During the second week of July, at least 34 press releases from companies working in Mexico were published, bolstered by the publication of second quarter results. ON EXPLORATION, Endeavour Silver is to drill 9,000 m in its properties on an increased exploration budget; Orex Gold and Evrim announced new drilling campaigns on its projects in Durango and Sonora respectively, while Consolidated Zinc presented high grade drilling results in Chihuahua. Golden Goliath and Minera Alamos presented exploration results on its properties in Chihuahua and Durango, whereas Azure minerals presented metallurgical results from its property in Sonora. ON MINING, May 2015 to May 2016 mining production in Mexico fell 4.5%. Nine companies presented second quarter results for 2016. Baja Mining presented an update of activities on El Boleo mine, a description of mining hurdles encountered, and production results to last May. Endeavour Silver is going for more development investment than previously envisaged. Great Panther reported a fatality in Durango. Pan American Silver commissioned a new plant in Zacatecas. ON FINANCING, six companies announced cash calls and the opening, tranche completion or the closing of financing rounds, for total gross proceeds of $85.9 million and CDN$ 16.34 million (not a bad week). ON DEALS. Plata Latina and Fresnillo signed a LOI on a property in Guanajuato, and ALSET signed an agreement to acquire lithium concessions in Zacatecas and San Luis Potosí. Maverix Metals Inc. completed the acquisition of a royalty agreement from Pan American Silver.

ON EXPLORATION

• Endeavour Silver Corp. The exploration budget for 2016 has been increased from the $2.5 million minimum to $10.8 million, to fund 9 k m of drilling at Terronera (Jalisco), 6.4 K m at Guanceví (Durango), 3 K m at El Compas (Zacatecas), 3 K m at Guadalupe y Calvo (Chihuahua) and 2 K m at El Cubo (Guanajuato).
• Orex Minerals Inc. has commenced a new round of diamond drilling on the Sandra Escobar property in Durango. This Phase-III drilling program will consist of approximately 3,000 meters in 20 to 25 drill holes. To date, Orex has drilled 4,500 meters in 38 diamond drill holes. Thirty three of these holes are being utilized for a soon to be announced initial resource estimate.
• Evrim Resources Corp. announced that its partner First Majestic Silver Corp. plans to perform a 2,000 m drill program at the Ermitaño property in Sonora, just South from FMS Santa Elena mine. The property is said to have a more than 500 m long vein, 2 – 3.5 m in width.
• Golden Goliath Resources Ltd. reported exploration at its San Timoteo property in Chihuahua (Uruachic camp). Integration of Terraspec studies of clays on underground, surface and past drillholes was used to construct a 3D model to target future drillholes.
• Consolidated Zinc Ltd. presented results of its on-going underground program, confirming the extension of massive sulfide mineralization with deeper drilling below Level 7 mine development. Drill results include True-width (TW) intercepts of 3.02 m @ 35% Zn, 15.4% Pb and 158 g/t Ag; 5.02 m TW 25.8% Zn, 11.8% Pb and 53 g/t Ag; and 1.87 m TW @ 32.1% Zn, 16.7% Pb and 108 g/t Ag. Underground development continues, now under a mining contractor.
• Azure Minerals Ltd. reported metallurgical test results from its Loma Bonita discovery at its Alacran project in Sonora. Test work on oxide mineralization shows gold is amenable to cyanide leaching with recoveries averaging 93% on ground samples (simulating conventional milling) and 73% on crushed samples (simulating heap leach processing).
• Minera Alamos Inc. presented information on exploration targets on its La Fortuna project in Durango. Extension to La Fortuna mineralization is found south of the main zone, and is some 200 m long. The Ramada zone is on a 600 m long parallel fault structure (to the main zone) with grades up to 15-40 g/t Au, and the PN zone is an epithermal Au-Ag system in a shear zone at least 1.5 km long, with “widespread” grades of 1-10 g/t Au and 50-400 g/t Ag (no mention to width).

