IKN

The weekly column by Gustavo Álvarez in the regional daily newspaper ‘El Sol de Hermosillo’ has become one of this desk’s regular reads over the last 12 months, he is very pro-mining and his Mexico mining op-eds are always insightful. This week he notes how well things are going for Grupo Mexico (GMEXICOB.mx) who, among many other things, are also majority owners of Southern Copper (SCCO). Here’s the last section of his note, translated by my human brain:

“What I find interesting is that in these critical times for mining in Mexico, while the President says “No more permits!”, “No more concessions”, “It’s not like the old days (in the mining sector)”, Grupo Mexico can announce two new mines, growth projects at their investments in Sonora and can pull the trigger on the big El Arco project, on the border between Baja California and Baja Califiornia Sud; Just that project calls for some U$3BN in investment.

It’s striking that the company senses has the security of having its permits and the Federal support to move forward in a desert zone, endemically fragile with no infrastructure or fresh water, located a few kilometres from El Boleo, the mine to whom recently the President recently denied permits for copper mining, later he said there would be a consultancy period that has come to naught. I have no doubt that Grupo Mexico will be successful, the numbers are in their favour and, let us also note, the so-called “Mexico mining’s greatest ever ecocide”, the tailings spill at the Grupo Mexico Buena Vista mine that cost the company around 1.25 Billion Pesos in fines and payments. Meanwhile, last Monday the company announced to the market a profit of 67.885 Billion Pesos.