Tag Archives: Mexico

Gekko Systems partners with Quadra Chemicals to expand GoldiLOX leach reach

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Gekko Systems says it has entered into an agreement with Quadra Chemicals Ltd to represent its GoldiLOX leach accelerant exclusively in Canada and the USA, and non-exclusively in Mexico.

GoldiLOX is an advanced leach accelerant able to, the company says, increase gold recovery while shortening intensive cyanidation times, making gold production a faster and more effective process. Compatible with all intensive reactors in the marketplace, GoldiLOX is either added as a single manual addition or by an automated chemical dosing system to the intense leach reactor.

“Gekko is pleased to enter an agreement with Quadra Chemicals to provide a cost effective and efficient leach accelerant, GoldiLOX, to our clients in Canada, the USA and Mexico to add further value to their projects,” Andrew Edmondston, CEO of Gekko Systems, said.

Ian Holden, Product Manager, Mining Group of Quadra Chemicals Ltd, added: “Partnering with innovative solution providers to the mining industry, such as Gekko, allows us to continue to provide technologies which will help to ensure our client’s competitiveness in the market. We are excited about this new partnership and look forward to working in collaboration with Gekko.”

Muckahi monorail-based tech removed from Torex’s Media Luna plans

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Torex Gold has decided to move forward with “conventional development and mining methods” for its planned Media Luna project in Mexico, following the outcome of various risk assessments, extensive comparative financial analyses, and the results to date of the Muckahi test program at El Limón Deep (ELD), the company said.

In the company’s June quarter results – which saw “solid operational performance” of 118,054 oz of gold produced, adjusted EBITDA of $122.1 million and generation of $21.9 million of free cash flow – Torex said the monorail-based technology would no longer be used in the Media Luna feasibility study currently being worked on and expected to be published in a technical report in the March quarter of 2022.

It explained: “After an analysis of the results to date of the Muckahi test program at ELD and an assessment of business risks, the board has approved a decision to pursue the Media Luna feasibility study on a conventional mining basis. While the monorail-based technology has progressed since the beginning of the ELD test program, testing to date of the individual components operating as an integrated system demonstrates that additional process and equipment engineering is required to achieve desired advance rates, cycle times, and associated cost efficiencies, and that there is insufficient available upside in using the technology as it relates to financial or schedule considerations for Media Luna.”

The use of the Muckahi technology, invented by former President and CEO Fred Stanford, would also leave the company with “no alternative readily available once the decision is taken to drive the two steep ramps at Media Luna, since there would be no access to the ore via any other method without considerable investment and schedule disruption associated with driving conventional ramps”.

Apart from the technical risks, there are additional business risks that require time and consideration such as permitting and regulatory compliance given there is no precedent for the technology, Torex added.

The company believes the use of a conventional mining process is a more prudent approach to mitigate operational and financial risk to the business given Media Luna will be its primary source of feed at the Morelos property after mid-2024.

It did leave the door open for use of the Muckahi technology in the future, saying aspects of the monorail-based technology were currently being deployed for development of the Guajes Tunnel.

“Management will consider including a preliminary economic assessment-level study to utilise monorail-based equipment to develop the smaller EPO deposit near Media Luna as part of the overall technical report to be released in Q1 (March quarter) 2022,” it said.

Potential deployment of the technology at EPO, which hosts an inferred resource of 1.01 Moz of gold-equivalent, would allow for additional testing of the integrated system within a live production environment.

The Muckahi system was engineered by MEDATech in close collaboration with Stanford.

The monorail mining system is billed as providing a surgical way to mine narrower orebodies more efficiently. It involves three logistical paradigm shifts: steep ramps (a quarter of the length of conventional ramps), roof-mounted monorails and equipment to run on them and minimal underground infrastructure.

The technology is expected to significantly reduce capital expenditure, operating expenditure and cut time-to-revenue by as much as 80%, according to Stanford. It will also produce 95% fewer underground greenhouse gas emissions.