ON MINING

• During May the mining production fell 4.5%, compared with May 2015.
• Baja Mining Corp. The process plant has achieved 86% availability, copper recovery is over 81% and grade of ore processed was 1.04%. To May 2016, 5 K tonnes of copper cathode, 35 tonnes of cobalt and 153 tonnes of zinc sulfate has been produced (the last two on the cobalt-zinc circuit). Copper production for the year is forecast at 20 K tonnes. Underground production has reached up to 1,000 tpd, averaging 400 tpd.
• HECLA Mining Co. announced production results for the second quarter of 2016, which include 1.258 M Oz Ag and 9,483 Oz Au from its San Sebastian mine in Durango.
• Endeavour Silver Corp. reported production results for the Second Quarter, 2016 from the Guanaceví mine in Durango, and Bolañitos and El Cubo mines in Guanajuato. Guanceví processed 98.7 K tonnes (1,085 tpd) @ 232 g/t Ag and 0.49 g/t Au with recoveries of 85.4% Ag and 87.7% Au, for 629K Oz Ag and 1,365 Oz Au. Bolañitos produced 136 K tonnes (1,498 tpd) @ 80 g/t Ag and 2.38 g/t Au with recoveries of 79 % Ag and 81.2 % Au, for 276 K Oz Ag and 8,470 Oz Au. El Cubo produced 142 K tonnes (1,562 tpd) @ 156 g/t Ag and 1.56 g/t Au, with recoveries of 90.6% Ag and 81.9% Au, for 645 K Oz Ag and 5,814 Oz Au.  Of importance is decision to not ramp down production at El Cubo, and new development investment at Bolañitos, El Cubo and Guanceví.
• Fortuna Silver Mines Inc. disclosed production figures for the second quarter of 2016, including the San Jose mine in Oaxaca. 185 K tonnes were processed @ 226 g/t Ag and 1.7 g/t Au, with recoveries at 92% and 91.6 for silver and gold respectively.
• Capstone Mining Corp. announced production results for the second quarter of 2016, including figures from its Cozamin mine in Zacatecas. At Cozamin 243 K tonnes of ore were processed (2,678 tpd) @ 1.42% Cu, 0.63% Zn, 0.08% Pb and 41 g/t Ag, with recoveries of 94.8% Cu, 60.3% Zn, 18.9% Pb and 72.8% Ag, for the production of 12.3 tonnes of copper concentrate, 1,959 tonnes of zinc concentrate and 64 tonnes of lead concentrate. Payable copper shipped was 3,236 tonnes.
• Gold Resource Corp. reported second quarter 2016 production from its Aguila mine in Oaxaca, with 10 K Oz Au, 572 K Oz Ag, 320 t Cu, 1,009 t Pb and 3,813 t Zn.
• Timmins Gold Corp. processed 1.9 Mt of ore at 0.6 g/t Au to produced 25,863 Oz Au and 14,884 Oz Ag at its San Franciso mine in Sonora, during the second quarter of 2016.
• Great Panther Silver Ltd. reported a fatal accident at its Topia mine in Durango.
• Great Panther Silver Ltd. announced production results for the second quarter of 2016, which include: Guanajuato Mine Complex, 84 K tonnes milled @ 159 g/t Ag, 2.52 g/t Au. With recoveries at 85.3% Ag and 85.2% Au, producing 367 K Oz Ag and 5,174 Oz Au; Topia, Durango, processed 15.7K tonnes @ 367 g/t Ag, 0.59 g/t Au, with recoveries at 91.3% Ag and 64% Au, to produce 169,783 Oz Ag and 192 Oz Au, 290 tonnes lead and 433 tonnes zinc.
• GoGold Resources Inc. reported production on the second quarter of 2016. The company stacked 631 K tonnes of tailings, and produced 2,218 Oz Au and 191,618 Oz Ag, at a cash cost per AgEq ounce of $6.91.
• Pan American Silver Corp. commissioned the new sulphide ore processing plant at La Colorada mine in Zacatecas, achieving production rates of up to 1,400 tpd. The expansion at La Colorada includes construction of a new 618-metre-deep mine shaft, additional underground development to sustain production at 1,800 tpd, and the installation of a new 115 kV power line. Additionally, the La Colorada mine was conferred the “Casco de Plata” award by CAMIMEX, as the safest underground mine with over 500 employees in 2015.
• Argonaut Gold Inc. announced production results for the second quarter of 2016, which include: El Castillo (Durango), 76.7 K tpd mined, 2.7 M tonnes @ 0.41 g/t Au placed on the leach pads, 35.2 K AuEq Oz produced; La Colorada (Sonora), 56.3 K tpd mined, 1.2 M tonnes @ 0.52 g/t Au placed on the leach pads, 13,282 Oz Au, 38,819 Ag Oz produced; San Agustin (Durango) filed updated PEA, filed change of Use of Soil permit.
• The Zacatecas State government announced that Aura Minerals Aranzazu mine in Zacatecas is to re-start production in September of this year. No confirmation has been made by the company.

