proceeds of C$8.5 M, with the LIFE Units to be issued pursuant to the listed issuer financing exemption (LIFE). “The net proceeds from the Offering are expected be used for ongoing work on the Campo Morado Improvement Program, exploration drilling at both Campo Morado and Tahuehueto, commissioning of the Tahuehueto mill and for general corporate purposes”.

ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT

  • Prime Mining Corp. reported expansion drilling results from the Z-T Trend at its Los Reyes project in Sinaloa. Highlighted true width intercepts comprise 10.5 m @ 2.63 gpt Au, 522 gpt Ag (including 8.0 m @ 2.89 gpt Au, 572 gpt Ag); 4.1 m @ 2.87 gpt Au, 130 gpt Ag (including 2.1 m @ 5.23 gpt Au, 218 gpt Ag); 4.6 m @ 2.92 gpt Au, 49 gpt Ag (including 2.7 m @ 4.84 gpt Au, 57 gpt Ag); 4.1 m @ 2.88 gpt Au, 6 gpt Ag (including 0.7 m @ 12.95 gpt Au, 20 gpt Ag); 2.3 m @ 4.08 gpt Au, 12 gpt Ag (including 0.6 m @ 13.40 gpt Au, 40 gpt Ag). These intercepts highlight the potential to discover more high-grade shoots for underground development below and away from the planned pit.
  • Alamos Gold Inc. reported results from ongoing surface exploration drilling on Puerto del Aire (PDA) and Cerro Pelon, within the Mulatos District in Sonora. Drilling at Cerro Pelon is following up on wide high-grade underground oxide and sulphide intersections below the open pit. Also, surface drilling has extended high-grade mineralization across multiple zones within the PDA area. Highlighted true width intercepts comprise 27.90 m @ 5.45 gpt Au; 6.46 m @ 12.47 gpt Au (including 1.09 m @ 58.10 gpt Au); 15.82 m @ 4.79 gpt Au; 15.40 m @ 4.46 gpt Au; 12.16 m @ 5.64 gpt Au; 9.81 m @ 5.77 gpt Au; 13.85 m @ 4.01 gpt Au at Cerro Pelon, 18.05 m @ 5.77 gpt Au at the GAP-Victor Zone, 28.40 m @ 3.03 gpt Au; 5.50 m @ 6.63 m at the PDA3 Zone and 0.90 m @ 36.20 gpt Au; 5.05 m @ 3.51 gpt Au; 4.20 m @ 4.16 gpt Au at the PDA Extension Zone. At Cerro Pelon high-grade Au-Ag mineralization is in pipe-like geometries at the intersection of hundred of meters long structures, 50 to 200 m below the pit bottom. “PDA is a higher-grade underground deposit located adjacent to the main Mulatos pit and is comprised of multiple mineralized zones including PDA, Gap, Victor, and Estrella … A development plan for PDA will be released … based on Mineral Reserves as of the end of 2023.”
  • Torex Gold Resources Inc. reported “an updated life-of-mine plan for the Morelos Complex which incorporates the EPO underground deposit following completion of an internal pre-feasibility study on the deposit”. The production profile is now established at a minimum of 450 K Oz AuEq per year through 2030 on the mineral reserve case alone. EPO’s upfront capital expenditures are estimated at $81.5 M, by leveraging the investment made in infrastructure part of the Media Luna project. The EPO project hosts probable reserves of 5 M tonnes @ 2.27 gpt Au, 29.8 gpt Ag, 1.29% Cu (or 4.83 gpt AuEq), containing 367 K Oz Au, 4.8 M Oz Ag, 143 M Lb Cu (or 781 K Oz AuEq), indicated resources (inclusive of mineral reserves) of 7 M tonnes @ 2.66 gpt Au, 30 gpt Ag, 1.27% Cu (or 5.14 gpt Au), containing 597 K Oz Au, 6.7 M Oz Ag, 195 M Lb Cu (or 1.15 M Oz AuEq) and inferred resources of 5 M tonnes @ 2.00 gpt Au, 37 gpt Ag, 1.24 % Cu (or 4.52 gpt Au), containing 318 K Oz Au, 5.9 M Oz Ag, 136 M Lb Cu (or 721 K Oz Au). “Development of EPO is anticipated to commence in mid-2025 with first ore production expected in late 2026. EPO will be accessed via a 650 m ramp off the Guajes Tunnel with ore transported back to the ore handling system at Media Luna via a 1,000 m truck haulage tunnel”. For an interesting review on the geology of the EPO deposit, please take a look to the press release.
  • Sierra Madre Gold and Silver Ltd.  updated on the progress of test mining and processing at the Guitarra mine complex in Estado de Mexico. A total of 20.4 K tonnes have been processed on the flotation plant since late June at a rate of 300 tpd, and 335 tonnes of dry concentrate have been shipped. Test mining began with development from the La Guitarra mine, transitioning to in situ material. Production of back fill material from stopes mined in the 1990’2 and 2000’s was increased as planned. Once emptied, these stopes will receive the tailings paste fill.     

ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES

  • Chesapeake Gold Corp. engaged the services of ICP Securities Inc. to provide automated market making services (Metates, Durango).
  • Guanajuato Silver Company Ltd. welcomed Juan Martin Peña to the role of VP operations in Mexico. The company also announced the retirement of the father and son team of Gerardo and Hernan Dorado to pursue new business interests (El Cubo, Guanajuato).
  • Golden Minerals Co. “the Company sold its wholly-owned Mexican subsidiary, Minera Labri S.A. de C.V. (“Minera Labri”), to a private Mexican company for approximately US$445,500. Minera Labri previously owned the Velardeña Properties’ Plant 1, which together with the Velardeña mines, was sold to another privately-held Mexican group earlier in 2024. Upon consummation of that transaction, Minera Labri held no assets but held net operating losses and inflation-adjusted capital contributions. Under Mexican law, the balance of Minera Labri’s capital contribution accounts (“CUCAs”) may be bought and sold. All funds related to the sale of the CUCAs have now been received and are expected to be deployed to reduce existing liabilities of the Company and its subsidiaries.
  • First Majestic Silver Corp. and Gatos Silver Corp. entered into a definitive merger agreement pursuant to which First Majestic will acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Gatos Silver. “The proposed Transaction implies a total equity value for Gatos of approximately US$970 million. Following completion of the Transaction, existing Gatos shareholders will own approximately 38% of First Majestic shares on a fully-diluted basis.” Consolidates the Santa Elena, San Dimas and Cerro Los Gatos districts under one banner, with a combined annual production of 30-32 M Oz AgEq including 15-16 M Oz Ag at an AISC of US$18.00-US$20.00 per Oz AgEq. The deal adds 103 K hectares of really prospective ground to the 245 K hectares First Majestic already holds in Mexico.
  • Riverside Resources Inc. and Questcorp Mining Inc. entered into a letter of intent (LOI) granting an option to Questcorp for the acquisition of 100% interest in the La Union project in Sonora. Riverside will receive C$100 K and 19.9% interest in the ownership of Questcorp upon investing C$5.5 M in the project. The envisaged deal includes payment of C$100 K in four years, 19.9% in shares and C$5.5 M on exploration expenditures. Riverside will retain a 2.5% NSR royalty on commercial production of the property. Union is a carbonate-hosted gold district with high grade gold-zinc in a 22 square km land package.

ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

  • No Relevant News.

On the image below: Chloritized porphyritic diorite with variable grain size and oriented crystals, HQ core. Picture by Jorge Cirett.

The Mining and Exploration News in Mexico: Highlights on the Fourth Week of August 2024

/ Gambusino Prospector / Leave a comment

By Jorge Cirett                                             

By Jorge Cirett                                              During the 34th week of the year (August 19th to August 25th,2024), companies working in Mexico posted at least 20 press releases. Three companies informed on exploration advances on their properties, three companies provided operational/financial results for the quarter, one informed on a major mill repair and one more on a mandated suspension of activities. One company granted stock options, one drew a final loan, one informed on its TSX listing and one more on a short base prospectus. One company released a revised PEA on its property and one more informed on district wide exploration and regional exploration plays. ON MEXICO ISSUES, the ambassadors of USA and Canada made clear their opposition to the judicial reform proposed by the sitting Mexican president. ON EXPLORATION, In Sonora, Colibri Resource reported on exploration at its El Plomo property in Sonora. In Chihuahua, Radius Gold informed on drilling results at Plata Verde. In Guerrero, Pantera Silver is evaluating options to restart exploration at its Nuevo Taxco project. ON MINING, Endeavour Silver informed on the repair of a mill and temporary measures to keep production ongoing at Guanaceví, in Durango. Starcore International, Sailfish Royalty and Impact Silver informed on quarterly production/financial details. Starcore International suspend mining operations at San Martin in Queretaro on safety grounds after a government inspection. ON FINANCING, Barksdale Resources granted stock options. Bear Creek Mining drew a final US$750 K from a promissory note. Vizsla Royalties is now listing in the TSX. Guanajuato Silver Company filed a final short base prospectus to offer up to US$65 M. ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT, Oroco Resources released a revised PEA on Santo Tomás, in Sinaloa. Vizsla Silver provided an update on its exploration plans at its Panuco project and two more regional plays in Sinaloa. ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, Barksdale Resources appointed Dr. Quinton Hennigh to its board. Ranchero Gold signed a LOI on the sale of the Santa Daniela project in Sonora. Atacama Copper is changing its name to Fuerte Metals. ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, Discovery Silver released its 2023 ESG report.

ON MEXICO ISSUES

  • Ken Salazar, USA ambassador in Mexico released a letter on which criticizes the Mexican president’s proposal for reform of the Judicial system. The ambassador pointed out the problems that will arise if the proposal is passed as is, bringing a major risk to democracy in Mexico and threaten the historic trade relationships with USA. (Note by editor. – The proposal envisages the selection system for federal judges and magistrates changing from one based on professional examinations to one based on the popular vote, among other bizarre directives aimed to control the judiciary system by the executive branch).
  • Graeme Clark, Canada ambassador in Mexico stated that Canadian investors are at crossroads before the probable passing in Congress of the Judicial Reform proposed by the sitting president AMLO. According to CanCham (Cámara de Comercio de Canadá en México) 40% of Canada’s investments in Mexico are on the mining sector.  

