Gold Mining in Mexico.

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Mining accounted for 2.4% of Mexico’s gross domestic product in 2023, providing employment to 350,000 people in 2020. Mexico stands as the leading global producer of silver and a significant contributor to gold, copper, and zinc production. In 2020, Mexico ranked 12th in the world for mineral production by value.

Mining Tradition in Mexico: Mexico has a rich mining tradition dating back to the era of Spanish conquest and colonization. During the colonial period, mining was the primary economic activity in Mexico, leading to significant silver and gold production.

Major Gold Deposits:.

The most significant gold deposits in Mexico are located in the Sierra Madre Occidental, primarily composed of rhyolitic and andesitic rocks from the early Tertiary period. These were intruded by actions and bodies of quartz-monzonitic porphyry, likely overlaying a large plutonic intrusive. The mineral deposit consists of quartz veins, stockworks, breccias, disseminations, and porphyries.

Silver Deposits:
Silver deposits in Mexico are found in the Sierra Madre Occidental and Oriental. The northern region includes mines in Chihuahua, Coahuila, and Durango, while the central part comprises Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, and the Mesa Central with epigenetic deposits such as Mercury, Fluorite, Manganese, Tin, and Polymetallics. In the south, they are partly associated with formations of metamorphic deposits, but their origin is traced to intrusive rocks like Taxco, Gro., and Oaxaca. Other noteworthy silver deposits in Mexico occur in various structures, such as stockworks, disseminated mantles, chimneys, and veins. These have been identified as epithermal and mesothermal in origin occasionally.

Leading Gold Mines in Mexico (2022):

Mines like Peñasquito (Newmont), Limón-Guajes (Torex Gold), and La Herradura (Fresnilo plc) topped the list of major gold mines in Mexico in 2022, according to the data from the Mexican Mining Chamber (Camimex).

Alamos Gold:
Alamos Gold, a Canadian mining company, owns the Mulatos gold mine and the defunct El Chanate gold mines, both located in Sonora.[12][8] Since 2018, Mexico’s left-wing president has taken a tougher stance on mining companies, initiating reforms in mining regulations. President López Obrador criticized the mining company, mainly foreign-owned, for its track record of environmental harm and tax avoidance.

Other notable mines belong to companies such as Pan American Silver, Alamos Gold, Equinox Gold, Coeur Mining, Agnico Eagle Mines, First Majestic Silver, Argonaut Gold, and Minas de Bacis.

Fresnillo plc was the largest national gold producer in 2022 by company. Newmont ranked second, followed by Torex Gold, First Majestic, and Agnico Eagle. Together, these five companies contributed to 42.4% of the total production.

Notable Production Increases:
In Sonora, Agnico Eagle Mines’ “La India” saw a 17.5% increase in production compared to 2021, while Alamos Gold’s “Mulatos” experienced an almost 11% volume increase, thanks to contributions from its new mine, “La Yaqui Grande.”

First Majestic Silver’s “Santa Elena” more than doubled its production compared to 2021, with “El Ermitaño” deposit contributing over 60% to the plant’s supply. Grupo México’s “Buenavista del Cobre” increased metal extraction by 23.2% compared to the previous year.

Minera Alamos’ “Santana” achieved the threshold of commercial production.

The 5 main gold mines in Mexico

Some of the main gold mines in Mexico, along with their gold production figures in 2020, are as follows:

  • Peñasquito Mine – Produced by Goldcorp mining company, produced around 272,400 ounces of gold in 2020.
  • Los Filos Mine – Operated by Equinox Gold, produced approximately 132,700 ounces of gold in 2020.
  • Pinos Altos-Crestón Mascota Mine – Operated by Agnico Eagle, produced around 131,500 ounces of gold in 2020.
  • La Herradura Mine – Operated by Fresnillo plc, produced approximately 122,800 ounces of gold in 2020.
  • El Limón-Guajes Mine – Operated by Torex Gold, produced around 121,400 ounces of gold in 2020. Mulatos Mine – Produced by Alamos Gold, produced approximately 118,900 ounces of gold in 2020.
  • San Francisco del Oro Mine – Operated by Alio Gold, produced around 43,900 ounces of gold in 2020.

The National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI) reported in 2018 that there are 3,123 establishments dedicated to mining in Mexico, including the extraction of petroleum and gas, metallic and non-metallic minerals in mines, quarries, and material banks.

Some of the main mines by state are: in Sonora, Buenavista del Cobre, La Caridad, Piedras Verdes, and La Herradura; in Zacatecas, San Julián, Concepción del Oro, Saín Alto, and Villa de Cos; in San Luis Potosí, the San Luis Potosí Region, the Sierra de Catorce Region, and the Charcas Region. In Mexico, the search for gold is a profession that has existed since colonial times. The gambusinos, as informal gold seeker are known, continue to explore the territory in search of the nugget that will make them rich. In the state of Sonora, a second gold rush is underway, due to the presence of the precious metal in its territory.

Manuel Rangel Vigueras, a gold seeker with 25 years of experience in the activity, relates that, in colonial times, the Spanish found up to 50 kilos of gold per day, which were visible on the surface. Nowadays, valuable nuggets have been found, such as one weighing 12 kilos in the Altar desert, as well as others weighing 72 and 15 pounds. The gambusinos work hard to find alluvial gold, which is washed down by rivers from the mountains and deposited in the Sonora desert. When they find something, they sell it for a price that can reach $30 per gram. However, for Manuel Rangel Vigueras, money is not what motivates him to keep searching for gold. What motivates him are the stories of great treasures lost in the earth, which were accumulated by indigenous tribes or left by the Spanish near the mines. Despite the difficulties and risks involved in the activity of searching for gold, the gambusinos continue to put all their effort into the search for the nugget that will change their lives. In the Sonora desert, the gold rush is still alive and the seekers do not stop in their tireless search.”

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