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Mineros Maps Path Toward 500,000 Ounces | Daniel Henao

Mining Network Sep 25, 2026 23:18

Summary

CEO Daniel Henao targets roughly 500,000 ounces by 2030 — more than double Mineros' raised 2026 guidance of 220,000 to 240,000 ounces.

A $25 million expansion lifts Nicaragua throughput from 1,800 to 2,500 tonnes per day, adding an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 ounces with better recoveries.

Nicaragua blends own mines with partner ore bought at about 45% of spot; an idle 1,000-tonne-per-day mill and permits to 4,000 enable a second expansion.

Porvenir's pre-feasibility study shows a roughly 38% after-tax IRR — expected project return — on $200 million at $3,150 gold, with key permits already secured.

Growth rests on Colombia's Nechí expansion, 23-million-ounce La Colosa gated by social licence, and Chile's La Pepa, with a preliminary economic assessment due early 2027.

Key points on Anglogold Ashanti

  • The 23-million-ounce Tolima porphyry project in Colombia that Mineros acquired — which the CEO calls top-10 globally by size — is AngloGold Ashanti's former project, bought for $10 million upfront with a $60 million payment due if and when it is permitted.
  • In the CEO's account, community concerns about environmentally sensitive areas were the social hurdle that stalled the project under its previous owner, rather than any technical problem.

Key points on Pan American Silver

  • Mineros bought its Chilean project from Pan American Silver in late 2025; the asset carries a 2.5-million-ounce starting resource, and a preliminary economic assessment is expected early next year.

Key points on Mineros S.A

  • The CEO says Mineros is working toward about 500,000 ounces of annual production by 2030 — more than double the 220,000-240,000 ounces it produces today — while continuing to pay dividends and buy back shares (as of the September 2026 interview).
  • It is deploying about $25 million to lift the Hemco plant in Nicaragua from 1,800 to 2,500 tons per day, an addition the CEO puts at 30,000-40,000 ounces alongside improved recoveries; permits already run to 4,000 tons per day, and an idle 1,000-ton-per-day mill the company owns could enable a second expansion as early as next year.
  • An updated Porvenir pre-feasibility study shows a 38% IRR on a $200 million investment at an assumed $31.50 gold price (which the host notes is below current prices), adding about 72,000 ounces a year gold-equivalent for the first nine years; the asset is almost fully permitted and engineered so capacity can double to 4,000 tons per day.
  • In Colombia, the Nechi operation produces 80,000-90,000 ounces a year against 2.2 million ounces of resources, and a growth strategy targeting roughly 40% more output is in the works; the company also acquired AngloGold Ashanti's former 23-million-ounce Tolima porphyry for $10 million upfront plus a $60 million contingent payment on permitting.
  • Its Chile project, acquired from Pan American Silver in late 2025, starts at 2.5 million ounces, with a preliminary economic assessment planned for early 2027 targeting a ballpark of 100,000-150,000 ounces of production.

Daniel Henao's takeaways

  • Top takeaway Argues Mineros can reach roughly 500,000 ounces of annual production by 2030, saying the company has been beating the promises it makes to the market, with the share price up from 50-60 cents to about $10 and inclusion in major indexes beginning.
  • Contends processing capacity — not geology — is the binding constraint in Nicaragua, and wants the idle 1,000-ton-per-day mill the company already owns running as a likely phase-two expansion next year under permits that go to 4,000 tons per day.
  • Frames the Bonanza artisanal partnership, which buys ore at about 45% of spot, as a royalty-like business that doubles as an exploration data source, feeding the largest drilling program in the district's history (about 85 km) at roughly $100 per meter — a quarter of what he says peers pay.
  • On the former AngloGold Tolima project, he argues the obstacle is social rather than technical and rules out a million-ounce-per-year mine in favor of a smaller operation, backed by community-first moves like building a school for 2,000 children under Colombia's infrastructure-for-taxes mechanism.
  • Reads Colombia's new government (in office about a month at the interview) and Chile's as pro-mining, and is fast-tracking both: a roughly 40% expansion of the Colombian operation and a Chile preliminary economic assessment due early next year targeting 100,000-150,000 ounces.