During the first week of December at least twenty press releases were announced by companies working in Mexico, including two third quarter reports. ON MEXICO ISSUES, China is already the third biggest foreign player in Mexico. ON EXPLORATION, a PFS was completed on a property in Durango, while in Chihuahua a drilling campaign continues and another one is on the planning stage. In Sonora results from a drilling campaign on a gold property were released, as were surface rock chip results from one Li property. In Hidalgo a property was staked, showing interesting initial rock chip sample results, whereas in San Luis Potosi and Zacatecas assay results were released for a Li property.  ON MINING, construction of a heap leach processing plant has begun in a project in Sonora, while in Sinaloa the high grade output was increased in one property, and development work continues in another one. In Queretaro a flotation mill continues with production tests. ON FINANCING, A C$10 M bought deal financing was completed by a company. ON RESOURCES, a technical report with a maiden resource was filed at SEDAR, and a PFS was completed on another, both from properties in Durango. ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, the saga for the control of a property in Sinaloa continues, a property was optioned and one more sold, both in Sonora. A company is applying to be listed in USA and a second payment has been made on the option to earn interest on a tailings property in Durango.

ON MEXICO ISSUES

• Mexico sets its eyes in China for investment in mineral resources. China is already the third most active foreign player in the Mexican mining sector, according to Mario Cantu, General Coordinator of Mining at the Ministry of Economy. The Ministry of Economy is currently setting up a taskforce in a bid to streamline the process of permit approvals that clarify the requirements for purchasing and renting mining concessions.

ON EXPLORATION

• Telson Resources Inc. announced the completion of a pre-feasibility study (PFS) on its Tahuehueto property in Durango. The report states a proven mineral reserve of 3.3 M tonnes @ 3.4 g/t Au, 41 g/t Ag, 0.31% Cu, 1.1% Pb and 2.0% Zn, to be mined mainly by underground cut and fill method at a 790 tpd rate, with a mine life of 21 years. The reserves contain 356 K Oz Au, 4.38 M Oz Ag, 25 M Lbs Cu, 85.7 M Lbs Pb, and 161.3 M Lbs Zn.
• Levon Resources Ltd. intends to proceed next year with a drilling program on its Cordero project in Chihuahua, once the silver price moves up in a “sustained and positive way.” The program will target the center of the pit resource, in a claim acquired after the resource was delineated.
• Alix Resources Corp. reported more lithium-rich clay layers identified at its Electra project in Sonora. Assays from 31 samples returned 10 samples over 1,000 ppm Li. Clay layers are traced for approximately 4.5 km, over a surface up to 800 m in width.
• Kootenay Silver Inc. continues the drilling campaign on its La Cigarra project, in Chihuahua. Samples from six more holes have been sent for assaying, and drilling is now continuing on the La Soledad structure, where a breccia zone can attain eight meters in width.
• Prospero Silver Corp. staked a 4,690 ha mining concession in a high level epithermal vein system 85 km NW from Pachuca, in Hidalgo. The La Florida vein system is over 3.5 km long, with eight out of 22 samples returning 0.1 – 0.5 g/t Au and 1.4 – 11.1 g/t Ag, up to 525 ppm As, up to 6 ppm Hg and up to 6,860 ppm Sb. An additional structure, at least one kilometer long, returned on the only two samples 0.6, 0.61 g/t Au; 2, 2, g/t Ag; 1,595, 1,945 ppm As; and 1.7, 2.1 ppm Hg.
• Alset Energy Corp. released assay results for 30 samples collected by the previous owner of the company, for three of the salars: La Salada, Santa Clara and Caligüey. The results run from 340 to 1,680 ppm Li, a bit lower than the previous assay results of 411 to 2,590 ppm Li. Potassium values range from 1.57% to 4.78%. Studies on x-ray diffraction show none to very small amounts of smectite, which points to Li not being inside the clay structure and an easier extraction.
• Millrock Resources Inc. completed a ten hole 1,990 m drilling program at Los Chinos project in Sonora. The property is under a JV with Centerra, where the company can earn a 70% interest by funding US$5 M. Three target areas were tested; El Camino, La Tinaja and Pitalla zones. The best intersections were 4 m @ 0.69 g/t Au and 6.3 m @ 0.18 g/t Au.

