Blog posts

During the 25^th week of the year (June 19^th to June 25^th, 2023), 16 companies working in Mexico posted news releases. Three companies informed on exploration work at its properties, while there was no relevant news on mining, other than the continuation of a Union strike on Peñasquito. Three companies informed on the closing of financing tranches or the arrangement of new placements. Four companies reported on work at their advanced properties. One company updated on financing moves to pay for the acquisition of an idle property and one more on the plans for recommence mining on their recent acquisition. ON MEXICO ISSUES, Newmont declared force majeure on contracted base metal production due to the Union strike at Peñasquito. The first all-encompassing suspension on the recently passed Mining Law was granted to a Mexican mining company. The Sindicato Nacional de Mineros brought a complaint before the fast-response mechanism of the T-MEC, accusing Grupo Mexico of negating Union liberty since 2007. Grupo Mexico responded the San Martín mine operates with the free decision of its unionized workers, and that workers strongly support the current Union.  ON EXPLORATION, in Sonora, Colibri Resource updated on work at El Plomo project. In Coahuila, Monumental Minerals announced a maiden drill program at its rare-earth Jemi project. In Durango, Silver Dollar entered into a surface access agreement with the local Ejido at Nora. ON MINING, no relevant news. ON FINANCING, Canuc Resources closed a CAD$1.3 M financing round. Sonoro Gold closed the first tranche of a C$3 M financing, raising C$1.7 M. Coeur Mining arranged a private placement for $19 M. ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT, Prime Mining reported good drilling results below the resource shell at Los Reyes, in Sinaloa. Orla Mining released infill drilling results from the Sulphide zone at Camino Rojo in Zacatecas, and also from the Deep Extension zone and from an exploration play 7 km away. Aztec Minerals updated on geologic and geochemical information at Cervantes, in Sonora, and is preparing an RC drilling campaign. Discovery Silver provided an update on work at the Cordero project in Chihuahua. ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES, Excellon Resources updated on La Negra acquisition in Queretaro, and the financing arrangements being sought to support it. Impact Silver announced its plans for refurbishing the Plomosa mine and plant in Chihuahua. ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, no relevant news.

ON MEXICO ISSUES

• The first suspension with all-encompassing application against the recently approved Mining Law was granted by a federal judge from Mexico City on June 21, 2023, to Cobre del Mayo, the company that exploits the Piedras Verdes copper mine in Sonora. Before this ruling, the only suspensions admitted were for the automatic rejection of previously filed applications for mining concessions.
• The Sindicato Nacional de Mineros (National Miners Union, headed by Napoleón Gómez Urrutia) presented a complaint against Grupo México under the fast response mechanism of the T-MEC, accusing the company of negating Union liberty and failure to comply with legal rulings on its favor, relating to a strike commenced by the Union in 2007 in which safety and contractual obligations were demanded. (It is much more likely that Napoleón Gómez Urrutia was aiming for the invalidation of a court arrest warrant on him related to the subtraction of 55 M dollars granted to workers of the Cananea mine on the sale of the property to Grupo Mexico. Napoleón Gómez Urrutia has legal immunity by its position as a senator). Grupo Mexico replied that its workers strongly back the current Union, and that the San Martín mine in Zacatecas operates with the free decision of its unionized workers.
• Newmont declared “Force Majeure” on the production of lead and zinc that is to impact on contract obligations. The company was to produce about 200 K tonnes Zn and 80 K tonnes Pb on 2023, but the current Union strike is going to impact on its production forecast. Operations were suspended on June 7, 2023, by the Union, which is demanding an increase of the participation on the profit obtained by the company from 10% to 20%.

ON EXPLORATION

• Colibri Resource Corp. reported results from geological mapping and outcrop sampling at the Pavo Real target on the Plomo property, EP project in Sonora. A 0.5 Km by 0.5 km area was selected and 90 grab samples collected, with 38 samples returning over 0.1 gpt Au and 13 samples over 1.0 gpt Au, peaking at 9.94 gpt Au. “The higher-grade samples also commonly include veinlets mapped as jasperoid which in thin section was determined to be a very fine-grained assemblage of limonite and hematite and interpreted to possibly be derived from a primary Fe-carbonate bearing vein assemblage. The mineralized tourmaline bearing breccia and stock work samples are massive to strongly foliated where foliation consistently has a north-northwest strike and moderate northeast dip”.
• Monumental Minerals Corp. announced a maiden drill program planned for its Jemi rare earth element project in Coahuila. Exploration work has resulted in six high priority drill targets for dysprosium (Dy), terbium (Tb), neodymium (Nd), Praseodymium (Pr), niobium (Nb) and tantalum (Ta). “The goal of the drill program is to define and delineate the source of REE-mineralized (eudialyte +/- aegirine rich) intrusive dykes and sills”. The program envisages 1,800 m of drilling in 6 holes.
• Silver Dollar Resources Inc. entered into a surface rights agreement with the Ejido Peña, covering the area of the Nora project in Durango.

ON MINING

• No Relevant News.

ON FINANCING

• Canuc Resources Corp. announced the closing of the first tranche of a non-brokered private placement financing, raising CAD$1.28 M in gross proceeds. (San Javier, Sonora).
• Sonoro Gold Corp. closed the first tranche of the C$3 M previously announced non-brokered private placement, for gross proceeds of C$1.7 M. Directors and officers participated in the offering for $1.32 M, constituting a related party transaction at the TSX Venture Exchange (Cerro Caliche, Sonora).
• Coeur Mining Inc. arranged a private placement for gross proceeds of $19 M (C$25 M). “The proceeds of the Offering will be used exclusively for qualifying Canadian Exploration Expenditures” Palmarejo, Chihuahua).

