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.