Six US investments in Argentine mining projects

Publication of the Rosario Stock Exchange

This is an automated translation of the press release issued in Spanish

Argentina and the United States recently signed an agreement to strengthen mining investments. This is a memorandum of understanding signed on August 22, 2024, by Foreign Minister Diana Mondino and the Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and Environment of the United States, José W. Fernández. The document seeks to strengthen cooperation between both countries in mining investments.

In this context, it is interesting to describe the main mining projects currently financed by the United States in Argentina. These extend from the north to the south of our country, developing in the provinces of Jujuy , Salta , Catamarca and Santa Cruz , with lithium, gold, silver, lead and zinc being the main minerals to be extracted.

  Mining projects with US participation in the province of Jujuy

1. Puna Operation Project (Silver, lead and zinc)

The Puna project is located in the province of Jujuy, department of Rinconada, and is comprised of the Chinchillas mine and the Pirquitas property, which includes its own processing facilities; it also has two deposits, the Cortaderas and the San Miguel. The entire project belongs to the US company SSR Mining .

According to the company, the Chinchillas mine is a silver-lead-zinc deposit, which reached commercial production in December 2018. Open-pit mining is conducted using conventional drilling, blasting and trucking operations. Ore is transported 40 kilometres to the Pirquitas processing facility, where silver-lead and zinc concentrates are produced and shipped to international smelters.

Proven and Probable Mineral Reserves amounted to 20.7 million ounces of silver as at December 31, 2023. Based on current reserves, mining at Chinchillas is expected to be completed in 2026. Work continues on technical studies to evaluate opportunities to extend the life of Puna through the conversion of Mineral Reserves at the Chinchillas mine, as well as the definition of initial Mineral Reserves at the Cortaderas deposit.

Mining projects with US participation in the province of Salta

2. Salar de Arizaro Project (Lithium)

The Salar de Arizaro is a salt flat located in the Department of Los Andes, in Salta, at 3,760 meters above sea level. It is located 80 km from the international border with Chile.

The project is in the advanced exploration stage. According to data from the Ministry of Economy, the shareholding is distributed as follows: 40% belongs to the company Pluspetrol Resources , from the Netherlands, 26% belongs to the American subsidiary Argentum Investments LLC, and the remaining 4% is owned by the Spanish company Prado Largo SA.

The deposit consists of a lithium-rich brine aquifer. According to available information, the Salar de Arizaro is a mature salt flat and one of the largest in the Argentine highlands. In addition, the brine is considered to be enriched in boron and potassium.

3. El Quevar Project (Silver)

The project is located in the Andes department, at 4,800 meters above sea level, approximately 300 km northwest of the city of Salta. It is located at the eastern end of the Puna unit in Argentina. This area is dominated by rocks of the El Quevar volcanic complex. Silver-bearing sulfides are found mostly in void-filling veins and, less frequently, in a disseminated manner.

Quevar is a joint venture between the Canadian company Barrick Gold , which holds a 70% stake, and the American company Golden Minerals Company, which holds the remaining 30%. It is currently in the preliminary economic assessment stage.

The estimated average annual production is 4.8 million ounces of silver, with the objective of obtaining a silver concentrate. The project has a CAPEX of 96.8 million dollars and an estimated useful life of the mine of 6 years. The extraction method would be underground.

Mining projects with US participation in the province of Catamarca

4. Phoenix Project (Lithium)

The Fénix project is being developed in the Salar del Hombre Muerto, in the northwest of the province of Catamarca. The deposit has a brine that is very rich in lithium, which is obtained using the direct extraction method.

Originally, the capital was 100% owned by the American company Livent. In early 2024, this company merged with Allkem, giving rise to Arcadium Lithium , the current owner and operator of the project.

At present, the production capacity is 18,000 tons of lithium carbonate equivalent on site, and they also have an external plant in Güemes, in the province of Salta, which allows them to obtain an additional 9,000 tons. They are in the process of expanding, and hope to reach 40,000 tons per year by the end of this year.

5. Kachi Project (Lithium)

The Kachi Project is located in the Salar de Carachi Pampa, in the province of Catamarca, approximately 100 km south of the Salar del Hombre Muerto operation.

It is currently in the feasibility studies phase and is 75% owned by the Australian company Lake Resources and 25% by the American company Lilac Solutions .

The Kachi project has significant production potential, with an estimated annual production of 50,000 tons of lithium carbonate equivalent over a 25-year period. Initial investment (CAPEX) has been estimated at US$1.38 billion, using a direct pumping method.

Mining projects with US participation in the province of Santa Cruz

6. Cerro Negro Project (Gold)

Cerro Negro is located 600 meters above sea level in the low Patagonian plains of southern Argentina, in the province of Santa Cruz.

The project is 100% owned by the US company Newmont Goldcorp , which leads the ranking of gold producers globally.

Cerro Negro is currently in the production phase, with gold being the main mineral obtained, with an estimated extraction rate of 334,000 ounces per year by the company. To this end, it has three high-grade underground mines in operation: Eureka, Mariana Central and Mariana Norte. In addition, the project includes two underground deposits under development, Emilia and San Marcos, as well as another five deposits in an advanced stage of evaluation for development.