ON FINANCING

• Baja Mining Corp. The company is a minority holder (10%), and not the operator of the Boleo Project. As Minera y Metalúrgica del Boleo S.A. P.I. de C.V. (MMB) issued in May a cash call for US$40 million for funding planned operations through Q3 2016, Baja Mining has informed MMB that it would not contribute its 10% share of the cash call. This may result in a further decrease in Baja’s ownership of the Boleo Project (El Boleo, Baja California Sur).
• First Mining Finance Corp. intends to complete a non-brokered private placement aiming to raise gross proceeds of up to $16 million (Several mines in Sonora, Coahuila, Durango, Zacatecas, Mexico State and San Luis Potosi).
• Pan American Silver Corp. has filed a preliminary short form base shelf prospectus with the securities commissions in each province and territory of Canada and a corresponding shelf registration statement with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), filing that when accepted will allow the company to make offerings of common shares (La Colorada, Zacatecas; Alamo Dorado, Sonora; Dolores, Chihuahua).
• Great Panther Silver Ltd. closed its previously announced public offering, for gross proceeds of $29.9 million (Topia, Durango; San Ignacio and Guanajuato, in Guanajuato).
• Orex Minerals Inc. has begun trading on the OTCQX market in the United States (Coneto, Sandra Escobar, both in Durango).
• Silver Spruce Resources Inc. announced a non-brokered private placement to raise total proceeds of up to CDN $500 K (Pino de Plata, Chihuahua).
• Silver Bull Resources Inc. intends to complete a private placement to raise up to CDN $651 K.
• Santacruz Silver Mining Ltd. has closed its previously announced public offering for total gross proceeds of C$15.19 million. Additionally, its obligations to JMET LLC were restructured, amending a Silver Prepayment Agreement between the two, which involved a payment of US$ 7.77 million and further staged payments.

ON DEALS

• Maverix Metals Inc. completes acquisition of royalty, stream and payment agreement portfolio from Pan American Silver Corp. and Commences Trading. Pan American holds now 54% of the shares of Maverix on a non-diluted basis, and approximately 63% on a fully-diluted basis.
• Plata Latina Minerals Corp. and Fresnillo PLC signed a “Letter of Intent” (LOI) under which Fresnillo has the option to acquire its Naranjillo property in Guanajuato by means of a cash commitment of $2.15 million, the expenditure of $3 million and a 3% NSR.
• Alset Energy Corp. signed a final agreement to acquire the Caliguey, La Doncella, Colorada, La Salada, Santa Clara, Saldivar and Chapala concessions in Zacatecas and San Luis Potosí.

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

On the picture below, One of many Au-Ag bearing low sulfidation epithermal veins at Cerro El Caliche, Sonora.