PPX Mining Corp.
Plant construction at Callanquitas, Igor Project
03 · Operations

From Callanquitas ore to Doré bullion.

Mining the Callanquitas Mine since 2021. Building a 350 tpd Carbon-in-Leach + flotation processing plant on a plateau, 4 km from the mine — to lift throughput, lower costs and improve recoveries.

Callanquitas Mine350 tpd plantCarbon-in-LeachGeotubes Tailings
Underground Mining

Mina Callanquitas, in production since 2021.

Exploiting high-grade, underground-minable oxidized gold and silver ore. Between 2021 and 2025 Mina Callanquitas has produced over 244,000 tonnes of ore grading 8.8 g/t gold and 144 g/t silver — from Resources at Mina Callanquitas, which form a portion of the project's Mineral Reserves as defined in the 2024 Mineral Resource Estimate. Currently mining at approximately 300 tonnes per day with ore processed at Peruvian toll-milling facilities — rising to 350 tpd on plant commissioning.

Project DistrictsTechnical Reports
Underground at Callanquitas
Underground
Callanquitas Mine
Oxidized Au-Ag ore
01/03
By The Numbers

Production through 2025.

01
0+ t
Ore Mined
2021 — 2025
02
0.0 g/t
Average Au Grade
Mined ore, 2021 — 2025
03
0 g/t
Average Ag Grade
Mined ore, 2021 — 2025
04
0 tpd
Current Throughput
Rising to 350 tpd post-plant
2024 Mineral Resource Estimate

Resources at the Igor Project.

NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate prepared by Mining Plus of Lima, Peru and Toronto, Canada.

CategoryTonnesAu GradeAu OzAg GradeAg OzAuEqAuEq Oz
Measured & Indicated663,700 t3.80 g/t81,090 oz137 g/t2.923 M oz4.70 g/t100,290 oz
Inferred759,000 t—83,970 oz—3.818 M oz8.21 g/t200,500 oz

AuEq is calculated using the formula AuEq oz = Au oz + Ag oz / 75, per PFS, inclusive of metallurgical recovery. Mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. There is no certainty that all or any part of the mineral resource will be converted into mineral reserves.

Why Build Our Own Plant

From toll milling to dedicated processing.

For several years, ore from the Callanquitas Mine has been shipped for treatment on a toll basis, which has significantly reduced profit due to transport and toll-treatment costs — and recovery has also been low.

A permit to build a dedicated plant near the mine has been obtained, together with financing. The plant has been designed to treat a maximum of 350 tons per day to maintain the categorization as a small-scale mineral producer, which carries certain advantages in permitting.

Higher recoveries. Lower operating costs. JV ownership rising from 75% to 80% on commissioning.

Process Flow

Two ore types. Two circuits. One plant.

The plant treats both oxide and sulphide ore in batches of 2 to 3 weeks per type. Both share crushing, milling and thickening — then split into a leach circuit (oxide) and a flotation circuit (sulphide).

Shared Upstream
Two-stage Crushing → Two Ball Mills → Thickener
Crushed to < 12 mm · Milled to 80% < 150 µm
Split by ore type
Ox
Oxide Circuit
Carbon-in-Leach
  1. 01
    Iron oxidation
    Agitated tank with lime added to pH 10.5 — reduces NaCN consumption.
  2. 02
    Carbon-in-Leach
    7 tanks with activated carbon and sodium cyanide leach Au-Ag from ore.
  3. 03
    Carbon recovery (elution + EW)
    Two elution columns at 140–150 °C desorb gold and silver from loaded carbon; metals precipitated in a stainless-steel electrowinning cell.
  4. 04
    Mercury retort
    Retort + condenser system removes and collects trace mercury before smelting — eliminates emissions.
  5. 05
    Smelting → Doré bullion
    Precipitate smelted at high temperature into Au-Ag alloy (Doré bullion).
  6. 06
    Refinery
    Sent to refinery to produce high-purity gold and silver bullion.
Su
Sulphide Circuit
Flotation
  1. 01
    Flotation
    Collector (potassium amyl xanthate) and frother (MIBC) float sulphide minerals.
  2. 02
    Concentrate
    Froth collected — high silver, significant gold.
  3. 03
    Filter & dry cake
    Filtered into solid "cake" ready for export.
  4. 04
    Export to smelter
    Sold for export to overseas smelters; price set by Ag and Au content.

