Mexico's Cordero Project Receives Environmental and Land Permits

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On October 5, Discovery Mining obtained the Environmental Impact Assessment (MIA) permit and the land use change permit for the Cordero silver project in Chihuahua, Mexico. Both permits were issued by Mexico's Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT). The company confirmed that with the receipt of both approvals, the federal environmental permitting process for the Cordero project has been completed.

Cordero is 100% owned by Discovery Mining. The company formally submitted its MIA application in August 2023 and has since advanced the land use change permit approval. In the second quarter of 2026, the company still listed both permits as major outstanding items for project development, and arranged $90 million to $100 million in related expenses and growth capital expenditures for the full year, including land use change permit costs, water supply and power engineering studies.

According to the feasibility study completed in 2024, Cordero has a designed mine life of 19 years, with initial capital expenditure for Phase 1 construction of approximately $606 million. The Phase 1 design processing capacity of the concentrator is approximately 9.6 million tonnes per year, equivalent to approximately 26,000 tonnes per day. The project plans to expand processing capacity to approximately 51,000 tonnes per day in the third year after production begins, with expansion capital expenditure of approximately $291 million.

The project's mineable reserves include approximately 302 million ounces of silver, 840,000 ounces of gold, 5.2 billion pounds of zinc and 3.0 billion pounds of lead. The feasibility study estimates average annual production of approximately 37 million ounces of silver equivalent over the first 12 years, and approximately 33 million ounces of silver equivalent on average over the life of mine. Phase 1 of the project also includes on-site infrastructure, a transmission line, upgrades to the local wastewater treatment plant, a water pipeline, pre-stripping work and first-phase tailings facilities.

In the first half of 2026, Discovery Mining is updating the capital and operating cost estimates in the Cordero feasibility study and advancing the project development schedule and financing plan. The company has also commissioned a third party to carry out design and cost updates for a natural gas power supply option, and plans to determine the project's primary power source between natural gas and grid power; upgrades to the local wastewater treatment facility and its operating plan are also being advanced in parallel.

Discovery Mining was renamed from Discovery Silver in June 2026. The company currently continues to hold full interest in Cordero and lists the project as its core development asset in Mexico.