Mining Intelligence and News
Mexico

La India Mine

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Categories

Overview

Mine TypeOpen Pit
StageResidual leach
Commodities
  • Gold
  • Silver
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
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SnapshotThe La India mine is a collection of deposits grouped into three open pits – North, La India (Central) and Main – that provide ore for a heap leach pad located just west of the North pit. Operations use traditional open pit mining techniques.

With the depletion of the open pits in the fourth quarter of 2023, gold production in 2024 is expected to come from the residual leaching of the heap leach pads.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. 100 % Indirect
The La India mine is owned by the Agnico Eagle's indirect subsidiary, Agnico Sonora, S.A. de C.V.

Deposit type

  • Epithermal
  • Vein / narrow vein
  • Breccia pipe / Stockwork

Summary:

The La India mine lies within the Sierra Madre Occidental province, an extensive Eocene to Miocene volcanic field extending from the United StatesMexico border to central Mexico. The La India mine lies within the western limits of the Sierra Madre Occidental province in an area dominated by outcrops of andesite and dacitic tuffs, overlain by rhyolites and rhyolitic tuffs that were affected by large-scale north-northwest-striking normal faults and intruded by granodiorite and diorite stocks. Incised fluvial canyons cut the uppermost strata and expose the Lower Series volcanic strata.

The mine area is predominantly underlain by a volcanic sequence comprised of andesitic, dacitic and felsic extrusive volcanic strata with interbedded epiclastic strata of similar composition. The mineral occurrences present in the mine area, and the deposit type being sought, are volcanic-hosted high-sulphidation epithermal-hydrothermal gold, silver and porphyry-related gold deposits. Such deposits may be present as veins and/or disseminated deposits and/or breccias. The La India mine deposit area is one of several high-sulphidation epithermal mineralization centres recognized in the region.

Epithermal high-sulphidation mineralization at the La India mine developed as a cluster of gold zones (Main, La India, El Cochi and North zones) aligned north-south, and El Realito aligned north-east, within a spatially related zone of hydrothermal alteration in excess of 20 square kilometres in area. Gold mineralization is confined to the Late Eocene rocks within zones of intermediate and advanced argillitic alteration originally containing sulphides, and subsequently oxidized by supergene processes. The North and Main zones are within two kilometres of each other. The Main Zone and El Realito are within five kilometres of each other.

Mineralization at Chipriona consists of what appears to be structurally controlled gold- and silver-rich veins, stringers and breccias with significant zinc, lead and copper content in sulphides.

The El Realito mineralization is found in northeast-striking subvertical parallel structural corridors of breccia that appear to have acted as conduits, bringing gold and silver mineralization into the favourable subhorizonal volcanic rock layers (the lower porphyritic dacite). El Realito remains open along strike (northeast and southwest) and shows significant potential at depth.

Surface outcrop mapping and drill-hole data so far indicate that the gold system at the Tarachi deposit is likely best classified as a gold porphyry deposit.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

Milling equipment has not been reported.

Processing

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Production

CommodityUnits2024202320222021202020192018201720162015
Gold oz  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe82,190101,357101,150115,162104,362
Silver koz  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe133180313486263
All production numbers are expressed as payable metal. ^ Guidance / Forecast.

Operational metrics

Metrics202320222021202020192018201720162015
Daily processing rate  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe14,800 t16,789 t16,343 t15,949 t14,715 t
Tonnes processed  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe5,402,415 t6,127,526 t5,965,250 t5,837,404 t5,371,419 t
Daily processing capacity  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe
Annual processing capacity  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe

Production Costs

CommodityUnits20242023202220212020201920182017
Credits (by-product) Gold USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe -26 / oz   -27 / oz   -54 / oz  
Cash costs Gold USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 799 / oz   682 / oz  
Total cash costs Gold USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 849 / oz   712 / oz   634 / oz  
Total cash costs Gold USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 823 / oz **   685 / oz **   580 / oz **  
^ Guidance / Forecast.
** Net of By-Product.

Operating Costs

Currency20232022202120202019201820172016
Total operating costs ($/t milled) USD 32  16  10  12  13  12  11  9  

Financials

Units2023202220212020201920182017
Sustaining costs M USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 10.9   6.7   8.2  
Capital expenditures M USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 15.4   9.2   10.8  
Revenue M USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 114.3   126.5   129.9  
Gross profit M USD  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe 8   9.1   21.9  

Heavy Mobile Equipment

Fleet data has not been reported.

Personnel

Mine Management

Job TitleNameEmailProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Apr 17, 2024
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ........... Subscription required Subscription required Apr 17, 2024
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....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Apr 17, 2024

EmployeesTotal WorkforceYear
...... Subscription required 2023
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Aerial view:

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