Mining of Mexico lost US $ 2 billion due to Covid-19

Mining in Mexico lost 2 billion dollars in production as a result of the closure of operations by Covid-19, estimated Fernando Alanís, president of the Mining Chamber of Mexico (Camimex).

The sector also stopped exporting 2.8 billion dollars due to the pandemic.

Substantially, these losses occurred in the months of April and May, when the mines were forced to cancel their operations, except for some such as maintenance and safety.

Mining is among the main sectors that generate foreign exchange in Mexico, but it has fallen from fourth position in 2012 to seventh in 2019, below the automotive, electronics, remittances, tourism, oil and agribusiness sectors.

Currently, the sector in Mexico represents 8.1% of industrial GDP and 2.3% of the national one.

The Camimex, founded in 1906, is the first of the industrial cameras built in the country. It brings together the main mining groups in Mexico and represents the general interests of the country’s mining-metallurgical industry.

Mining and investment

Camimex estimated in December that investment in exploration for 2020 would be at $ 399 million, but now that amount will be affected by Covid-19.

The same would occur with the projection of total investment in the sector in México for 2020, which would fall below the estimate of last December, of $ 4.981 million.

The Mining Law states that the validity of a concession is 50 years, with the possibility of extending it for another 50 more, and stipulates that the holder of a concession has the right to exchange or sell it to a third party.

At times, companies have obtained concession titles for large areas of land without carrying out exploration activities, which allows them to have exclusivity while waiting, for example, for better technologies to explore, without competition with other companies in that area. demarcation.

Rather, mining involves long-term, high-risk investments. The scan can last 10 years or more, and the probability of success is very low. Once operations begin, the useful life of the mine could be 20-30 years, depending on its size and mineral content. The safe closure of a depleted mine also takes time.