EV Resources snags historic, high-grade Mexican antimony mine
EVR says nearby parallel zones suggest further resource potential, particularly within a 7km trend running across the concessions.
‘The depletion of Chinese resources and consequent suspension of exports comes after decades of minimal exploration for antimony’
EV Resources managing director Hugh Callaghan
The acquisition was formalised through a joint venture agreement with the mine’s two private owners and the Mexican mining company, Proyectos y Construcciones.
The agreement includes a commitment to fast-track mine development to meet rising demand, with initial plans focusing on sampling, trenching and defining drill targets.
EVR has agreed to provide funding for exploration and a 300-tonne per day mine and concentration pilot plant, while also reimbursing its partners for US$80,000 (AU$128,000) in prior expenditures.
EV Resources managing director Hugh Callaghan said: “We have for some time been intrigued by antimony. It has many deep and flexible markets with mature technologies and minimal risk of substitution. The depletion of Chinese resources and consequent suspension of exports comes after decades of minimal exploration for antimony and closure of most mines outside of China.”
Due diligence is already underway alongside preparations for a detailed exploration program to commence by March. The company aims to assess Los Lirios’ potential while it continues to define drilling targets at the company’s flagship Parag porphyry project in Peru.
EVR believes the Parag copper-molybdenum-silver project has a substantial porphyry system with staggering grades of molybdenum, after last year’s successful geophysical surveys and diamond drilling confirmed mineralisation.
Parag delivered intersections including some hits of 18m at a peak grade of 1.7 per cent copper and 0.4 per cent moly from just 11m. This was contained within a wider 32m section going 1.2 per cent copper and 0.4 per cent moly from 3m below the surface.
The prospective porphyry project features considerable moly grades that are comparative, if not exceeding, many of the globally significant high-grade operating mines that also feature across Latin America.
The metal has also climbed to a dizzying US$30 (A$48) per pound – fetching considerably more than copper trading at about US$4.10 per pound.
EVR management has turned its thoughts towards a strategic partnership to fund its ongoing exploration and resource definition activities at Parag, especially given the potentially increased size of the project as a significant copper-molybdenum-porphyry play.
EVR appears to be ever-expanding its swag of premium Latin American assets in multiple flying critical minerals. As antimony continues to gain prominence and EVR looks to quickly address critical supply shortages in the global market, these proceeds may eventually fund some high-impact porphyry exploration in Peru as copper-molybdenum returns to favour.
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