The Muckahi technology was included in the Media Luna preliminary economic assessment, but the company always noted that it was experimental in nature and had not yet been tested in an operating mine.

When publishing its 2020 financial results in February 2021, Torex noted: “Since the date of the technical report, the majority of the components of the Muckahi system have been tested by Torex and their functionality demonstrated. Although, the components have not yet been tested together as a system to demonstrate the rates per day in which tunnels can be excavated and material removed from long hole open stopes.

“Testing of the integrated system will continue and is expected to be completed in the second (June) quarter of 2021. Drill and blast fundamentals, standards and best practices for underground hard-rock mining are applied in the Muckahi system as described in of the technical report, where applicable. The proposed application of a monorail system for underground transportation for mine development and production mining is unique to underground mining. There are existing underground mines that use a monorail system for transportation of materials and equipment, however not in the capacity of Muckahi which is described in detail in the technical report. The mine design, equipment performance and cost estimations involving Muckahi in the technical report are conceptual in nature, and do not demonstrate technical or economic viability.”

At the same time as updating the market on its plans to use conventional development and mining methods at Media Luna, Torex said its Board had approved a pushback of the El Limón open pit, which is anticipated to add around 150,000 oz of gold production and extend open-pit mining to mid-2024. This would align with first production from Media Luna in 2024.

Exyn Technologies expands drone distribution with World Class Mining pact

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Exyn Technologies has continued to build its network of distributors, announcing a partnership with Mexico-based World Class Mining to bring autonomous drones to the Mexican mining market.

World Class Mining offers representation to foreign companies, introducing their products and services into the local mining sector.

In the last year, alone, Exyn has signed agreements with OPTRON, NSS and C.R. Kennedy to expand its distribution network across Africa, Canada and Australia.

With the assistance of ExynAero, an autonomous and self-piloting aerial drone, the partnership was created to support WCM in its ongoing efforts to increase safety measures for Mexican miners and to make advancements in data collection, Exyn said. ExynAero allows for comprehensive underground aerial 3D mapping with progressive visualisation that increases overall transparency of mining operations − including for GPS-denied, hard-to-reach, or hazardous areas, or locations that would be time-consuming to survey and inspect using conventional methods.

Juan Gonzalez Serrano, Head of Business Development at WCM, said: “We are convinced that 3D mapping solutions Exyn has to offer are the best option available worldwide for our customers in Mexico.”

Nader Elm, CEO and Co-Founder of Exyn Technologies, said: “We’re very proud to expand our partnership with World Class Mining, and to deliver the key benefits of safety and operational efficiency to all the humans involved in the Mexican mining industry. By offering world-class software and technology, we have given them the ability to map areas underground they could never before reach. Our end goal is to be an integral part of fully autonomous mining operations.”

Endeavour Silver centralises, standardises Terronera process management with ARES PRISM

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Endeavour Silver has selected ARES PRISM project controls software for use on its Terronera silver project in Mexico to, ARES PRISM says, reduce manual labour, standardise processes and workflows, and improve project data integration.

Terronera was acquired in 2010, and, according to a recent pre-feasibility study, has the potential to produce around 3 Moz/y of silver and 33,000 oz/y of gold over an initial 10-year mine life.

ARES PRISM project controls software has a proven track record and is used throughout the mining industry at more than 80% of the world’s top mining organisations, the company claims.

Andres Zavaleta, Project Management Consultant with Endeavour Silver, said: “Our objective was to establish a centralised system that could be used from the beginning of the project to standardise processes and improve the flow of project data allowing for increased efficiency and better project delivery. ARES PRISM can fully integrate with our current ERP system to enable Endeavour Silver to create standardised workflows and processes.”

Endeavour Silver is implementing the full PRISM G2 software suite, which includes the cost management, engineering, contracts, procurement and field management modules. Alongside this, it will implement PRISM Docs and PRISM Dashboard.

