Luca Mining Corp.
Luca Mining is a Mexican polymetallic producer with two 100%-owned underground mines: Campo Morado in Guerrero, a zinc-copper-silver-gold-lead mine and the larger of the two by revenue (US$66.2 million in the first half of 2026), and Tahuehueto in Durango, a gold-silver mine (US$49.8 million). In September 2026 Luca agreed to buy Capstone Copper's Cozamin copper-silver mine in Zacatecas for US$290 million upfront plus up to US$95 million in deferred and contingent payments, and Agnico Eagle's El Barqueño gold project in Jalisco for US$10 million in Luca shares at closing plus up to US$50 million in milestone and production payments; both deals are expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to Mexican competition and TSX Venture Exchange approval. Cash of ~US$24.7 million (Jun 30 2026, down from $36.4 million in Q1); debt of ~US$1.4 million is being paid down and may be $0 by the time this is read, but is not confirmed as such.
Notable vs. Peers
- Jurisdiction risk score of 4/10 is meaningfully riskier than the peer average of 7.8/10.
- All-in sustaining cost of $3,321/oz AuEq is 47% higher than the peer producer average of $2,265/oz AuEq.
Lifecycle Milestones
Construction Milestones
5 of 5 reached- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
- Reached — date not disclosed · Source
Milestones are recorded only from a company's own dated disclosure. A milestone with no date shown is one we can confirm was reached but for which no date was disclosed — we don't estimate one. "Not yet reached" means exactly that, not that a date is missing. An "Expected" line likewise only ever reflects the company's own guidance (e.g. a study or permit decision targeted for a stated quarter) — most not-yet-reached milestones have none, and that absence means no such guidance has been disclosed, not that one is overdue.
Not in place: grid power.
Combined view across 2 projects. Figures below are only combined where the underlying basis genuinely matches -- see the notes under each.
- 65%Tahuehueto
- 10.9 yrsTahuehueto
Jurisdiction (40%)4/10
Mexico carries real security risk, concentrated at Campo Morado's Guerrero state location specifically, alongside an established, large-scale mining sector nationally.
Infrastructure (40%)10/10
A confirmed mill, confirmed road access, confirmed grid power, and a confirmed tailings facility at Campo Morado.
Nearby producing mine (20%)9.5/10
Capela (Industrias Penoles, S.A.B. de C.V.) is 27 km away -- within regional-platform range.
Acquisition Susceptibility
A relative ranking of how closely this company matches the profile of juniors that have actually been acquired — not a probability, and not a reason to buy. Acquisitions are rare: only a few dozen significant deals happen a year across a universe of thousands of juniors, so even a high score here describes a long shot. The strongest signal in the research, a producer that already owns part of the company, is scored from its disclosed strategic shareholders. A producer that is a joint-venture or earn-in partner on the project, rather than a shareholder, isn't captured yet.
How this score is built
- Disclosed pending dealSub-score: Not scored
Acquiring another company (pending)
This company is the buyer in its pending deal; buying another company says nothing about being bought, so it isn't scored.
Weight 26.25% - Producer's strategic stakeSub-score: Not scored
No producer holds a disclosed stake on file (holder register researched) See holders
Not scored: most juniors that do get bought had no prior toehold, so a missing stake says little either way.
Weight 25% - Distance to a producing mineSub-score:7.3/10
Nearest producing mine: Capela (Industrias Penoles, S.A.B. de C.V.), 27 km
10 next to a producing mine, 8 at 20 km, 5 at 50 km, 0 beyond 200 km.
Weight 22.5% · 46% here - Lifecycle stageSub-score:5.5/10
Stage: Production
Feasibility and permitting score 10, where deals cluster, and production 5.5; earlier stages score less, down to 1 at grassroots.
Weight 15% · 31% here - JurisdictionSub-score:4/10
Mexico: jurisdiction score 4/10
Our jurisdiction score, used as is: higher means lower political and permitting risk.
Weight 6.75% · 14% here - CommoditySub-score:10/10
Primary commodity: Gold
Gold 10, copper 8, silver 5, nickel and uranium 4, others 2: most majors' deals are for gold.
Weight 4.5% · 9% here
Weight is each input's share of the full score. “Here” is its share of this company's score: inputs that aren't scored are left out and the rest re-weighted, never counted as zero.
Your Rankings
Management Team
Chief Executive Officer of Luca Mining Corp., effective 15 July 2024. 20+ years in senior mining investment banking (Toronto/Vancouver); raised billions in debt/equity for junior-to-senior mining companies; advised on numerous M&A and governance mandates.
President of Luca Mining Corp. Previously served as interim CEO for four months before returning to President, working alongside Barnholden on operations at Campo Morado and commercial production at Tahuehueto.
Chief Financial Officer of Luca Mining Corp., effective 2 January 2024. CPA, CA; 30+ years in finance, securities and accounting.
Chief Operating Officer of Luca Mining Corp., effective 1 April 2026. 30+ years operational/project leadership in underground mining, Mexico/Latin America focus; most recently CEO of COMINVI S.A. (Mexico's largest underground mining contractor, since 2023); earlier VP Operations & Country Manager Mexico, Endeavour Silver.
VP Corporate Development at Luca Mining Corp.; also a director of Bravada Gold Corporation.
Director of Investor Relations at Luca Mining Corp.
Insiders, Investors & Smart Money
Notable shareholders and insiders whose involvement is worth knowing about, plus what we're seeing from institutional/large-investor activity.
Calu Opportunity Fund LP (formerly Sail Natural Resources LP), a self-described resource-focused private investment vehicle, has been a large Luca shareholder since building to over 17% by late 2024, though it has since been trimming that position. Separately, a company insider bought shares on the open market in June 2026.
No notable insiders tracked for this miner yet.
Reports, Presentations & Documents
Luca Mining is a polymetallic producer in Mexico with two 100%-owned underground mines: Campo Morado in Guerrero, which produces zinc, copper, silver, gold and lead, and Tahuehueto in Durango, its gold asset. Tahuehueto holds 425,000 oz of gold in measured and indicated resources (302,000 oz measured and 123,000 oz indicated) plus 30,000 oz inferred, in an estimate effective 23 February 2022. The 2022 pre-feasibility study for Tahuehueto shows an after-tax NPV5% of US$161.3M and a 65% IRR at US$1,647.52/oz gold over a 10.9-year mine life. In Q2 2026 Tahuehueto produced 4,461 oz of gold and 99,340 oz of silver, and Campo Morado produced 1,700 oz of gold, 234,896 oz of silver and 7,272,000 lb of zinc; Tahuehueto's all-in sustaining cost was US$3,321 per gold-equivalent ounce in Q1 2026. A new technical report for a Campo Morado expansion is expected in the second half of 2026.