Starcore upgrades safety protocols after mine suspension
Starcore International Mines Ltd. [SAM-TSX, V4JA-FSE] said mining operations have been temporarily suspended at its San Martin Mine in Queretaro, Mexico.
An unscheduled inspection at the mine conducted by the Mexican Labour Department identified safety standards that need to be met before operations resume, the company said in a press release. The inspection followed a recent singular fatality at the mine, the first one in 18.5 years of Starcore’s record of zero fatalities in its mining operations in Mexico.
“Safety has been a high priority at San Martin for 18.5 years and will continue to be of the utmost importance in our operations,’’ said Starcore CEO Robert Eadie.
“We expect to meet the safety standards that the Labor Department requires and have mining operations resume within a week,’’ Eadie said. “The company’s mine operations and safety teams are working tirelessly to meet the required protocols, while management extends compassion to the family who lost a loved one, and is providing grief counselling to those who need it.’’
Starcore shares were down 8.3% or $0.01 to 11 cents, Thursday. The shares trade in a 52-week range of 17.5 cents and $0.075
The 850 tonne-per-day San Martin is an underground epithermal deposit with gold quartz-based limestone, and has been in operation since 1993. It was acquired in 2008 from Goldcorp (a Canadian company acquired by Newmont Corp. [NGT-TSX, NEM-NYSE]), which had acquired the asset via the takeover of Wheaton River.
The temporary suspension comes after Starcore recently announced its production results for the first fiscal quarter ended July 2024 at the San Martin mine. The mine produced 2,841 gold equivalent (AuEq) ounces at a grade of 1.92 g/t. That marked a decrease of 12% from 3,242 ounces in the previous quarter.
“The first quarter results are indicative of the average production we expect to see in the coming quarters,’’ said Salvador Garcia, Chief Operating Officer at Starcore. “The results reflect the current situation at San Martin and include only the oxide ore,” he said. “As reported in a previous press release, we have been researching other methods to get the best recovery of gold and silver from our carbonaceous ore.
In a May 13, 2024, press release, Starcore said it had arranged a non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of up to $500,000 to conduct metallurgical testing of the carbonaceous ore at San Martin. It said the private placement would consist of 3.33 million units priced at 15 cents per unit. It said each unit would consist of one common share and one common share purchase warrant. Each whole warrant is exercisable for two years from the issue date enabling the holder to purchase one common share of Starcore for 25 cents per share.