Soma Gold Corp. (TSX-V: SOMA) (OTC: SMAGF) reported a 40 per cent year-over-year production increase in its 2023 results. The company produced 32,340 gold equivalent ounces last year at its el Bagre mining complex in Colombia.
The Canadian gold miner aims to set a new record in 2024.
Production will be restarted at its second mill, el Limon, during the first half of this year. That mill has been undergoing maintenance since 2020. It is expected to add 750 to 1,000 ounces per month to the miner’s production yield in 2024.
“We anticipate that our production plan for 2024, including the additional production from the el Limon mill, will result in another production record in 2024,” Javier Cordova, CEO of Soma Gold, said on Wednesday.
Soma Gold says it has formalized agreements with three formerly illegal artisanal miners nearby who will help provide feed for el Limon. Soma anticipates that access to modern technologies at the site will help them eliminate the use of mercury for extracting gold.
Small-scale gold mining in Colombia employs approximately 350,000 people. Artisanal miners produce about 46 per cent of the country’s supply.
Soma Gold started commercial production at the el Bagre complex’s Cordero mine one year ago. The mine’s resources are expected to be depleted by 2026. The el Bagre mill has an average gold recovery rate of 87 per cent.
Ventilation system at the el Bagre mining complex. Photo via Soma Gold
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Latin America, a rich gold resource
The World Gold Council says that neighbouring Peru is Latin America’s top gold-producing country. The high price of the metal has caused a surge in illegal mining within the nation. This trend has unfortunately caused vast mercury contamination in the ecosystem and impacts the entire Amazon region as well.
Sitting below Peru on the list of Latin America’s top producers are Mexico, Brazil and Colombia, respectively.
Nicaragua is another country south of the United States with substantial gold resources. The Canadian company Calibre Mining Corp. (TSX: CXB) (OTCQX: CXBMF) has had immense success there. In Q3 last year, Calibre produced 63,800 ounces from its mining infrastructure in Central America.
Multiple analysts have predicted that Calibre’s Nicaragua operations will continue to fuel the company’s growth.
Vancouver-based Mako Mining Corp. (TSX-V: MKO) (OTCQX: MAKOF) is focused on Nicaragua gold mining too. In early December last year, the company said it was on track to set a new gold sales record. Mako has not released its Q4 results yet.
“The amount of cash flow coming from the mine in just the first two months of the quarter is extraordinary,” Akiba Leisman, CEO of Mako, said.
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