ON EXPLORATION

  • Pantera Silver Corp. is currently evaluating options to restart exploration at the Nuevo Taxco project in Guerrero. “…work will likely focus on initial sampling and mapping in the “Southwest Zone” of the Nuevo Taxco concession”. Pantera Silver is pursuing potential acquisitions, aiming to build a portfolio of 2-3 high-quality projects, focused on silver.
  • Colibri Resource Corp. reported results of geological mapping and outcrop sampling on 4,766 ha El Plomo property at the EP project, located 25 km east of Fresnillo plc´s La Herradura mine. At the San Perfecto target mineralization is hosted by a silicified and sericitized moderately to strongly foliated diorite with quartz micro-veinlets in higher-grade samples. Of 29 rock samples recently collected, 14 returned more than 0.1 gpt Au, 9 greater than 0.5 gpt Au and 6 with more than 1.0 gpt Au. More than 616 historical samples yielded results with over 50% above 0.1 gpt Au and 15% with more than 1 gpt Au, peaking at 58.9 gpt Au. “The footprint of mineralization at San Perfecto is now approximately 1,250 m by 700m”. At La Culebra target 34 grab samples were collected, with 14 returning more than 0.1 gpt Au and five more than 1.0 gpt Au peaking at 4.64 gpt Au. “Mineralization is hosted by rusty zones which were mapped over a 650 m strike length in a northeast direction and coincident with an andesite-rhyolite contact”.
  • Radius Gold Inc. announced initial results on the exploration program at Plata Verde, in Chihuahua. The first four holes cut several zones of low-grade Ag mineralization “and indicate limited potential for an economic discovery in the eastern extension of silver mantos”. Assays are pending on four holes in the western side of the valley, with thicker favorable basaltic rock and improved visual mineralization. The most recent hole located further northwest “intersected visually improved results, cutting through greater width of basaltic host and encountering visibly the most attractive mineralization seen so far in this drilling program”. The JV partnership is extending the planned program, adding three additional drill holes.  

ON MINING

  • Endeavour Silver Corp. informed processing resumed at the Guanacevi mine in Durango, after the primary ball mill trunnion failure. Temporary modifications re-purposed one of the re-grind mills as the primary ball mill, which is running at 400 tpd (name plate capacity 1,200 tpd) during this temporary phase. “Contract mining activities and local third-party material purchases will cease until the process plant operations have returned to full capacity”. Initial quotes obtained point to a 16-weeks fabrication and installation period. During this period Guanacevi production is estimated to decrease by 0.9 M to 1.1 M Oz Ag and by 2,000 to 3,000 Oz Au.
  • Starcore International Mines Ltd. announced production results for the first fiscal quarter ended July 2024. At San Martin, in Zacatecas, 49.5 K tonnes were milled, averaging 1.92 gpt Au, 20 gpt Ag, recovering 85.2% Au, 56.9% Ag, to produce 2,841 Oz AuEq. Starcore expects to start industrial testing of carbonaceous ore in September.
  • Impact Silver Corp. announced financial and operating results for the second quarter of 2024. The company’s revenue in the quarter was C$7.7 M, also during the period a non-brokered “LIFE” and a private placement of C$8.6 M were completed, holding C$9.9 M in cash by the end of the quarter. At Zacualpan, in Estado de Mexico, 35.1 K tonnes averaging 161 gpt Ag were processed to produce 152.2 K Oz Ag. Over the last six months 5,243 m of drilling have been completed at Zacualpan. At Plomosas, in Chihuahua, 9.26 K tonnes were milled during the period, and the company expects to end the third quarter with a production rate in the 150-170 tpd range. Over the first half of the year the average grade has been 14% Zn, 8.7% Pb, 43.7 gpt Ag; during the same period 14,377 m of drilling have been completed.
  • Sailfish Royalty Corp. announced its operating and financial results for the second quarter 2024, from its operations outside Mexico (Gavilanes, Durango).
  • Starcore International Mines Ltd. suspended temporarily mining operations at its San Martin mine in Queretaro. “An unscheduled inspection at the mine conducted by the Mexican Labor Department identified safety standards that need to be met before resuming operations. The inspection followed a recent singular fatality at the mine, the first one in 18-1/2 years of Starcore’s record of zero fatalities in its mining operations at San Martin”.

ON FINANCING

  • Barksdale Resources Corp. granted stock options to certain directors, officers, employees and consultants of the company to acquire 5 M common shares (San Javier, Sonora).
  • Bear Creek Mining Corp. announced the drawn down of US$750 K in funds related to the promissory note issued to the company to Sandstorm Gold Ltd., and under which Sandstorm can elect convert the amounts drawn into common shares of Bear Creek. An aggregate of US$2.62 M has been drawn down under the additional credit for a total principal amount of US$21.64 M (Mercedes, Sonora).
  • Vizsla Royalties Corp. is now listing on the TSX Venture Exchange as a Tier 2 issuer and its shares are expected to commence trading on August 26, 2024 (Panuco, Sinaloa).
  • Guanajuato Silver Company Ltd. filed and received a receipt for a final short base prospectus that allows the company to offer up to US$65 M of common shares, debt securities, warrants, subscription receipts, share purchase contracts and units during the 25-months period that the prospectus is effective (El Cubo, Guananjuato).

ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT

  • Oroco Resources Corp. announced a revised preliminary economic assessment (PEA) and updated mineral resource estimate for the North and South zones of its Santo Tomas project in Sinaloa. The study envisages a NPV (8%) of US$2.64 B pre-tax and US$1.48 B post-tax, an internal rate of return of 30.3% pre-tax, and 22.2% post-tax, total LOM (life on mine) production of 4.8 B Lb Cu, a pre-tax payback of 2.9 years, post-tax payback of 3.8 years from first concentrate production. Estimated initial capital costs of US$1.1 B and sustaining and expansion capital costs at US$1.73 B. producing at cash cost US$1.54 per Lb Cu on by-product basis, with average CuEq grade of 0.51% on the first 7 years of production. The Santo Tomas deposit has 540.6 M tonnes @ 0.33% Cu, 0.008% Mo, 0.028 gpt Au, 2.1 gpt Ag as indicated resources containing 3.98 B Lb Cu, 95.4 M Lb Mo, 483.4 K Oz Au, 36.5 M Oz Ag and 530.8 M tonnes @ 0.31% Cu, 0.007% Mo, 0.023 gpt Au, 1.9 gpt Ag as inferred resources, containing 3.67 B Lb Cu, 84.4 M Lb Mo, 387.1 K Oz au, 33.2 M Oz Ag.
  • Vyzsla Silver Corp. provided an update on resource potential expansion potential and outline its exploration plans at its Panuco project in Sinaloa. The key exploration objectives for 2024 include 10,000 m of exploration drilling in the central-east area of the district, completing +5,000 m of resource expansion drilling in Copala Central, complete VTEM, airborne mag and radiometric surveys on 950 line-km, advance mapping coverage to 70% of the district and finish an updated resource estimate in Q4 2024. Exploration in the district central and east areas already has a handful of targets with outcropping silver mineralized veins. Two greenfields projects to explored include La Garra-Metates district, covering 16,962 ha, located 32 km NW from Panuco and San Enrique, adjacent to the south of Panuco and covering 10,667 ha. 

ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES

  • Barksdale Resources Corp. appointed Dr. Quinton Hennigh to its board of directors (San Javier, Sonora).
  • Ranchero Gold Corp. entered into a letter of intent (LOI) to sell its Mexican subsidiary Minera y Metalurgica Paika, S.A. de C.V. to an arm’s length party purchaser for nil consideration. The sale includes water rights and four mining concessions covering 16,876 ha on the Santa Daniela project, in Sonora, and a conditional payment of US$2.5 M that will offset liabilities in Paika of $3.55 M of land fee payments and accrued interest due, along with a potential finder’s fee related to the conditional payment.
  • Atacama Copper Corp. has changed its name to Fuerte Metals Corp., with its shares expected to commence trading under the new name on August 26, 2024 (Cristina, Chihuahua).

ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

  • Discovery Silver Corp. released its 2023 environmental, social and governance (ESG) report, highlighting purchases for $19.2 M in goods and services from Mexican businesses, $5.0 M paid in salaries and benefits to 69 local employees, of which 85% are local; $195 K of direct community investments and 21.1 GJ of renewable solar energy (Cordero, Chihuahua).

On the image below: Strong chlorite-epidote alteration in intrusive rock with two parallel quartz veinlets, one bearing molybdenite, HQ core. Picture by Jorge Cirett.

The Mining and Exploration News in Mexico: Highlights on the Second Week of August 2024

/ Gambusino Prospector / Leave a comment

By Jorge Cirett                                             

During the 32nd week of the year (August 5th to August 11th, 2024), companies working in Mexico posted at least 25 press releases. One company informed on exploration advances on a mining property, eleven companies provided operational/financial results for Q2 2024 and one hired a contractor for mining activities. One company closed the final tranche of its private placement. Four companies announced board appointments, one signed a LOI to acquire an AI company, another company received a cease trade order, two companies announced their merger and one more the amendment of an option on a property.  ON MEXICO ISSUES, no relevant news. ON EXPLORATION, In Sonora, Riverside Resources completed an aeromagnetic drone survey on Cecilia. ON MINING, Aura Minerals, Gold Resource, Fortuna Mining, Torex Gold, Pan American Silver, SilverCrest Metals, Coeur Mining, GoGold Resources, Equinox Gold, US Antimony and Sierra Metals presented second quarter 2024 reports. Luca Mining engaged a contractor to carry out core mining operations at Campo Morado. ON FINANCING, Heliostar Metals closed the final tranche of its non-brokered private placement. ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT, no relevant news. ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, Golden Minerals, Aura Minerals, GR Silver and US Antimony announced board appointments. Tarachi Gold signed a LOI on the acquisition of AI company Prospector Portal Inc. Xali Gold received a cease trade order. Reyna Silver is to acquire all shares of Reyna Gold. Sonoran Desert Copper amended the option on Cuatro Hermanos project. Galore Resources announced a status report on its cease trade order. ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, no relevant news.