ON RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT

• Prime Mining Corp. reported drill results from four holes at the Z-T area of the Los Reyes project in Sinaloa. Two of the holes are located 100 to 200 m below the recently announced resource pit shell. Highlighted true width core intervals comprise 13.25 m @ 3.80 gpt Au, 82 gpt Ag (including 3.65 m @ 8.15 gpt Au, 89 gpt Ag); 11.40 m @ 3.96 gpt Au, 88 gpt Ag (including 2.00 m @ 19.40 gpt Au, 168 gpt Ag). “Together the mineralization in these drill holes further defines two high-grade mineralized shoots separated by 250 m. These intercepts open a significant area of exploration upside relative to the MRE pit shell for the Z-T area.”
• Orla Mining Ltd. provided an update on exploration at its Camino Rojo project in Zacatecas. Highlighted core length results comprise 93.0 m @ 2.87 gpt Au; 56.9 m @ 3.26 gpt Au; 34.0 m @ 3.11 gpt Au (including 5.6 m @ 10.29 gpt Au); 43.0 m @ 2.12 gpt Au; 38.5 m @ 2.00 gpt Au; 63.0 m @ 1.89 gpt Au; 62.6 m @ 1.62 gpt Au (including 6.0 m @ 7.72 gpt Au); 24.5 m @ 3.18 gpt Au; 12.0 m @ 4.18 gpt Au; 29.0 m @ 3.16 gpt Au; 42.0 m @ 3.05 gpt Au in Camino Rojo Sulphides infill, further 8.5 m @ 3.52 gpt Au, 26 gpt Ag, 0.26% Cu, 3.6% Zn; 3.3 m @ 4.54 gpt Au, 7 gpt Ag, 0.06% Cu, 5.5% Zn; 1.5 m @ 15.4 gpt Au, 7 gpt Ag, 0.04% Cu, 4.4% Zn in the Camino Rojo Sulphides Deep Extension zone, and 10.5 m @ 0.69 gpt Au (including 1.5 m @ 4.02 gpt Au); 3.3 m @ 0.94 gpt Au; 1.5 @ 2.72 gpt Au; 1.3 m @ 61.2 gpt Au in the Guanamero zone of the Camino Rojo Regional Exploration. Polymetallic Au-Ag-Zn massive to massive sulphide mineralization has been confirmed in holes testing below the Caracol Formation hosted sulphides.
• Aztec Minerals Corp. received permits for a planned two-stage reverse circulation (RC) drilling program at its Cervantes project in Sonora. The first stage is to commence on Q3 2023 utilizing information gathered on the mapping and sampling of 4,600 m of roads. The quartz-feldspar porphyry is more extensive than the feldspar porphyry, and many of the sediments are less continuous and often as xenolithic rafts and roof pendants over the intrusive rocks. There is widespread phyllic alteration, minor potassic alteration as secondary biotite and zones of tourmaline mineralization; with gold showing positive relationship with vein intensity and silicic and phyllic alterations, and inverse relationship with argillic alteration. Au has strong correlation with As, Cu, Bi, Ag and W. With Mo being strongly distal. A marked Cu anomaly to the northeast associated with tourmaline and secondary biotite alteration. The focus is “to continue to define the open pit, heap leach gold potential of the porphyry oxide cap at California, test the down dip extensions of the silicic-phyllic alteration in the Qfp intrusive for deeper copper-gold porphyry sulfide mineralization underlying the oxide cap, and test for extensions of the California North target.”
• Discovery Silver Corp. provided a project update on its Cordero project in Chihuahua. The company is to initiate the environmental permitting (Manifiesto de Impacto Ambiental, or MIA) process with the submission to SEMARNAT (Environmental regulator), and also “recently secured the surface rights that correspond with the planned open pit and key infrastructure locations at Cordero as well as a significant volume of water rights ….. Discovery also recently engaged M3 Engineering & Technology Corp to complete a technical review of the scope and cost to source water from existing water treatment plants in the region …… An impact assessment study and power installation study by Mexican electrical infrastructure authority CENACE were delivered earlier this year, with confirmation that there is sufficient capacity in the existing power grid to supply the Project with power for operations at peak throughput levels”. The company is also working on the front-end engineering design work for the feasibility study (FS), a resource update, metallurgical test work, process design, mine planning, geotechnical work and tailings study.

ON DEALS AND CORPORATE ISSUES             

• Excellon Resources Inc. updated on the previously announced La Negra mine acquisition in Queretaro, from Orion Resource Partners. Excellon is focused on a successful completion of the C$10 M in gross proceeds financing, “but in parallel is reviewing potential operating scenarios that would allow Excellon to close on a lower level of initial financing that supports initiating advancement of La Negra while also adequately capitalizing the Company's broader business”. The company is also in discussions with the holders of convertible debentures and assessing interim financing options as well as divestitures, mergers, or spin-offs to provide near-term liquidity.
• Impact Silver Corp. updated on its plans for the recently acquired Plomosas mine in Chihuahua. Restart of production is scheduled for the second half of 2023, with design capacity to be approached on the first half of 2024. Underground equipment is under maintenance and repairs, mill foundations are being replaced, and the ball mill and conveyor-crushing systems are being upgraded. A new tailings dam is in the design and permitting stage, while alternate electric power options under evaluation, as well as changes in mining methods and mineral processing. Underground stations for drilling are in preparation, while drilling permits have been submitted for the surface program. Plomosas has a current JORC resource of 215 K tonnes @ 13.5% Zn, 6.3% Pb, 34 gpt Ag in indicated resources and 772 K tonnes @ 13.1% Zn, 3.0% Pb, 19 gpt Ag of inferred resources at a 3% Zn cut-off.

ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

• No Relevant News.

On the image below: Barite-Quartz-Specularite vein on a project in the Sonoran Desert. Picture by Jorge Cirett.