“PRISM Docs will enable their teams to find, share and control business documents, while PRISM Dashboard will provide them a series of pre-designed dashboard views and reports for visually showing progress and performance information,” the company said.

Endeavour Silver has also elected to implement PRISM Go, a web-based extension that allows remote access into a project’s core data set and limited portal access for third-party contractors for project progression in a secure environment.

Geoffrey Stubson, CFO of ARES Project Management, said: “We find that many project organisations are limited by data silos. But in choosing to implement nearly the entire ARES PRISM project software suite, Endeavour Silver has taken a strong initiative to eliminate silos and get the most of their project data while saving time and costs developing the Terronera mine.”

Telson Mining ready to experiment with metallurgical innovations at Campo Morado

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Telson Mining, following a strong quarter of production from the Campo Morado mine, in Guerrero State, Mexico, is making plans to boost throughput and recoveries through the potential use of grinding, leaching and flotation technologies from the likes of Maelgwyn Mineral Services, Core Group and Glencore Technology.

The mine’s throughput averaged out at 58,100 t/mth in the March quarter, with total throughput for the quarter of 174,400 t being 4% higher than the December quarter. Some 11,013 t of zinc concentrate and 1,907 t of lead concentrate was produced over the period, compared with 9,974 t and 1,916 t, respectively, in the previous quarter.

Gold, silver, lead and zinc recoveries all improved, quarter-on-quarter, in the first three months of the year, the company added.

Ralph Shearing, Telson CEO and President, said: “These strong first quarter results continue to reflect our steady progression of improving the throughput and recoveries at Campo Morado. To this end, management intends to initiate a rigorous metallurgical testing program to advance through second phase testing the Leachox™ Process of Maelgwyn Mineral Services and the Albion Process™ of Core Group, both of which returned positive test results in first phase testing.”

He said this metallurgical testing program will also study the ability to increase base metal recoveries at microfine grinding with flotation recovery using Imhoflot Flotation (also Maelgwyn) and Jameson Cell (Glencore Technology) flotation technologies, both designed for such purposes.

“We are confident that additional recovery improvements are available utilising these exciting modern technologies which, if successful, can provide increased revenue streams,” Shearing added.

Maelgwyn’s Leachox Process consists of several Maelgwyn proprietary processes linked together including Imhoflot G-Cell flotation technology, ultra-fine grinding using the Ro-Star mill, Aachen Reactors and Aachen assisted cyanide destruction.

The Albion Process, meanwhile, is a combination of ultrafine grinding and oxidative leaching at atmospheric pressure. The feed to the Albion Process is refractory base or precious metal concentrates, where the sulphides in the feed are oxidised and liberated, allowing the target metals to be recovered by conventional means.

New Major Drilling rod handling rigs start turning at Hecla’s San Sebastian mine

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Two new Major Drilling EF-75 drills have arrived and are now turning at Hecla Mining’s San Sebastian mine in Durango, Mexico, the drilling services company says.

The drills arrived in March and are part of Major Drilling’s fleet improvements, adding innovative rod handling capability to the project, it said.

“We are thankful that we are partnered with a company like Major Drilling that can provide newer, innovative drills,” Stephen Redak, Exploration Manager Mexico, Hecla Mining, said.

Hecla’s San Sebastian property is a silver and gold mine, where exploration work is underway in two main veins. Using these new drills at the San Sebastian project enhances Major Drilling’s 12-year history with Hecla in Mexico. This has seen more than 354,000 m drilled since 2009.

Major Drilling’s EF-75 core drill is new equipment for the Mexico branch. It combines safety with a high level of productivity, according to the company.

With the rod manipulator, operators benefit from rod handling, horizontal stacking and a safety screen to protect them while lifting and lowering rods. The rig is capable of depths of up to 2,700 m.

Workers are protected by rod handling innovation, and they improve results using a unique mast designed for accurate core orientation, the company says.