ON MEXICO ISSUES

  • No Relevant News.

ON EXPLORATION

  • Riverside Resources Inc. completed with Fortuna Mining Inc. the acquisition and interpretation of an aeromagnetic drone survey at its Cecilia project in Sonora. The UAV magnetic data covers the entire 60 Km2 property, aiding to interpret and refine previous targets identified by Riverside.

ON MINING

  • Aura Minerals Inc. filed financial statements for Q2 2024, including guidance figures for its Mexican operations. At Aranzazu, in Zacatecas, 24,692 Oz Au Eq were produced during the period. Guidance at Aranzazu for the full year is 94 K to 108 K Oz AuEq at a cash cost between $826 and $1,009 per Oz AuEq and an AISC of 1,089 to $1,331 per Oz AuEq.
  • Luca Mining Corp. engaged Cominvi S.A. de C.V. to carry out core mining operations at its Campo Morado mine in Guerrero. Luca Mining intends to increase mill throughput from the current 1,400-1,600 tpd to 2,000 tpd by year end, ultimately aiming to reach 2,400 tpd mill rate in 2025.
  • Gold Resource Corp. announced second quarter operational results from its Don David Gold mine in Oaxaca. During the period 93,687 K tonnes were milled, averaging 1.27 gpt Au, 102 gpt Ag, 0.26% Cu, 1.0 % Pb, 2.59% Zn, to produce 2,947 Oz Au, 263 K Oz Ag, 181 tonnes Cu, 616 tonnes Pb, 2,020 tonnes Zn (or 5,625 Oz AuEq).
  • Fortuna Mining Corp. reported its financial and operating results for the second quarter of 2024, including figures from its operations in Mexico. The company’s consolidated production was 92,716 Oz Au, 990.6 K Oz Ag in the period. At San José, in Oaxaca, 176.2 K tonnes were milled at a rate of 1,980 tpd, averaging 140 gpt Ag, 1.09 gpt Au, recovering 87% Ag, 85% Au, to produce 684.2 K Oz Ag, 5,269 Oz Au, at a cash cost of $24.91 and an AISC of $27.55 per Oz Ag. “The San Jose Mine has less operational flexibility in 2024 compared to 2023, due to the reduced and more dispersed Mineral Reserves associated with the Trinidad deposit, which also increased mine costs. Ore processed decreased by 10% due to lower tonnes mined”.
  • Torex Gold Resources Inc. reported its financial and operational results for Q2 2024. At its Morelos mine complex in Guerrero, the company produced 113,822 Oz Au (recovering 90.5% Au) at cash cost $1,014 per Oz Au and an AISC of $1,239 per Oz Au. The company ended the quarter with $108.7 M in cash and $237.1 M available on credit facilities. The Media Luna project is 78% complete, with commissioning expected late in 2024.
  • Pan American Silver Corp. announced results for Q2 2024, including figures from its Mexican operations. At La Colorada, in Zacatecas, 835 K Oz Ag, 500 Oz Au were produced at cash cost $15.30 and an AISC of $17.09. At Dolores, in Chihuahua, 440 Oz Au, 18,100 Oz Ag were produced at cash cost $1,113 per Oz Au and an AISC of $2,496 per Oz Au. “At La Colorada, Pan American invested $9.8 million on project capital in Q2 2024, largely for exploration and engineering on the Skarn project, and to complete the new ventilation infrastructure for the operating mine”. The company expects to end the year with a 2,000 tpd production rate at La Colorada.
  • SilverCrest Metals Inc. released its financial results for Q2 2024. At Las Chispas, in Sonora, 100 K tonnes were mined, 110.6 K tonnes milled at an average rate of 1,216 tpd, averaging 4.36 gpt Au, 418 gpt Ag, recovering 98.6% Au, 98.3% Ag, to produce 15,303 K Oz Au, 1.46 M Oz Ag at cash cost $8.87 per Oz Ag and an AISC of $16.88. At the end of the period the company had $98.3 M in cash and $24 M in bullion.
  • Coeur Mining Inc. reported second quarter results for the second quarter 2024, including figures from its Mexican operations. At Palmarejo, in Chihuahua, 429.6 K tonnes were milled during the period, averaging 2.05 gpt Au, 139.7 gpt Ag, recovering 89.9% Au, 82.8% Ag, to produce 25,467 Oz Au, 1.6 M Oz Ag, at CAS $1,006 per Oz Au and CAS $15.24 per Oz Ag. During the quarter Coeur bought adjacent Fresnillo plc mining concessions, increasing the area of the project to over 16,100 hectares. Full-year 2024 production is expected to be 95,000 – 103,000 Oz Au, 5.9 – 6.7 M Oz Ag.
  • GoGold Resources Inc. announced financial results for the quarter ending on June 30, 2024. During the period GoGold produced 138.7 K Oz Ag, 2,436 Oa Au, 148 tonnes Cu, 125 tonnes Zn (or 400.2 K Oz AgEq) at cash cost $18.54 per Oz AgEq and AISC of $24.59 per Oz AgEq. The company had US$76.4 M in cash by the end of the quarter.
  • Equinox Gold Corp. announced its second quarter 2024 summary financial and operating results, without specifying figures by operation. The company produced 122,221 Oz Au during the period. For 2024 guidance calls for 665 – 750 K Oz Au, at cash cost $1,305 – $1,405 per Oz Au, and an AISC of $1,635 to $1,735 per Oz Au. At Los Filos in Guerrero, 2024 guidance is 155 -175 K Oz Au, at cash cost $1,785 – $1,855 per Oz Au and AISC of $2,090 – $2,190 per OZ Au. “The Los Filos team is in a dialogue process with the three communities where the mine is located, with the goal of reaching new land access agreements with each of them in a collaborative and transparent way. These new agreements are necessary to help ensure the long-term economic and investment viability of the mine, including the addition of a new CIL processing plant. If the Company is unable to satisfactorily complete these agreements, the Company will re-evaluate the current operation and may elect to cease operations”.
  • United States Antimony Corp. reported its second quarter 2024 financial and operational results. During the quarter the company completely shut down its operational activities in Mexico. “The historical cash drain of these operations on the Company ceased with this decision”. At the end of the period US Antimony had $12.4 M in cash (Los Juarez, Queretaro).
  • Sierra Metals Inc. reported consolidated financial results to the end of June 2024. During the quarter the sale of the Cusi mine in Chihuahua was completed, for $2.5 M in cash and a 2% NSR. On the period cash cost at Bolivar, in Chihuahua, was $2.76 per Lb CuEq, and AISC $3.53 per Lb CuEq. The company will continue the construction of the new tailings dam at Bolivar, which will allow the increase of production to 7,500 tpd. Guidance at Bolivar in 2024 is 23.9 M to 27.6 M Lb Cu, 650 K to 750 K Oz Ag, 8,000 to 9,200 Oz Au. Sierra Metals had cash and cash equivalents of $22.5 M at the end of June.

ON FINANCING

  • Heliostar Metals Ltd. closed the final tranche of its non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of $500 K and a total aggregate of gross proceeds of $4.98 M (Ana Paula, Guerrero).

ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT

  • No Relevant News.

ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES

  • Golden Minerals Co. announced the retirement of Julie Wiedman, senior vice president and chief financial officer, and the appointment of Joe Dwyer as chief financial officer (CFO) (Yoquivo, Chihuahua).
  • Aura Minerals Inc. announced organizational changes, including some that affect its operations in Mexico. Enrique Rangel, current director of operations at the Aranzazu mine in Zacatecas, takes on the role of director of technical services in corporate, serving all units. Wilton Muricy, current director of operations at Minosa, takes on the role of director of operations at Aranzazu. Francisco do Carmo, current technical services manager at Aranzazu, assumes the role of director of operations at Minosa.
  • GR Silver Mining Ltd. announced the appointment to its board of directors of Mr. Brent McFarlane and Ms. Jessica van den Akker (Plomosas, Sinaloa).
  • Tarachi Gold Corp. signed a non-binding agreement letter of intent (LOI) to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Prospector Portal Inc. in a transaction that would transform Tarachi into an artificial intelligence-focused mining services company. “The LOI contemplates a post-Transaction ownership of Tarachi (“New Tarachi”) that would be approximately 85% held by current Prospector shareholders and 15% held by current Tarachi shareholder” (Tarachi, Sonora).
  • Xali Gold Corp. was advised by the British Columbia Securities Commission of a cease trade order as a result of Xali Gold’s delay in “filing its audited annual financial statements, accompanying management discussion and analysis, and CEO and CFO certifications for the financial year ended March 31, 2024” (El Oro, Estado de Mexico).
  • United States Antimony Corp. announced the appointment of Fred L. “Pete” Bunger as technical advisory director to the board (Juarez, Queretaro).
  • Reyna Silver Corp. entered into an agreement with Reyna Gold Corp. on which Reyna Silver is to acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Reyna Gold (Guigui, Chihuahua; La Gloria, Sonora).
  • Sonoran Desert Copper Corp. amended the option to purchase the Cuatro-Hermanos project in Sonora. Under the revised option a large claim was terminated, with option payments reduced by $200 K and mining concession taxes by $238.6 K in 2024 and $603.6 K in 2025. The property holds NI-43-101 indicated and inferred resources for 643 M tonnes @ 0.19% Cu, 0.02% Mo (Cuatro Hermanos, Sonora).
  • Galore Resources Inc. “announces a status report with regards to the Company’s news release dated July 31, 2024 disclosing the Company’s application for a Management Cease Trade Order (“MCTO”), which was issued by the BC Securities Commission on July 30, 2023” No material change has occurred in the information contained in the default of a financial statement filing requirement. Galore expects to file its yearly financial statements, management discussion and analysis on September 27, 2024 (Dos Santos, Zacatecas).

ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

  • No Relevant News.

On the image below: Strong chlorite-epidote alteration in intrusive rock in a Sonoran Desert project, HQ core. Picture by Jorge Cirett.

The Mining and Exploration News in Mexico: Highlights on the First Week of August, 2024

/ gambusinoprospectormexico / Leave a comment

Hydrothermal Quartz Breccia

By Miguel A Heredia

During the 31st week of the year (July 29th to August 04th 2024), at least 32 press releases were announced by companies working in Mexico, with ten communicating production and financial results, nine disclosing deals and corporate issues, five announcing financing rounds, five reporting resources and development of their properties, two informing on exploration results, and one commenting on Mexican issues.   ON MEXICO ISSUES, First Majestic and Silver Tiger reported the best drilling intercepts in Mexico on the first week of August, 2024. ON EXPLORATION, In Sonora, Reyna Gold released the final drill results from its La Gloria project.  In Sinaloa, Prismo announced that a man-portable drill is mobilizing for the upcoming drilling program at its Palos Verdes project.  ON MINING, Gold Resourceannounced that it will host a conference call on Wednesday, August 7 2024 to report Q2, 2024 results (Don David Gold mine, Oaxaca).Capstone announcedQ2, 2024 production results (Cozamin mine, Zacatecas).  First Majestic reported Q2, 2024 consolidated financial results from their Mexican operations. Sierra Madre announced the first silver-gold concentrate shipment from its La Guitarra mine, Mexico. Starcore reported Q3 and year end 2024 results for its San Martin mine in Queretaro. Gatos Silver announced that it will release its Q2, 2024 financial and operating on August 6, 2024 results (Cerro Los Gatos, Chihuahua). Agnico Eagle reported Q2, 2024 production and financial results from their Pinos Altos mine in Chihuahua and La India mine in Sonora.  Alamos Gold presented Q2, 2024 production and financial results from its Mulatos mine in Sonora. Endeavour reported Q2, 2024 operational and financial results from their Mexican operations. MAG Silver released (on a 100% basis), Q2, 2024 production and final results from its Juanicipio min in Zacatecas.  ON FINANCING, Defiance Silver closed the second and final tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of CAD $608,715 (Zacatecas project, Zacatecas). Vizsla closed the first tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of CAD $4,967,498 (Panuco property, Sinaloa). Southern Silver extended closing of the second and final tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of up to $4.5M for a period of 30 days (Cerro Las Minitas, Durango). Vizsla Royalties closed the final tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of $225K (Panuco project, Sinaloa). ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT, Silver Tiger reported results from its Pre-Feasibility Study drilling program at its El Tigre project in Sonora. Infinitum provided an update on progress at its Adelita project in Sonora. Orogen Royalties and operator First Majestic announced a new significant gold-silver discovery on the Ermitaño mine concession in Sonora, where Orogen holds a 2% net smelter return royalty. Torex provided an update on the development of its Media Luna project in Guerrero.   ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, Candelaria announced changes to its Board of Directors (Pinos project, Zacatecas).  Florida Canyon announced incentive plan grants to certain employees, executive officers, directors, and consultants (El Castillo mine, Durango).  Plata Latina presented voting results of its annual general meeting of shareholders (Naranjillo project, Guanajuato).  Galore Resources announced that the British Columbia Securities Commission issued a management cease trade order that prohibits all trading by the CEO and CFO (Dos Santos project, Zacatecas).  Silver Storm reported that it delayed the filing of its annual financial statements, management’s discussion and analysis and related officer certifications for the financial year ended March 31, 2024 (La Parrilla mine, Durango).  Sonoro Gold corrected disclosures related to its Cerro Caliche project in Sonora. Bear Creek announces that its Board of Directors authorized and approved a grant of 200K to its VP Exploration and Geology (Mercedes mine, Sonora). Santacruz granted stock options to directors, officers, employees and consultants (Zimapan mine, Hidalgo).  Vizsla Royalties completed a consolidation of its issued and outstanding common shares (Panuco project, Sinaloa). Golden Minerals declared that the company does not have sufficient resources to meet its expected cash needs over the next twelve months (Velardeña project, Durango). ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, no relevant news.

ON MEXICO ISSUE

  • First Majestic Silver Corp., and Silver Tiger Metals Inc., reported the best drilling intercepts in Mexico on the first week of August, 2024. Details are shown in the table below:

ON EXPLORATION

  • Prismo Metals Inc., announced that a man-portable drill is mobilizing for the upcoming drilling program at its Palos Verdes project in Sinaloa. Drilling is planned to commence on August 5, 2024 and the goal is “trace the down dip extension of the mineralized shoot defined by previous drilling on the southwest portion of the vein, Seek continuation of the vein on the northeast extension of the vein across a cross-fault believed to have offset the vein downward, and test the extreme northeasterly extension of the Palos Verdes vein system near the concession limit adjacent to the historical Jesusita mine”.
  • Reyna Gold Corp., released the final drill results from its La Gloria project in Sonora. Drilling highlights in The Western Target include holes LG-23-58 with 0.29 g/t Au over 39.1m, including 0.99 g/t Au over 4.85m, including 7.16 g/t Au over 0.55m; hole LG-23-59 with 0.26 g/t Au over 14.2m, including 1.82 g/t Au over 0.4m and 1.06 g/t Au over 0.95m; hole LG-23-60 with 0.23 g/t Au over 12.7m, including 1.95 g/t Au over 0.65m, and 1.10 g/t Au over 0.50m, plus 0.92 g/t Au over 3.30m, including 5.16 g/t Au over 0.55m. Drilling highlights in the La Republica Target include holes LG-23-49 with 0.19 g/t Au over 13.7m, including 3.6 g/t Au over 0.5m, plus 0.23 g/t Au over 35.2m, including 0.65 g/t Au over 0.55m, 2.09 g/t Au over 0.50, 1.2 g/t Au over and 2.19 g/t Au over 1m; and hole LG-23-42 with 0.23 g/t Au over 25.35m, including 2.77 g/t Au over 0.60m, and 3.91 g/t Au over 0.5m, plus 72 g/t  Ag, 0.5% Cu and 0.55% Pb over 1.60m

ON MINING

  • Gold Resource Corporation announced that it will host a conference call on Wednesday, August 7 2024 to report Q2, 2024 results (Don David Gold mine, Oaxaca).
  • Capstone Copper Corp., announcedQ2, 2024 production results (Cozamin mine, Zacatecas). The company produced 13.78M Lb Cu at cash cost of USDS $1.74 per Lb Cu produced.
  • First Majestic Silver Corp., reported Q2, 2024 consolidated financial results from their Mexican operations (all numbers expressed in US dollars). The company announced a revenue of $136.2M; a mine operating earnings of $15.5M; operating cash flows before movements in working capital and taxes of $23.8M; consolidated cash cost and AISC of $15.29 and $21.64 per Oz AgEq respectively; and cash and restricted cash balance of $269.7M consisting of $152.2M cash and cash equivalents and $117.5M of restricted cash- First Majestic declared a cash dividend of $0.0046 per common share (Santa Elena mine in Sonora, San Dimas mine in Durango, and  La Encantada mine in Coahuila).
  • Sierra Madre Gold and Silver Ltd., announced the first silver-gold concentrate shipment from its La Guitarra mine, Mexico. The company shipped 90.68 dry metric tonnes (DMT) which contained approximately 3,000 grams of silver and 30 grams gold per DMT. The company has approximately 90 dry metric tonnes of additional concentrate that is expected to ship later this week.
  • Starcore International Mines Ltd., reported Q3 and year end 2024 results for its San Martin mine in Queretaro. In Q3, the company milled 55.9K tonnes of 1.91 g/t Au and 20 g/t Ag with metallurgical recoveries of 88.6% and 56.9% respectively to produce 3K Oz Au and 19.7K Oz Ag (3.2K Oz AuEq) at a operating cash cost of USD $1,411 per Oz AuEq.It also reported revenue of 9.3M; income from mining operations of $2.2M; total assets of $51.98M; and cash in hands of $5.7M. In the full year 2024, Starcore milled 224.3K tonnes of 1.50 g/t Au and 16 g/t Ag with metallurgical recoveries of 87% and 50.9% respectively to produce 9.4K Oz Au and 58K Oz Ag (10.1K Oz AuEq) at a operating cash cost of USD $1,686 per Oz AuEq. It also reported revenue of 28.3M; income from mining operations of $2.4M; total assets of $51.98M; and cash in hands of $5.3M.
  • Gatos Silver Inc., announced that it will release its Q2, 2024 financial and operating on August 6, 2024 results via conference call and webcast (Cerro Los Gatos, Chihuahua).
  • Agnico Eagle Mines Limited reported Q2, 2024 production and financial results from their Pinos Altos mine in Chihuahua and La India mine in Sonora (currency is expressed in US dollars). At Pinos Altos, Chihuahua the company milled 454K tonnes of 1.7 g/t Au to produce 23,754 Oz Au at production cost of $1,815 per Oz Au and total cash cost of $1,414 per Oz Au. Agnico also reported a sustaining capital expenditure of $6.1M; development capital expenditures of $806K; net income of $67.8M; payable metal sold of 25,510 Oz Au; total cash cost co-product of $1,793 per Oz Au, and total cash cost by-product of $1,414 per Oz Au. At La India, Sonora (residual leaching to continue through year-end 2024), the company produced 6,079 Oz Au at production cost of $2,146 per Oz Au and total cash cost of $2,171 per Oz Au. Agnico also reported net income of $16.55M; payable metal sold of 7,020 Oz Au; total cash cost co-product of $2,230 per Oz Au, and total cash cost by-product of $2,172 per Oz Au.
  • Alamos Gold Inc., presented Q2, 2024 production and financial results from its Mulatos mine in Sonora (currency is expressed in US dollars). The company produced 53,400 Oz Au and sold 56,100 Oz Au to generate cost of sales for $75.2M, at a cost of sale per Oz Au (includes amortization) of $1,340. Total cash cost and mine-site all in sustaining cost per Oz Au sold were $907 and $963 respectively. Alamos Gold also reported revenue of $133.4M; earnings from operations of $54.3M; cash provided by operations activities of $77.7M; and mine-site free cash flow of $69.9M.
  • Endeavour Silver Corp., reported Q2, 2024 operational and financial results from their Guanacevi mine in Durango and Bolañitos mine in Guanajuato (currency expressed in US dollars). At Guanacevi, Durango it mined 112,898 tonnes to produce 1.2M Oz Ag (1.5M Oz AgEq) at cash cost and all in sustaining cost of $17.17 and $24.53 per Oz Ag respectively. At Bolañitos, Guanajuato the company mined 106,092 tonnes to produce 111.3K Oz Ag (621.2M Oz AgEq) at cash cost and all in sustaining cost of $26.67 and $8.15 per Oz Ag respectively. Endeavour also presented consolidated financial results, reporting strong revenue of $ $58.3M from the sale of 1,217,569 Oz Ag and 9,887 Oz Au at average realized prices of $28.94 per Oz Ag and $2,374 per Oz Au; mine operating cash flow before taxes of $18.9M; a loss of $1M; and cash position of $68.1M, and working capital of $64.5M.
  • MAG Silver Corp., released (on a 100% basis), Q2, 2024 production and final results from its Juanicipio min in Zacatecas (currency is expressed in US dollars). The company mined 349,460 tonnes and processed 336,592 tonnes of 498 g/t Ag, 1.2 g/t Au, 1.6% Pb, and 3% Zn (746 g/t AgEq) to produce 4.27M Oz Ag, 7.2K Oz Au, 9.2M Lb Pb, and 15.2M Lb Zn at cash and all in sustaining costs of $8.86 and $11.31 per Oz AgEq sold respectively. MAG reported net income of $21.6M ($0.21 per share); adjusted EBITDA of $50.3M; strong operating cash flow of $92.8M and free cash flow of $88.6M.Juanicipio returned a total of $29.8M in interest and loan principal repayments to MAG further augmenting MAG’s liquidity position to $97.3M million at the end of the quarter.

