Canada has its eyes fixed on Mexico as an investment destination for its mining companies , mainly in exploration expenses to find new gold deposits.
Enrique Zorrilla, president of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Mexico, highlighted after his participation in Inter.Mx Expansión Summit 2022 , that 35% of the capital invested by that country goes to the mining sector . “The nature of mining activities will force companies to continue allocating capital in exploration expenses. It forces them to be consistently investing and investing,” he asserts.
The relief and geographical position of Mexico have led it to have a preponderant place worldwide within the sector . For 13 consecutive years, it has been the main producer of silver , although gold is the mineral that contributes the highest value of the country’s mining production.
Despite the fact that the current administration has not granted a single new mining concession, the Mexican Mining Chamber (Camimex) foresees investments of 5,538.8 million dollars for this year, which will mean an annual increase of 15.2% .
The lack of new territories to carry out this activity has put companies in a scenario in which investment in exploration takes on a predominant role, since the life of mines is limited and finding new deposits is key for companies.
Investments had been down since 2018, but the story changed in 2021, when the international environment led to a 4.3% rally in base metals, such as lead and zinc, while precious metals became a haven for investors. . For example, silver and gold rose 2.2%.
Camimex, representative of 59 companies in the sector with 122 operations that represent 93% of the value of national mining and metallurgical production, expects that investments in the sector for this year will grow 15.2% annually.
Jaime Gutiérrez, president of the organization, highlights that “despite the adversities”, the companies in the sector will direct efforts to find new deposits to be exploited . “Although we do not have new concessions, it is necessary to replace equipment, increase the capacity of our processing plants, improve our communication routes, etc., there is a great need for that immediate investment to reaffirm your own operation,” Gutiérrez explained to Expansión during the report. annual Camimex.
The Canadian Torex Gold , for example, announced earlier this year an investment of 848 million dollars over the next three years, to triple the life of a mine in Guerrero, from which it intends to extract mainly gold.
On the other hand, the Mexican subsidiary of the Canadian Argonaut Gold has a project in Cerro del Gallo, Guanajuato, in advanced exploration, from which it intends to extract both gold, silver and copper.
According to S&P Global Market Intelligence, Latin America concentrated 24% of all investments globally throughout 2021. In the list by country, Mexico ranked first , followed by Chile and Peru.
According to Inegi data, at the end of last year, gold contributed the greatest contribution to the value of metallurgical mining production, having accumulated 28.4% of the total, followed by copper, silver and zinc.
