First Majestic's Santa Elena Just Keeps Getting Better — Two Discoveries, One Bright Future
Summary
First Majestic's Santa Elena complex has added two major discoveries, Navidad and Santo Nino, beside existing infrastructure, which the host says makes development easier.
The Navidad resource more than doubled to 63 million silver-equivalent ounces (silver and gold combined and expressed as silver) by the end of 2025.
Santo Nino, discovered last spring, holds 27 million silver-equivalent ounces, sits 900 meters from the mill, and shows high grades within 100 meters of surface.
The host expects first production from the new deposits within two to three years, after permits arrived early and $12 million in added 2026 funding.
A mill expansion from 3,200 to 3,500 tons per day is underway for this year, with metallurgy showing over 95% recoveries for both metals.
Key points on First Majestic Silver
- The host reports First Majestic has received construction permits for both new Santa Elena discoveries and committed an additional $12 million for 2026, with development starting at both and first production expected in two to three years.
- The Navidad-Winter discovery, described as the largest ever made in the district, holds an inferred 6.4 million tons at 89 g/t silver and 2.2 g/t gold — about 63 million silver-equivalent ounces, more than double the 30 million ounces estimated in 2024.
- Santo Nino has an initial resource of 27 million silver-equivalent ounces within 4.1 million tons, sits 900 meters from the mill with high-grade material near surface, and had roughly 27,000 meters drilled across 69 holes toward a 45,000-meter program as of the July 2026 video.
- Santa Elena is guided to average 3,300 tons per day in 2026, producing 1.4 million ounces of silver and 68,000 ounces of gold at midpoint, with Q1 output of 356,000 ounces of silver and 21,000 ounces of gold tracking above that run rate.
- A plant expansion from 3,200 to 3,500 tons per day is underway for the second half of 2026, and the two new deposits show metallurgical recoveries above 95% for both metals with no plant changes needed.
Steve Hyland's takeaways
- Top takeaway Hyland argues Santa Elena's mine life is 'probably past 20 years' once the new discoveries are added, up from the current 11-year life of mine and 6.5 to 7 years when The Deep Dive first visited.
- He points to three major discoveries in the last 18 months — Navidad-Winter at roughly 60 million silver-equivalent ounces and Santo Nino at 27 million — both immediately adjacent to existing infrastructure rather than in a greenfield setting.
- He stresses the speed of the build-out: permits arrived much sooner than expected and Santo Nino could reach production a mere two years after its initial discovery.
- He frames Santa Elena as a reliable producer whose output has tripled over ten years, from about 2.5 million to 10 million ounces of silver annually, with 78,000 meters of drilling planned at the complex this year.