Fresnillo will restart operations at its Herradura gold-silver mine in Mexico after gaining a new explosives permit from the country’s defence ministry.
In October 2013, the Mexican Government imposed a ban on the use of explosives at the Herradura mining unit of the Minera Penmont, following a dispute with the local community.
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Earlier this month, Fresnillo received a favourable ruling from a Mexican district court, which denied a request by Ejido El Bajío to prevent the lifting of the explosives permit for Herradura and Soledad.
Fresnillo said that it will place explosives orders without delay and anticipates to commence operations next week at Herradura, where drill holes are already available in preparation for blasting.
The company added that it looks forward to resuming operations at Herradura and confirms its guidance for gold production of 450,000 attributable ounces, as announced in its recent production report.
The company has six operating mines in Mexico, namely Fresnillo, Saucito, Ciénega (including the San Ramón satellite mine), Herradura, Soledad and Noche Buena.
Fresnillo mine has concessions covering about 2.1 million hectares in Mexico. The company said it aims to maintain the group’s position as the world’s largest primary silver company, producing 65 million ounces of silver and 500,000oz of gold by 2018.
The company’s primary focus is high potential silver and gold projects that can be developed into low-cost mines or clusters of mines.
Image: Herradura gold-silver mine in Mexico. Photo: courtesy of Fresnillo.
