Torex Gold Resources has commenced commercial production at its Media Luna mine in Mexico, marking its transition to a dual gold and copper producer.
The declaration follows the completion of key construction and operational readiness milestones, concluding the development phase of the Media Luna Project.
It confirms that processing facilities at Media Luna had met the required thresholds for throughput, metallurgical recovery, and saleable product over a sustained period.
As per the company, the benchmark required at least 40% mine throughput and 60% mill throughput over 30 consecutive days, along with 60% metallurgical recoveries, all of which had been met by the end of March.
Torex Gold president and CEO Jody Kuzenko said: “The delivery of Media Luna and our transition to become both a gold and copper producer, substantially within budget and schedule, demonstrates Torex as not only a consistent and reliable operator, but also a company capable of achieving excellence in the execution of major and complex projects.”
Torex Gold reported that capital expenditure at Media Luna amounted to $55.5m during Q1 2025. The company attributed continued non-sustaining classification of these costs to the delay in processing plant tie-ins, which were rescheduled from November 2024 to February 2025.
As of 31 March 2025, overall construction progress at the Media Luna site stood at 98%, compared to 94% at the beginning of the quarter.
Underground development and construction were also 98% complete, with key remaining elements including the installation of tailings and paste distribution infrastructure. Surface construction was 96% complete, with remaining works focused on the paste plant and final power grid integration.
The Guajes Tunnel conveyor system was successfully commissioned during the quarter and has been consistently delivering ore to the processing plant on the opposite side of the Balsas River.
In March, the company completed 1,304m of development underground, ahead of the 1,200m monthly target.
In total, 51 of the 60 stopes required for the 2025 mine plan have been drilled, along with additional stopes from 2026 and 2027 schedules. With commissioning of the paste plant expected in Q2, Torex anticipates that mining rates will increase steadily and reach the target of 7,500 tonnes per day by mid-2026.
Torex Gold confirmed the completion of 83 tie-ins and the commissioning of 136 systems at the processing facility. These upgrades included the copper and iron sulphide flotation circuits.
Remaining surface construction efforts are centred on the paste plant and power infrastructure. Meanwhile, the installation of the 230kV transmission infrastructure is complete and the national energy regulator, Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE), is conducting final checks ahead of grid connection.
The company expects ramp-up efforts and supporting infrastructure, including the paste plant and national grid power tie-ins, to be fully operational during Q2 2025.
