Discovery’s Cordero PEA shows large, high-return silver project

Discovery Silver is targeting further advances at its Cordero project in Mexico after a PEA showed a large, long-life and high return investment.

Cordero, in Chihuahua state, ranks among the world’s largest silver deposits, with total resources containing over 1Boz silver equivalent.

PEA HIGHLIGHTS

The PEA shows an open pit mine producing 26Moz/y silver equivalent over a 16-year mine life, making it one of Mexico’s largest silver operations.

Initial capex is US$368mn, with the project delivering a 38.2% IRR at US$22/oz silver, US$1,600/oz gold, US$1.00/lb lead and US$1.20/lb zinc prices.

The open pit project would see oxide ore mined during the pre-production period and heap leached at a throughput rate of 5Mt/y.

A separate crushing, grinding and flotation circuit would be built for sulfide ore, for initial throughput of 7.2Mt/y, which would be doubled to 14.4Mt/y from year 5 following construction of a second crushing, grinding and flotation circuit.

“Importantly, the outstanding metrics demonstrated in the PEA are supported by a mine plan with more than 99% of tons in the measured and indicated category, and a simple and conventional process design based on our detailed metallurgical test work program completed earlier this year,” CEO Taj Singh said.

“This provides us with a huge head start as we look ahead to the delivery of a pre-feasibility study on Cordero in 2022,” he added.

Work during the preparation of the PEA also outlined opportunities to improve the economic performance, including a potential mine life extension, with more than 300Mt of sulfide resource that sits outside the PEA design pit, but within the resource pit shell.

Other opportunities include the potential to use coarser grind sizes and build a dry-stack tailings facility to improve environmental and social metrics.