Carbon-in-Leach is expected to deliver higher recoveries than third-party plants by greatly reducing the adsorption of gold by naturally occurring carbon in the ore.

Plant Specifications

Spec sheet.

The technical envelope of the new processing plant — sized to keep small-scale-producer status while lifting throughput and recoveries.

Capacity
Maximum 350 tonnes per day — sized to retain small-scale producer status.
Ore Types
Oxide and sulphide ore, processed in batches of 2 to 3 weeks per type.
Crushing
Two-stage crushing to less than 12 mm.
Milling
Two ball mills in closed circuit, 80% passing 150 microns.
Oxide Circuit
Iron oxidation → 7-tank Carbon-in-Leach → carbon recovery → Doré bullion.
Sulphide Circuit
Flotation with xanthate + MIBC → filtered concentrate → export to smelters.
Tailings

Geotubes

Replace a conventional tailings dam — store tailings in a stable form, eliminate dam-failure risk and maximise water recycling.

Site

On a plateau, 4 km from mine

Nearest suitable land due to the mountainous region. Site is owned by a PPX subsidiary.

Power

Grid supply

Medium-voltage transmission line approximately 7 km from the project site (Huaranchal District — project underway).

Water

Watercourse pump

Water supplied by pump from a nearby watercourse, maximising recycling through the Geotube tailings system.

On-site Facilities

Lab · Workshop · Storage

Plant infrastructure also includes a laboratory, workshop and storage facilities — supporting day-to-day operations on the plateau.

Build Partners

The team building the plant.

Resource Estimate

Mining Plus

Lima, Peru and Toronto, Canada — NI 43-101 compliant.

Detailed design, procurement & construction

Sertecpet

Lead engineering and construction contractor.

Mechanical construction (leach circuit)

JPC EC S.A.C.

Fabrication and installation of the Carbon-in-Leach tanks.

Major equipment supplier

Xinhai Mineral Processing EPC

China — most major equipment, with some items from Peruvian suppliers.

Carbon treatment plant

Joyim S.A.C.

Two elution columns operating at 140–150 °C, stainless-steel electrowinning cell, and retort + condenser system for mercury capture.

Construction Progress

From earthworks to leach tanks.

A snapshot of construction milestones at the Callanquitas processing plant through 2025.

  1. April 13, 2025

    Site meeting & kickoff

    On-site construction kickoff. Final excavation for retaining wall (feed silo location), enclosure wall for leach-area foundations, steel reinforcing for one of the leach tanks.

  2. April 21, 2025

    Earthmoving complete

    Earthmoving on the plant site is being completed; concrete installation scheduled to begin in early May.

  3. April 26, 2025

    Equipment shipped from China

    Most plant equipment — flotation cells, conveyor structures, ball mill (with ring gear removed for ease of transportation), mill linings and mill drive — shipped from China. Estimated arrival second week of June.

  4. July 16, 2025

    Ball mill foundations

    Plant construction continues — ball-mill foundations are nearing completion. Ball mill in transit, climbing the steep access road to site.

  5. October 2, 2025

    Plant Visit #2

    Four leach tanks nearing completion; concentrate thickener to the right of the leach tanks. Two ball mills visible, plus the tower built to give the cyclones adequate elevation.

Continue

Operations connect to the rest of the story.

Read the technical reports backing the resource, the geology beneath the mine, or the community work supporting the project on the ground.

Technical ReportsGeologyCommunityIgor Project