ON MINING

• Corex Gold Corp. has begun construction of its heap-leach Santana project in Sonora. The initial step involves forming two heaps, one with jaw-crushed material and the other with fine crushed, to test metallurgical recoveries.
• Marlin Gold Mining Ltd. crushed 127.5 K tonnes of ore @ 5.26 g/t Au during November at its La Trinidad mine in Sinaloa. During the same period 21,567 Oz Au were stacked on the heaps, and 279 Oz Au recovered daily. Cash cost is estimated to be below $400 per gold ounce for the month.
• United States Antimony Corp. continues production testing with an alkaline leach plant in Guanajuato, to process material from its Los Juarez mine in Queretaro. The two options under consideration are to use the flotation mill and the alkaline leach circuit, or to use the flotation mill, alkaline leach circuit, and the cyanide leach plant for the mill tailings. To date tests have shown recoveries of 50%, 70% and 70% for Au, Ag and Sb respectively under the first option, and 90%, 90% and 70% for Au, Ag and Sb respectively under the second option.
• Americas Silver Corp. continues with the primary ramp development at its San Rafael project in Sinaloa, which is expected to reach commercial production in Q3 2017. The ramp is now 25 % complete, the electrical substation has been energized and water storage facilities have been constructed.
• DynaResource Inc. processed 5,075 tons of feed material @ 11.38 g/t Au grade at its pilot mill in its San Jose de Gracia property in Sinaloa. The pilot mill facility averaged 182 tpd output.

ON FINANCING

• SilverCrest Metals Inc. completed a CA$10 M bought deal financing (Las Chispas, Sonora).

ON RESOURCES

• Orex Minerals Inc. filed on SEDAR a technical report for the first inferred resource estimate of the Sandra Escobar project in Durango. Utilizing 59 drill holes and a 45 g/t Ag cut-off base case, the inferred resource estimate yielded 9.8 M tonnes @ 106 g/t Ag, for a total of 33.3 M Oz Ag.
• Telson Resources Inc. announced the completion of a pre-feasibility study (PFS) on its Tahuehueto property in Durango. The reserves contain 356 K Oz Au, 4.38 M Oz Ag, 25 M Lbs Cu, 85.7 M Lbs Pb, and 161.3 M Lbs Zn. The total resource (inclusive of mineral reserves) includes 6.1 M tonnes @ 2.1 g/t Au, 48 g/t Ag, 0.375 Cu, 1.36% Pb, 2.25% Zn on the measured and indicated categories, and 3.5 M tonnes @ 1.5 g/t Au, 41.6 g/t Ag, 0.32% Cu, 1.33% Pb, 2.21% Zn on the inferred category, for total contained metal amounts of 634 K Oz Au, 12.6 M Oz Ag, 61.8 M Lb Cu, 265.3 M Lb Pb and 483.9 M Lb Zn.

ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES

• Dyna Resource de Mexico S.A. de C.V. has seized assets of Goldgroup Resources Inc. as part of a US$48 M damages award. A lien was approved upon stock certificates in the name of Goldgroup Resources Inc.
• Riverside Resources Inc. signed an option agreement with Silver Viper Minerals Corp. on its Clemente project in Sonora. Silver Viper can earn a 100% on the project by staged payments on five years to sum $750 K, delivering 2 M shares and investing $4 M during the life of the option, Riverside will retain a 2% NSR, same that can be bought for $4 M.
• Americas Silver Corp. has initiated the process to become listed on the NYSE MKT, and is to undergo a voting for a needed share consolidation in the procedure.
• Santacruz Silver Mining Ltd. has entered into an agreement with a private Mexican company based in Hermosillo (the “Hermosillo Group”) to sell 100% of its interest in the San Felipe project in Sonora. The deal involves a cash consideration of US$15 M, in three installments, with the final one on February 15, 2017.
• MX Gold Corp. has paid the second installment of $750 K in its agreement to gain 50% interest on the Magistral del Oro tailings project in Durango. Two more $750 K payments are to be made before January 19, 2017, to earn that 50% interest. The tailings have an historical (non 43-101 compliant) estimate of 1.25 M tonnes @ 2.06 g/t Au.

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, flow banding on a rhyodacitic dome, Zacatecas Altiplano. The flow bands are a few millimeters thick.