David Boucher, Major Drilling Mexico General Manager, said: “Hecla has been a long-time client of ours in Mexico, and we are very excited to bring these new drills out in Durango to really see what they can do at San Sebastian. We are very happy to have this equipment turning in Mexico.”

Major Drilling’s USA Division previously partnered with Hecla at the Fire Creek Mine in Nevada (now under care and maintenance). The company’s exploration teams have also drilled at Hecla surface exploration projects in other locations in the western USA.

Capstone prepares Cozamin for introduction of paste backfill, dry-stack tailings

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An updated Technical Report on Capstone Mining’s Cozamin copper-silver mine in Zacatecas, Mexico, has shown the potential for a mine life extension to 2031, and a plan for dry-stack tailings and underground paste backfill. At the same time, the company says it is studying the use of “innovative mining techniques and enhanced pillar recovery” to make the most of existing reserves and resources.

The updated life of mine plan released outlined average annual copper production of 51.2 MIb (23,224 t) of copper and 1.6 Moz of silver production over 10 years at average C1 costs, including the 50% silver stream, of $1.02/Ib of payable copper. From 2021 to 2027, average annual production is slated to be 58.8 MIb of copper and 1.7 Moz of silver.

The company said a planned ramp-up to 3,780 t/d, or 1.38 Mt/y, by the end of March quarter is on track, with a new section of ramp to open the one-way traffic circuit to debottleneck the mine (pictured) completed in early December 2020, ahead of schedule.

Reserves increased by 39% and now stand at 14.1 Mt, relative to April 30, 2020. Contained copper and silver increased by 37% and 49%, respectively, with around half of this increase due to recovery of high-grade pillars using paste backfill, Capstone said.

The miner said “tailings management transformation” activities were progressing on schedule at site, including feasibility-level design and studies in support of permitting a filtered (dry stack) tailings storage facility.

“This conversion from a slurry tailings impoundment aligns with industry leading socio-environmental best practice for tailings management,” the company said.

Meanwhile, a prefeasibility study (PFS) for an underground paste backfill system was completed in December.

The study indicates a paste backfill system will allow ore extraction containing over 100 MIb of copper and 3.1 Moz of silver between 2023 and 2031, which would have otherwise been left as unmined pillars. The PFS design has a capital cost estimate ranging from $41-$45 million and an increase in operating costs of around $7.50/t of ore mined. Capstone says its management has approved the paste backfill project and work has commenced on procurement of long lead items.

The proposed paste backfill system includes a tailings filter plant, a paste mixing plant, twin boreholes to deliver paste underground and an underground distribution system. The system is expected to be commissioned starting in the December quarter of 2022, with ramp-up completed in the March quarter of 2023.

PFS design of these facilities was completed by Paterson & Cooke in December 2020 and a feasibility study is underway with completion expected in April 2021. Mine planning was completed by Cozamin, with design support provided by a geotechnical consultant, and paste backfill operational guidance provided by AMC Consultants.

Within the latest release, Capstone also flagged the initiation of its “Impact23 Growth” project, which has identified areas of exploration excellence, innovative mining techniques and enhanced pillar recovery at Cozamin.

“By 2023, the goal is to further extend mine life, increase environmental and safety standards, and improve operational efficiencies at Cozamin, utilising mineral resources already discovered in addition to testing new targets,” the company explained.

Included among the options are the innovative mining techniques for resource to reserve conversion flagged at the start of this story.

Capstone says a study will be initiated this year to assess alternative mining techniques with the objective of lowering costs and dilution to convert resources to reserves from the indicated resource base. The current mining methods are longitudinal longhole open stoping and AVOCA, with possible alternatives to be studied including cut-and-fill, drift-and-fill and longhole open stoping with ore sorting technology.

Brad Mercer, Capstone’s SVP and Chief Operating Officer, said: “The life of mine plan announced today maximises extraction of the orebody’s high-grade core by deferring stoping in this area until the paste backfill plant is in operation in 2023. Projected production averages nearly 60 MIb of copper per year for seven years at first quartile costs.

