The Mulatos deposit was acquired in 2003 for $10 million. The operation was built at a cost of approximately $74 million with the first gold pour completed in 2005. The operation achieved commercial production in April 2006. Over the years, a number of expansions and productivity improvements have taken combined throughput from approximately 10,000 tpd to over 20,000 tpd.
In addition to its heap leach operations, Alamos constructed a mill to process ore from the Escondida high-grade zone until it was depleted in 2014, followed by the San Carlos high-grade underground deposit which was depleted in 2018. The higher-grade La Yaqui Phase I satellite project was built in 2017 and went on to produce approximately 60,000 ounces and generate $40 million of free cash flow (net of $13 million of construction capital) before being depleted in 2019. Construction of the higher grade, high return Cerro Pelon project was completed in 2019 with initial production achieved ahead of schedule. This project has produced approximately 127,000 ounces and generated over $107 million of free cash flow (net of $25 million of initial capital) as of December 2021. Construction of La Yaqui Grande was completed in June 2022 with initial production achieved that same month.