ON FINANCING

  • Defiance Silver Corp., closed the second and final tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of CAD $608,715, with the issuance of 3,043,575 units at a price of CAD $0.20 per unit. The aggregate gross proceeds of the first tranche and final tranche total CAD $3,222,615 representing 16,113,075 Units. The net proceeds of the offering will be used by the company for exploration and general working capital purposes (Zacatecas project, Zacatecas).
  • Vizsla Royalties Corp., closed the first tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of CAD $4,967,498 by the issuance of 82,791,636 units at a price of CAD $0.06 per share. Net proceeds from the offering are expected to be used for working capital and general corporate purposes (Panuco property, Sinaloa).
  • Southern Silver Exploration Corp. extended closing of the second and final tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of up to $4.5M for a period of 30 days. Net proceeds from the private placement will be used for the continued development of the Cerro Las Minitas property, Durango, Mexico and for working capital. “Specifically, the company plans to initiate a program of resource expansion of up to 6000m of drilling in 11 holes to test shallow targets along the north side of the Cerro between the North Felsite and Skarn Front deposits. Drilling will start in early September. Work continues to de-risk the project through the initiation of base-line studies and continued social engagement”.
  • Vizsla Royalties Corp., closed the final tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of CAD $225K by the issuance of a further 3,750,000 shares at a price of CAD $0.06 per share. The total gross proceeds raised for the offering was CAD $5,192,498, issuing 86,541,636 common shares of the company at CAD $0.06 per share.  Net proceeds from the offering are expected to be used for working capital and general corporate purposes (Panuco project, Sinaloa).

ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT

  • Silver Tiger Metals Inc., reported results from its Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) drilling program at its El Tigre project in Sonora. The most significant drill intercepts were encountered in hole ET-24-609 with 0.76 g/t Au and 1 g/t Ag (0.77 g/t AuEq or 58 g/t AgEq) over 24.2m (Stockwork Zone), plus 0.56 g/t Au and 3 g/t Ag (0.6 g/t AuEq or 45 g/t AgEq) over 53.8m (stockwork Zone), plus 0.09 g/t Au and 74 g/t Ag (1.08 g/t AuEq or 81 g/t AgEq) over 40m (El Tigre Vein Keel), including 0.12 g/t Au and 135 g/t Ag (1.92 g/t AuEq or 144 g/t AgEq) over 17.3m, plus 0.17 g/t Au and 142 g/t Ag (2.07 g/t AuEq or 155 g/t AgEq) over 50.7m (Seitz Kelly Vein Keel), including 0.2 g/t Au and 319 g/t Ag (4.46 g/t AuEq or 334 g/t AgEq) over 14.3m. To date, 138 holes for the PFS have been drilled at El Tigre and results are highlighting the expansion of stockwork mineralization in the Keel Zone, now projecting mineralization 100 metres below the PEA designed pit. “On May 20th, Silver Tiger has completed PFS Drilling, totalling 24,550 metres focused on expanding the Mineral Resource, upgrading the classification, completing metallurgical test work and geotechnical studies as it progresses from an exploration to a development project. The value-added PFS progress is on schedule for publication in H2-2024”.
  • Infinitum Copper Corp., provided an update on progress at its Adelita project in Sonora. The company mobilized equipment to provide access to the Cerro Grande adit to drive a 100m long, 3m wide x 3 m access tunnel to the mineralized body.
  • Orogen Royalties Inc., and operator First Majestic Silver Corp., announced a new significant gold-silver discovery (Navidad Vein) on the Ermitaño mine concessions in Sonora, where Orogen holds a 2% net smelter return royalty. Highlight drill holes include holes EW-24-364 with 8.15 g/t Au and 427 g/t Ag over 4.78m; hole EW-24-370 with 10.13 g/t Au and 86 g/t Ag over 4.42m and 5.65 g/t Au and 46 g/t Ag over 5.75m in the hanging wall vein; and hole EW-24-368 with 54.93 g/t Au and 399 g/t Ag over 1.82m.  “The Navidad vein system, that includes a hanging wall vein, has an apparent strike continuity of 750m and dip continuity of 250m. Vein thickness for both areas range from 1.5m to 6.0m. The zone is open in all directions”.
  • Torex Gold Resources Inc., provided an update on the development of its Media Luna project in Guerrero.  As of June 30, 2024, the Media Luna Project by Torex Gold is 78% complete and on schedule, with first copper concentrate production expected by the end of 2024 and commercial production anticipated in Q1, 2025. Remaining expenditures of the project’s budget have been reviewed and finalized at USD $950M, reflecting a USD $75M increase due to the stronger Mexican peso. Given the project capital increase, the Media Luna capital expenditures guidance for 2024 will be adjusted and the range narrowed to $430 – $450M, from $350 – $400M.Key construction activities include the installation of a mine-wide pumping system, progress in surface construction, and ongoing recruitment and training for operational readiness. Overall, the project is advancing steadily towards its goals.

ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES

  • Candelaria Mining Corp., announced changes to its Board of Directors (Pinos project, Zacatecas).
  • Florida Canyon Gold Inc., announced incentive plan grants to certain employees, executive officers, directors, and consultants. The company granted an aggregate of 1,980,833 restricted share units and 498,659 deferred share units (El Castillo mine, Durango).
  • Plata Latina Minerals Corporation presented voting results of its annual general meeting of shareholders (Naranjillo project, Guanajuato).
  • Galore Resources Inc., announced that the British Columbia Securities Commission issued a management cease trade order (MCTO) that prohibits, effective immediately, all trading of the securities of the company by the CEO and CFO. The MCTO is being issued with respect to the Company’s delay in meeting the deadline for filing its annual financial statements, Management Discussion and Analysis and related CEO / CFO certifications due July 29, 2024 (Dos Santos project, Zacatecas).
  • Silver Storm Mining Ltd., reported that it delayed the filing of its annual financial statements, management’s discussion and analysis and related officer certifications for the financial year ended March 31, 2024. The Company is providing this default announcement in accordance with National Policy 12-203 Management Cease Trade Orders (La Parrilla mine, Durango).
  • Sonoro Gold Corp., corrected disclosures contained in corporate presentations posted on the Company’s website and emails distributed to an investor relations contact list, related to its Cerro Caliche project in Sonora.
  • Bear Creek Mining Corporation announces that its Board of Directors authorized and approved a grant of 200K to its VP Exploration and Geology at the strike price of CAD $0.325 per share (Mercedes mine, Sonora).
  • Santacruz Silver Mining Ltd., granted 675K deferred share units, 850K restricted share units, 2.5M performance share units and 2.47M stock options to directors, officers, employees and consultants (Zimapan mine, Hidalgo).
  • Vizsla Royalties Corp., completed a consolidation of its issued and outstanding common shares on the basis of one new common share for every existing ten common shares. The consolidation was approved by the Company’s Board of Directors on July 31, 2024 (Panuco project, Sinaloa).
  • Golden Minerals Company declared that the company does not have sufficient resources to meet its expected cash needs over the next twelve months. The company is facing financial challenges, with approximately USD $1.4M in cash and USD $4.8M in liabilities as of June 30, 2024. The company has ceased mining operations at the Velardeña mine and is exploring options to secure funding, including the sale of assets, such as the Velardeña and Yoquivo properties in Mexico, and the El Quevar project in Argentina. Golden Minerals has entered into agreements to sell certain assets for USD $5.5M but are experiencing delays in receiving full payments. Without additional cash inflows, the company anticipates exhausting its resources by September 2024, which could lead to a cessation of operations and potential liquidation.

ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

  • No relevant news.