“The Impact23 Growth project that we are kickstarting today is aiming to demonstrate in a 2023 technical report how Cozamin can sustain these levels of performance well into the 2030s.”

Darren Pylot, Capstone’s President and CEO, added: “After 14 years in operation, the best years of Cozamin are ahead. The mine is world class with sustainable low costs and leading safety and environmental performance entrenched throughout the organisation. The growth initiatives are supported by an entrepreneurial fabric at Capstone, as we embrace innovation and technology to create high impact value for our shareholders.”

Orla Mining on course for first gold in 2021 at Camino Rojo Oxide project

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The publication of the updated feasibility study on Orla Mining’s Camino Rojo Oxide Gold asset in Zacatecas, Mexico, has come with a 54% increase in contained gold reserves and a 3.5-year extension to the mine life of the in-construction project.

The new reserve estimate at Camino Rojo includes a proven and probable total of 67.4 Mt at 0.73 g/t Au and 14.5 g/t Ag, for total mineral reserves of 1.59 Moz of gold and 31.5 Moz of silver.

The updated study outlined open-pit mining of 67.4 Mt of oxide and transitional ore at a rate of 18,000 t/d. Ore from the pit will be crushed to 80% passing 28 mm, conveyor stacked onto a heap leach pad and leached using a low concentration sodium cyanide solution. Pregnant solution from the heap leach will be processed in a Merrill-Crowe recovery plant where gold and silver will be precipitated and doré will be produced. The site’s proximity to infrastructure, low stripping ratio, compact footprint and flat pad location all contribute to the project’s simplicity and low estimated all-in-sustaining costs of $543/oz of gold, the company said.

An after-tax net present value (5% discount) of $452 million was calculated by the study team led by Kappes Cassiday and Associates and supported by Independent Mining Consultants, Resource Geosciences Inc, John Ward Groundwater Consultant, Barranca Group, Piteau Associates Engineering and HydroGeoLogica Inc.

The main notable physical changes from the 2019 feasibility study are an increase in the size of the open pit, heap leach pad, and mine waste dump because of a layback agreement with the adjacent Fresnillo mine, all of which were anticipated in the initial design. While all material to be mined on the Fresnillo concession has been classified as waste in the latest study, Orla sees opportunities to further expand the reserve and resource base following further work on material in this area.

Jason Simpson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Orla, said: “The updated feasibility study for the Camino Rojo Oxide project demonstrates an increase in recovered gold, mine life, and cash flows.

“An already excellent project has been improved due to the hard work of the entire Orla team and I thank them for their efforts. We are pleased to announce this important enhancement and we will continue to optimise this asset as we move through construction and into production.”

Detailed engineering of the project described in the 2019 feasibility study is over 90% complete and procurement is 85% complete, with the start of earthworks announced on November 26, 2020. Since that time, 230 ha have been cleared for construction activities with over 20,000 cu.m of topsoil being removed and stockpiled. Equipment deliveries to site commenced in December, with a total of $78 million of the total project capital committed through purchase orders and contracts.

Orla says the mining contract is being finalised and expected to be in place early in the March quarter, with first gold production planned for late 2021.

SilverCrest adds process plant EPC remit to Ausenco’s Las Chispas FS work

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SilverCrest Metals is racing ahead with securing one of the key contracts for its Las Chispas project in Mexico, with one of its Mexican subsidiaries entering into a fixed price engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract with Ausenco Engineering Canada and one of its affiliates ahead of the publication of a feasibility study on the silver-gold project.

While the study is still pending finalisation by Ausenco, with announcement of results targeted for late January 2021, SilverCrest says it is confident entering into the process plant agreement based on the substantial feasibility information currently available.

At the same time, the company entered into a $120 million project financing facility with an affiliate of RK Mine Finance for funding the Las Chispas build.

