Four Gold-Silver Projects Report Significant Production Increases

Despite the low metal prices, especially silver and gold, mining companies foresee an increase in production by the end of 2022 after showing solid results for 3Q22. These results led some companies to even increase their production estimates. 

Positive results from Canada-based Orla Mining, Torex Gold and Endeavour Silver, as well as US-based Gatos Silver, have led these companies to increase their gold and silver output. Jointly, their production totals over 151,000oz of gold, 2.7Moz of silver and 2.19Moz of silver equivalent, apart from other minerals like lead, zinc and copper. 

Among these companies, Torex Gold stands out as the largest gold producer. The company’s Limon-Guajes asset in Guerrero reported production of 122,200oz of gold in 3Q22, which was 10,980oz more than the 111,220oz from the same period in 2021. “We delivered another quarter of solid operational results … driven largely by excellent mill performance, record-setting gold recoveries of close to 90 percent and sustained elevated underground mining rates,” said Jody Kuzenko, President, Torex Gold.

Orla Mining has also reported significant increases. The Camino Rojo project in Zacatecas, which started production in March 2022, produced 28,876oz of gold in 3Q22, which to the time of writing helped the company to total over 77,580oz of gold. These results made the company update its production forecast from 100,000oz to 110,000oz for 2022. 

The company with the largest silver production was Gatos Silver: its Cerro Los Gatos project in Chihuahua produced 2.7Moz of silver in 3Q22, an amount that the company considered to be record-setting. Following these results, the company recalculated its production forecast from 8.5Moz-9Mz to 9.35Moz-9.35Moz. The company also recalculated its sustained costs, which went from US$16.5-18.5/oz to US$15.5-16.5/oz. Gatos Silver also increased its production of other minerals, like zinc by 32 percent and lead by 13 percent. The company said that its main objective is to extend the lifespan of Cerro Los Gatos. 

In the same vein, Endeavour Silver, the owner of the Bolañitos and Guanaceví projects located in Guanajuato and Durango, respectively, produced over 2.19Moz of silver equivalent in 3Q22, surpassing the 2.15Moz seen in 3Q21. According to the company, the Guanacevi project was the more productive asset of the two.