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 above, a hydrothermal quartz breccia in an epithermal vein system in a project in Zacatecas, Mexico. Photo taken by Miguel A Heredia.

The Mining and Exploration News in Mexico: Highlights on the Fourth Week of July 2024

/ Gambusino Prospector / Leave a comment

By Jorge Cirett                                             

During the 30th week of the year (July 22nd to July 28th, 2024), companies working in Mexico posted at least 24 press releases. Two companies informed on exploration advances on their properties and four companies provided operational/financial results for Q2 2024. Three companies closed financing tranches and one filed a preliminary base shelf prospectus. A company commenced test mining and processing, another completed construction of a mine while one more updated on the construction advances at its property. Two companies presented PEA’s on their advanced properties and one more provided a drilling results update. One company completed the acquisition of key claims, and another one entered into a small-scale mining agreement on its property. ON MEXICO ISSUES, ArcelorMittal steelworks strike in Michoacan ended after 55 days. Tax on revenue from mining companies fell in the country by 24.5% on Q1 2024. ON EXPLORATION, In Sonora, Minaurum Gold commenced a drilling program; Tocvan Ventures released results from drilling at Pilar. ON MINING, Gold Royalty, Mag Silver, Santacruz Mining and Grupo Mexico presented Q2 2024results. ON FINANCING, Southern Silver Exploration closed the first tranche of financing (C$2.09), Guanajuato Silver company filed a short base shelf prospectus to offer up to US$65 M, Aztec Silver closed its non-brokered private placement (C$2.57 M), Barksdale Resources closed the final tranche of its non-brokered private placement for a total of C$6.3 M. ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT, Sierra Madre Gold and Silver commenced test mining and processing at the Guitarra mine in Estado de Mexico. Gatos Silver provided drilling results from the Cerro Los Gatos mine and brownfields exploration in Chihuahua. Vizsla Silver presented a PEA on Panuco, in Sinaloa. Southern Silver Exploration released a PEA study on Cerro Las Minitas, Durango. Endeavour Silver provided a Q2 2024 construction update for Terronera, in Jalisco. Luca Mining announced the completion of the Tahuehueto mine in Durango.  ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, Silver Viper Minerals announced the completion of the purchase of three mining concessions at its Virgina project in Sonora. Xali Gold signed a LOI granting rights for small scale mining on five of its claims at El Oro, Estado de Mexico. US Antimony, Solaris Resources and DYNR-Dyna Resources made board appointments. ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, no relevant news.

ON MEXICO ISSUES

  • ArcelorMittal steelworks strike in Michoacán ends after 55 days. Nearly 3,000 workers resumed work at the company’s steel plant in Lázaro Cárdenas, Michoacán. The agreement reached mandates an 8% wage increase, grocery vouchers worth 17,000 pesos (US$949 dollars) and full compensation for lost wages. Additionally, an external audit of the 2022 and 2023 fiscal years will be conducted to ensure the accuracy of PTU payments.
  • Tax on revenue from mining companies fell in Mexico 24.54% on Q1 2024 year on year, more than five times the national average of 4.83%. During the period mining companies paid $13,416 M pesos or 1.87% of the total income tax received by the government.

ON EXPLORATION

  • Minaurum Gold Inc. commenced an 8,000 m drill program designed to establish an inferred mineral resource at its Alamos silver project in Sonora. Drilling will focus initially on three of the 19 vein zones that have already returned high-grade silver results: The Europa vein, the historic Promontorio vein zone, and the Promontorio Sur vein zone. “Minaurum has drilled 42,317 m in 106 core holes on 19 of the 26 vein zones discovered at the Alamos silver project from 2017 – 2023”. Highlighted previously released core length intercepts comprise 8.25 m @ 1,760 gpt Ag, 1.6% Cu, 1.5% Pb, 2.6% Zn; 3.50 m @ 404 gpt Ag, 0.54% Cu,  1.3% Pb, 1.8% Zn; 3.85 m @ 342 gpt Ag, 0.76% Cu, 1.0% Zn at the Europa vein zone, and 20.2 m @ 154 gpt Ag, 0.5% Cu, 2.3% Pb, 6.8% Zn; 3.8 m @ 415 gpt Ag, 2.68 gpt Au, 1.37% Cu, 6.2% Pb, 9.2% Zn; 7.6 m @ 266 gpt Ag, 0.27 gpt Au, 0.57% Cu, 1.6% Pb, 3.2% Zn at the Promontorio and Promontorio Sur vein zones.
  • Tocvan Ventures Corp. announced results from the 2024 reverse circulation (RC) 3,700 m drill program at its Pilar property in Sonora. To date, 3,268 m across 26 holes have been drilled from such program. Highlighted drill length intercepts from three holes comprise 15.25 m @ 0.26 gpt Au, 14 gpt Ag (including 7.63 m @ 0.45 gpt Au, 22 gpt Ag, 0.1% Zn); 1.53 m @ 0.63 gpt Au, 46 gpt Ag, 0.2% Pb, 0.2% Zn; 3.05 m @ 0.33 gpt Au, 5 gpt Ag; 3.05 m @ 0.18 gpt Au, 45 gpt Ag; 22.88 m @ 0.19 gpt Au, 1 gpt Ag, 0.2% Zn (including 1.53 m @ 0.49 gpt Au, 7 gpt Ag, 1.9% Zn and 1.53 m @ 0.62 gpt Au and 1.53 m @ 0.68 gpt Au, 2 gpt Ag). “The North Hill and Main Zone Trends now extend over 900-meters defined by drilling, while the 4-T Trend extends over 700- meters….”  

ON MINING

  • Gold Royalty Corp. announced second quarter 2024 revenue and total revenue, land agreement proceeds and interests of $2.2 M, of which a minor part comes from its Mexican operations (Coazamin, Zacatecas).
  • Mag Silver Corp. reported production from Juanicipio (56%/44% Fresnillo plc, Mag Silver) in Zacatecas. During the quarter 336.6 K tonnes were processed at the Juanicipio plant, averaging 1.2 gpt Au, 498 gpt Ag, 1.56% Pb, 2.99% Zn, to produce 9,259 Oz Au, 5.0 M Oz Ag, 9.9 M Lb Pb, 18.9 M Lb Zn. Also in the period commenced commercial production of pyrite concentrate, delivering incremental Ag and Au recovery.
  • Santacruz Silver Mining Ltd. reported Q2 production results, including figures from its operations in Mexico. At Zimapan, in Hidalgo, the company processed 209.7 K tonnes averaging 80 gpt Ag, 0.30% Cu, 0.73% Pb, 2.46% Zn, recovering 76% Ag, 45% Cu, 86% Pb, 80% Zn, to produce 409.3 K Oz Ag, 284 tonnes Cu, 1,312 tonnes Pb, 4,127 tonnes Zn (or 1.09 M Oz AgEq).
  • Grupo México SAB de CV. presented its Q2 2024 results. The company has operations in several countries and did not specify production by mining unit. During the period Grupo México produced 270,747 tonnes Cu, 8,201 Oz Au, 2.95 M Oz Ag, 7,655 tonnes Mo, 29,419 tonnes Zn, 615.8 K tonnes H2SO4, with a cash cost of US$1.03 per Lb Cu after by products.

ON FINANCING

  • Southern Silver Exploration Corp. closed the first tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of $2.09 M. “In connection with the Offering, the Company paid finders’ fees totalling $101,745.31 and issued an aggregate 457,029 non-transferable finder warrants, with each finder warrant exercisable to purchase one common share for a period of 3 years.”  (Cerro Las Minitas, Durango).
  • Guanajuato Silver Company Ltd. filed a preliminary short base shelf form prospectus in each of the provinces and territories of Canada. Upon issuance of a receipt for the final short form base shelf prospectus the company will be permitted to offer up US$65 M of common shares, debt securities, warrants, subscriptions receipts, share purchase warrants and units during the 25-month that the prospectus is effective (El Cubo, Valenciana, Guanajuato).
  • Aztec Minerals Corp. closed the previously announced non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of C$2.57 M (Cervantes, Sonora).
  • Barksdale Resources Corp. closed the second and final tranche of its previously announced non-brokered private placement offering for gross proceeds of $4.1 M, which together with the proceeds from the first tranche add up to $6.3 M (San Javier, Sonora).

ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT

  • Sierra Madre Gold and Silver Ltd. commenced test mining and processing at the Guitarra mine complex in Estado de Mexico. The flotation plant has processed 5.7 K tonnes of mineralized material from the Guitarra mine and is currently processing 259 tpd in the path to full commercial production of 500 tpd.
  • Gatos Silver Inc. provided an update on drilling at the South-East Deeps zone and the recently initiated regional exploration program at its Los Gatos property (70% owned) in Chihuahua. “Resource definition drilling in the SE Deeps zone of CLG intercepted additional mineralization along strike and down-plunge, continuing to extend the known mineralized zone.” Highlighted core length intercepts comprise 2.9 m @ 0.18 gpt Au, 214 gpt Ag, 0.25% Cu, 12.2% Pb, 19.0% Zn; 2.7 m @ 0.81 gpt Au, 81 gpt Ag, 0.15% Cu, 3.9% Pb, 9.9% Zn; 1.6 m @ 0.02 gpt Au, 181 gpt Ag, 0.42% Cu, 0.9% Pb, 2.0% Zn; 1.6 m @ 0.79 gpt Au, 108 gpt Ag, 0.44% Cu, 3.2% Pb, 5.6% Zn; 6.5 m @ 0.14 gpt Au, 43 gpt Ag, 0.28% Cu, 1.8% Pb, 4.5% Zn at SE Deeps and 0.6 m @ 3.11 gpt Au; 1.2 m @ 0.09 gpt Au, 0.02% Cu, 0.23% Mo, 0.3% Pb, 1.7% Zn; 1.9 m @ 2.59 gpt Au, 15 gpt Ag, 0.02% Cu, 0.8% Pb, 1.6% Zn at Portigueño and 8.9 m @ 0.17 gpt Au, 66 gpt Ag; 4.2 m @ 0.07 gpt Au, 51 gpt Ag, 0.14% Cu, 0.9% Pb, 5.6% Zn at San Luis.
  • Vizsla Silver Corp. released the results of the preliminary economic assessment (PEA) on its Panuco project in Sinaloa. The study envisions a 3,300 tpd production rate expanding to 4,000 tpd in year 4, with an initial mine life (LOM) of 10.6  years. The 5.3 M tonnes deposit averaging 316 gpt Ag, 1.97 gpt Au would produce 15.2 M Oz AgEq (9.3 M Oz Ag, 78 K Oz Au) per year at cash cost US$7.98 per Oz AgEq and a LOM AISC of US$9.40 per Oz AgEq. The initial cash expenditures are estimated at US$224 M with an After-tax NPV (5%) of US$1,137 M and 85.7% IRR at US$26 per Oz Ag and US$1,975 per Oz Au, and an After-tax payback period of 9 months. Two adjacent underground mines, Copala and Napoleon, with on-site treatment with a three-stage grinding circuit, a leach and Merril Crowe circuit to produce doré bars. “The mines will be contractor operated utilizing ramp-access and a combination of long-hole stoping and drift-and-fill mining methods.”
  • Endeavour Silver Corp. provided Q2 2024 construction progress update for its Terronera project in Jalisco. Concrete and structural steel work are nearing completion on the upper plant platform for areas including crushing, coarse-ore storage, grinding, flotation, and thickening, with overall mine development and surface construction reaching 64.5% advance. More than US$204 M have been spent to date of the total project commitment of US$260 M, with mine development totaling nearly 4,500 m. The project remains on track for commissioning in Q4 2024.
  • Luca Mining Corp. completed construction of its Tahuehueto mine in Durango. The mine was constructed within budget, has a nameplate 1,000 tpd processing capacity and has been on pre-production for several months. Commercial levels of 800 tpd or 25 K tonnes per month are expected to be achieved by the end of September. “Tahuehueto is a large property (121 square kilometres) that hosts an extensive epithermal gold vein system with less than 10% of the prospective ground explored so far….. Resource drilling from underground is expected to commence in the coming weeks.”
  • Southern Silver Exploration Corp. filed on SEDAR a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) 43-101 technical report on its Cerro Las Minitas project in Durango. Highlights from the study include after-tax NPV5% of US$501 M, an IRR of 21.2% with a 48-month payback on a large-scale underground mining operation with a 17-year mine life (LOM) with an anual average plant feed of 14.3 M Oz AgEq (inc. 5.8 M Oz Ag) and total sales of 194.3 M Oz AgEq at an AISC of $13.23 per Oz AgEq. The project envisages gross revenues totalling US$4.47 B, with Au and Ag representing 45% of revenue and zinc 35%. Updated PEA increases production by 5 M tonnes, production rate to 5,300 tpd, extends the LOM by 2.6 years and the total revenue by US$765 M. “The company plans to initiate a core drilling program of up to 6000m in 11 holes to test shallow targets along the north side of the Cerro between the North Felsite and Skarn Front deposits. Drilling will start in early September. The work is the first stage of a larger 25,000 metre exploration program on the property with the goal of adding an additional 4 million to 8 million tonnes of mineralization to the resource base.” 

ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES

  • Silver Viper Minerals Corp. announced the completion of the purchase of the three mineral claims covering 2,102 hectares at the La Virgina project in Sonora. The company made the last cash payment of US$200 K. “Silver Viper has completed a total of 141 drill holes at La Virginia for a combined 44,687 metres. Exploration drilling has paused awaiting the processing of the geophysical survey data along with the interpretation of mapping and sampling data.”
  • Xali Gold Corp. signed a legally binding letter of intent (LOI) with Rio Verde Resources on portions of five mining concessions at El Oro project in Estado de Mexico. Rio Verde has been granted the exclusive right to explore and extract minerals above the 2,400 m level in the historic workings, in exchange for a 3% net smelter return (NSR) royalty. Rio Verde has advised that their production will initially focus on the target identified by LuisMin-Hillsborough, in which they estimated a potential of 762 K Oz Au and 9.8 M Oz Ag (6.89 M tonnes @ 3.44 gpt Au, 44 gpt Ag, Not NI-43-101 compliant) after studying mine level plans with grades, sections and eight new drill holes.
  • United States Antimony Corp. announced the appointment of Jonathan Miller as vice president of investor relations and global sales director (Juarez, Queretaro).
  • Solaris Resources Inc. appointed Mr. Arun Lamba as vice president, corporate development (La Verde, Michoacán).
  • DYNR-Dyna Resource Inc. appointed Mr. Alonso Sotomayor as chief financial officer (San José de Gracia, Sinaloa).

ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

  • No Relevant News.

On the image below: Chloritized biotite (?) lining a quartz veinlet in a Sonoran Desert project, HQ core. Picture by Jorge Cirett.

The Mining and Exploration News in Mexico: Highlights on the Second Week of July 2024

/ Gambusino Prospector / Leave a comment

By Jorge Cirett                                             

During the 28th week of the year (July 8th to July 14th, 2024), companies working in Mexico posted at least 25 press releases. One company informed on exploration advances on its property and nine companies provided operational results for Q2 2024. One company increased the size of a previous offering, one more was notified of its lack of compliance by the NYSE and one more established an at the market equity distribution program. Four companies released drilling results from their advanced properties, and one more completed a drilling program. Three companies announced management appointments, two the authorization for their merger and one provided information on payments to governments. ON MEXICO ISSUES, Mexico fell spectacularly on the Fraser’s ranking of mining competitiveness. Camimex pointed that exploration by the SGM just won’t work. Arcelor Mittal’s workers continue their illegal strike. ON EXPLORATION, In Sinaloa, Chesapeake Gold released drilling results on Lucy. ON MINING, Fortuna Mining, Endeavour Silver, Aura Minerals, Torex Gold, Gatos Silver, SilverCrest Metals, Orla Mining, GoGold Resources and Sierra Metals reported production results for Q2 2024. ON FINANCING, Golden Minerals announced it’s been notified by the NYSE American of its lack of compliance on three listing standards. Southern Silver Exploration increased its private placement to C$4.5 M. Kootenay Silver established an equity distribution program. ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT, Atacama Copper reported drilling results from Cristina. Silver Tiger Metals released results from PFS drilling at El Tigre. Vizsla Silver reported results from holes on the Copala resource area at its Panuco project. GoGold Resources updated on the FS for Los Ricos South. Xali Gold announced the completion of a drill program at El Oro Tailings. ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, Bear Creek Mining, Luca Mining and Barksdale Resources announced appointments to the board. Argonaut Gold and Alamos Gold received clearance from authorities to complete their proposed arrangement. Fresnillo plc paid US$297.5 M dollars to Mexico during 2023 in taxes, royalties and concessions fees. ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, no relevant news.

ON MEXICO ISSUES

  • Mexico fell 37 positions on the Fraser Institute index of mining competitiveness from 2022 to 2023, reflecting the difficulty to do business imposed in the new Mining Law.
  • Camimex (Cámara Minera de México) indicated that mining exploration by the government as stated by the new mining law is just not viable. According to the new mining law, the only player able to do exploration before an auction of mining concessions is the SGM (Servicio Geológico Mexicano), and that in 2022 the SGM had a budget of just US$2.4 million dollars, compared with the annual average in the last 12 years of US$633 million dollars invested by private mining companies.
  • Workers of Arcelor Mittal rejected a proposal by the company to end the more than a month and a half old illegal strike. The proposed agreement included more than US2,000 dollars per worker and 75% of the salaries not received during the strike, as well as an audit on the profits of the company for 2022 and 2023, to assess the correct application of the profit-sharing scheme in the law.  

ON EXPLORATION

  • Chesapeake Gold Corp. released results from the phase 2 drill program at Lucy, in Sinaloa. In total 939 m were drilled in 12 holes along the known mineralized corridor, 101 additional surface soil and rock samples were collected along the projection of the trend and 63 line-km of ground magnetics covering the entire property completed. Highlighted core length intervals comprise 24 m @ 1.43 gpt Au (including 9 m @ 2.29 gpt Au); 6 m @ 1.95 gpt Au; 6 m @ 5.21 gpt Au; 6 m @ 1.90 gpt Au; 20.5 m @ 1.75 gpt Au (including 12 m @ 2.82 gpt Au. The gold mineralized zone has been extended from 500 to 700 m of length, and the corridor remains open on strike and at depth. “… this expanded corridor continues to display retrograde quartz-calcite, iron oxides, sulphide veinlets and stockwork hosted within garnet and pyroxene skarn and hornfels with zones altered to actinolite and other silicates.”