The lump sum turnkey price of $76.5 million for the EPC contract will include construction of a 1,250 t/d process plant at Las Chispas, with execution of Ausenco’s scope of work to begin in February 2021, and commissioning of the process plant targeted for the June quarter of 2022. The process plant production ramp-up is expected to start in the September quarter of that year.

The construction execution plan includes stringent COVID-19 protocols including the use of a confined single room occupancy camp designed to limit the potential for a virus outbreak at the site and in the local communities, SilverCrest says.

Ausenco is in the throes of completing the Las Chispas feasibility study and progressing detailed engineering and the construction management plan. Detailed engineering is progressing well at around 60% completion, according to SilverCrest, and procurement of long lead items started in the final quarter of 2020.

“Advancing these programs in parallel has allowed Ausenco to develop comprehensive capital and operating cost estimates for Las Chispas while progressing detailed engineering beyond what is customary at a feasibility study level,” SilverCrest said.

“The disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic also allowed SilverCrest to initiate an early works program tailored to further reduce project execution risks.”

This early works program included the earthworks package, the water pumping system and the first phase of the construction camp. The advancement of the program, coupled with the fixed price nature of the EPC contract, reduces many common construction and market-related risks, the company said.

Beyond the tasks included in the EPC contract, the remaining initial capital costs anticipated for Las Chispas construction will include development costs of the underground mine; owner’s site costs; on-site infrastructure including Phase 2 of the confined construction camp, a bridge and the filtered (dry stack) tailings system facility; a new 33 kV, 49 km long powerline; and an analytical laboratory located in the community.

Pierre Beaudoin, COO of SilverCrest, said: “We are pleased to be working with Ausenco, a well-known and respected engineering firm with substantial global experience in designing, constructing, and commissioning precious metal process facilities. We have been working closely with Ausenco to complete the EPC contract and the feasibility study in close succession. We are confident that their intimate knowledge of the project will benefit the successful construction and commissioning of Las Chispas.”

A February 2019 preliminary economic assessment on Las Chispas outlined a 1,250 t/d production rate with an initial mine life of 8.5 years. This resulted in average annual production of 5.38 Moz of silver and 55,700 oz of gold.

McEwen Mining progresses gold-silver heap leach plan at Fenix

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McEwen Mining looks to have found a way to prolong its operations at the El Gallo Complex in Sinaloa, Mexico, with the feasibility study for its 100%-owned Fenix project highlighting a 9.5-year operational blueprint.

Using gold and silver prices of $1,500/oz and $17/oz, McEwen has estimated an operation able to produce 26,000 oz of gold production in phase one (years one to six) and 4.2 Moz of silver-equivalent in phase two (years seven to nine-and-a-half).

Phase one comes with an initial capital bill of $42 million and an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) estimate of $1,042/oz of gold. Phase two would require a $24 million incremental capital injection in year six, with the AISC calculated at $14.28/oz of silver-equivalent.

The company’s El Gallo mine (pictured) produced 240,000 oz of gold and 125,000 oz of silver from 2012-2017, yet, due to the transition to deeper sulphide mineralisation not amenable to heap leaching, mining and crushing activities ceased in the June quarter of 2018.

While residual heap leaching is set to continue to produce gold for several years, the company has been working on a new project for the El Gallo Complex, which is where Fenix comes in.

The Fenix 2018 preliminary economic assessment evaluated the potential extension of production in the complex, based on a two-phased transformation of the processing from the El Gallo mine, innovative in-pit tailings disposal and sourcing from several deposits.

The latest feasibility study has run with that plan, with the critical path environmental permits in hand for the first phase of production, according to Rob McEwen, Chairman and Chief Owner of McEwen Mining.

“Our next steps will involve detailed engineering, assessment of procurement options and the evaluation of financing alternatives,” Rob McEwen said.

He added: “The project will incorporate an environmentally progressive method of tailings management, using in-pit storage that creates multiple benefits, most importantly a secure containment of tailings, enabling better reclamation results.”