ON MINING

  • Fortuna Mining Corp. reported production results for the second quarter of 2024, including figures from its Mexican operations. At San Jose, in Oaxaca, 176.2 K tonnes were milled at a rate of 1,980 tpd, grading 140 gpt Ag, 1.09 gpt Au, recovering 85.6% Ag, 85.5% Au, to produce 684.2 K Oz Ag, 5,269 Oz Au. “Management is currently evaluating its options of maintaining operations at the mine or putting the mine on care and maintenance, as Mineral Reserves are scheduled to be exhausted by year end.”
  • Endeavour Silver Corp. reported second quarter 2024 production of 1.31 M Oz Ag, 10,549 Oz Au (or 2.2 M Oz AgEq).  At Guanaceví in Durango, 112.9 K tonnes were processed at a rate of 1,241 tpd, grading 364 gpt Ag, 1.29 gpt Au, recovering 90.4% Ag, 90.4% Au, to produce 1.19 M Oz Ag, 4,243 Oz Au. At Bolañitos in Guanajuato, 106.1 K tonnes were processed at a rate of 1,166 tpd, grading 41 gpt Ag, 2.06 gpt Au, recovering 83.4% Ag, 89.6% Au, to recover 116.9 K Oz Ag, 6,306 Oz Au. “Local third-party feed continued to supplement Guanaceví mine production, totaling 15% of quarterly throughput. With current prices, management expects local third-party feed to remain above 10% of throughput going forward.”
  • Aura Minerals Inc. announced preliminary production results for Q2 2024, including figures from its Mexican operations. At Aranzazu, in Zacatecas, production was 6,175 Oz Au, 120.4 K Oz Ag, 8.93 M Lb Cu (or 24,692 Oz AuEq).
  • Torex Gold Resources Inc. reported Q2 2024 production at its Limón-Guajes mine in Guerrero. A total of 17.8 K tpd of ore were mined from open pits, 77.4 K tpd of waste were moved at a strip ratio of 4.3 and 2,145 tpd were mined from underground. Total plant throughput was 13,214 tpd, averaging 3.34 gpt Au, with a recovery of 90.5% Au, to produce 113,822 Oz Au in the period. “… the level of waste mined is expected to decline further through the balance of the year as the pits reach the end of their mine life mid-2025….”
  • Gatos Silver Inc. announced production results for the second quarter 2024. During the period 294.9 K tonnes were milled at a rate of 3,240 tpd, grading 0.29 gpt Au, 273 gpt Ag, 2.06% Pb, 4.55% Zn, recovering 48.8% Au, 88.9% Ag, 89.5% Pb, 64.6% Zn to produce 1,360 Oz Au, 2.30 M Oz Ag, 12.0 M Lb Pb, 19.1 M Lb Zn.
  • SilverCrest Metals Inc. provided interim operational results for the second quarter of 2024. During the period 100 K tonnes were mined, 110.6 K tonnes were milled at a rate of 1,216 tpd, averaging 4.36 gpt Au, 418 gpt Ag (or 765 gpt AgEq), recovering 98.6% Au, 98.3% Ag, to produce 15,303 Oz Au, 1.46 M Oz Ag (or 2.68 M Oz AgEq).
  • Orla Mining Ltd. released an interim operational update for the second quarter 2024. At the Camino Rojo Oxide mine 1.9 M tonnes were mined, 2.05 M tonnes of waste moved with a strip ratio of 1.08 and 1.93 M tonnes were stacked averaging 0.87 gpt Au to produce 33,206 Oz Au. At the end of the period Orla had cash of US$154.3 M and total debt of US$78.4 M, resulting in a net cash position of US$75.9 M.
  • GoGold Resources Inc. reported production for the quarter. At the Parral Tailing project, 2,436 Oz Au, 138.7 K Oz Ag, 148 tonnes Cu, 125 tonnes Zn were produced during the period ending June 30, 2024.
  • Sierra Metals Inc. reported second quarter 2024 production results. At Bolivar, in Chihuahua, 378.9 K tonnes were processed at a rate of 4,273 tpd, grading 0.38 gpt Au, 19.5 gpt Ag, 0.83% Cu, recovering 65.4% Au, 80.6% Ag, 89.8% Cu, to produce 3,005 Oz Au, 190 K Oz Ag, 6.15 M Lb Cu.

ON FINANCING

  • Golden Minerals Co. announced that the company has been notified by the NYSE American LLC that it was not in compliance with three of the continued listing standards. “The notification from the NYSE American has no immediate effect on the Company’s common stock or its business operations. The Company’s common stock will continue to be listed on the NYSE American under the symbol “AUMN” while it regains compliance with Sections 1003(a)(i), 1003(a)(ii) and 1003(a)(iii) of the Company Guide, subject to the Company’s compliance with other continued listing requirements” (Yoquivo, Chihuahua).
  • Southern Silver Exploration Corp. announced the increase of the previously announced $3.3 M private placement to $4.5 M (Cerro Las Minitas, Durango).
  • Kootenay Silver Inc. established an “at the market” equity distribution program, which will allow Kootenay to issue and sell to the public from time to time, at its discretion, common shares in the capital of Kootenay on the amount of up to C$5 M (Columba, Chihuahua).

ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT

  • Atacama Copper Corp. reported results from five holes of a 10,000 m drilling program at Cristina, in Chihuahua. Fifteen holes totalling 4,467 m of drilling of a 40-to-50-hole program have been reported. Highlighted true width intercepts comprise 20.50 m @ 1.56 gpt Au, 25 gpt Ag, 0.17% Cu, 0.3% Pb, 0.3% Zn (including 1.20 m @ 22.30 gpt Au, 184 gpt Ag, 1.42% Cu, 0.8% Pb, 0.9% Zn); 14.00 m @ 0.96 gpt Au, 39 gpt Ag, 0.13% Cu, 0.4% Pb, 0.7% Zn (including 2.90 m @ 2.78 gpt Au, 75 gpt Ag, 0.98% Cu, 0.7% Pb, 0.3% Zn); 20.00 m @ 0.43 gpt Au, 20 gpt Ag, 0.2% Pb; 0.6% Zn; 9.00 m @ 0.70 gpt Au, 33 gpt Ag, 0.15% Cu, 0.7% Pb, 2.1% Zn; 5.80 m @ 0.43 gpt Au, 12 gpt Ag, 0.1% Pb, 0.3% Zn. The goal of the program is to increase the size and the grade of the resource and demonstrate the underground potential at Cristina.
  • Silver Tiger Metals Inc. released results from the pre-feasibility study drilling program on El Tigre project in Sonora. Highlighted core length intervals comprise 18.20 m @ 0.53 gpt Au, 7 gpt Ag; 5.80 m @ 0.43 gpt Au, 328 gpt Ag (including 1.80 m @ 1.10 gpt Au, 1,041 gpt Ag); 56.80 m @ 0.62 gpt Au, 55 gpt Ag; 11.00 m @ 0.16 gpt Au, 128 gpt Ag; 72.00 m @ 0.62 gpt Au, 15 gpt Ag; 59.00 m @ 0.62 gpt Au, 20 gpt Ag; 11.00 m @ 1.18 gpt Au, 87 gpt Ag; 45.00 m @ 0.43 gpt Au, 11 gpt Ag. Silver Tiger aims to release a new mineral resource estimate by September 2024. This drilling program has extended mineralization “by 10 to 15%, to the footwall and hanging wall zones, as well as the higher-grade ‘Keel’ at PEA pit bottom associated with the El Tigre and SK Veins”, and converted a significant portion of inferred resources to the indicated category.
  • Vizsla Silver Corp. reported results from six holes targeting the Copala resource area at its Panuco project in Sinaloa. “The reported drilling, designed to infill near-surface Indicated Mineral Resources, continues to confirm high-grade continuity throughout Copala including new high-grade intercepts on the Copala 3 hanging-wall vein splay.” Highlighted true width intervals comprise 7.80 m @ 4.40 gpt Au, 788 gpt Ag (including 0.86 m @ 25.30 gpt Au, 5,010 gpt Ag); 5.25 m @ 6.58 gpt Au, 547 gpt Ag; 3.50 m @ 7.83 gpt Au, 1,617 gpt Ag; 2.68 m @ 7.47 gpt Au, 1,831 gpt Ag; 7.00 m @ 9.51 gpt Au, 1,898 gpt Ag (including 1.29 m @ 18.95 gpt Au, 3,430 gpt Ag).
  • GoGold Resources Inc. is advancing the definitive feasibility study at Los Ricos South project in Jalisco. The study to be released in September focus “… towards a larger underground mine with a much smaller open pit. We have applied for an underground permit as in our view this will be more likely to be obtained on a timely basis. We see the project having more than 10 years of underground mine life, followed by a smaller open pit than originally planned in our preliminary economic assessment. The need for an open pit permit at Los Ricos South has been effectively pushed into the future more than a decade from now.”
  • Xali Gold Corp. announced that the drilling program for metallurgical test work on the T Tailings project at El Oro, in Estado de Mexico, has been completed. The program was expanded from the 20 holes planned to 34 holes, averaging 20 m in depth. In a technical report from 2014, the tailings have an inferred resource of 1.27 M tonnes averaging 2.94 gpt Au, 75 gpt Ag, containing 119,900 Oz Au, 3.06 M Oz Ag.

ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES

  • Bear Creek Mining Corp. announced the appointment of Mr. Donald Mc Iver as Vice President Exploration and Geology. The company drew US$1.12 M from the Sandstorm Gold Ltd. Promissory Note. “As of the date of this news release, an aggregate of US$1,875,000 has been drawn down under the Additional Credit for a total principal amount of US$20,892,612.35 outstanding under the Sandstorm Promissory Note. A remaining amount of US$750,000 may be drawn down under the Additional Credit in monthly installments of up to US$375,000 until August 2024” (Mercedes, Sonora).
  • Luca Mining Corp. announced the appointment of Mr. Dan Barnholden as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 15, 2024. “Ramon Perez, who has served as interim CEO for the past 4 months, will return to his role as President and will work closely with Dan to optimize operations at Campo Morado and achieve commercial production at Tahuehueto.” (Campo Morado, Guerrero).
  • Argonaut Gold Inc. received the clearance decision from COFECE (Comisión Federal de Competencia Económica) and the final order of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on the pending arrangement transaction between Argonaut and Alamos Gold Inc.  Under the arrangement Alamos will acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Argonaut (La Colorada, Sonora).
  • Barksdale Resources Corp. announced the appointment of Mr. Alan Roberts as VicePresident Exploration (San Javier, Sonora).
  • Fresnillo plc. provided an overview of the payments to governments made by Fresnillo plc in 2023. In Mexico the company paid US$255.6 M in taxes, US$0.62 M in royalties and US$41.3 M in licenses and concessions fees (Fresnillo, Saucito and Juanicipio, Zacatecas).

ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

  • Aura Minerals Inc. announced the 4th annual sustainability report with its achievements in advancing safety, responsibility, sustainability and innovation.

On the image below: Oxidized shear zone on intrusive rocks in a Sonoran Desert project, HQ core. Picture by Jorge Cirett.