History
Almaden drilled out the Ixtaca gold-silver deposit in Mexico and reshaped its economics around a cheaper mill, but the permit stayed unresolved in the record, listings changed, and by March 2025 it agreed to sell that mill.
2011-2013: Drilling out Ixtaca
In late 2011 Almaden Minerals was drilling the Ixtaca zone at its Tuligtic property in Mexico with four rigs. Early holes showed wide, continuous mineralisation with richer cores: one returned 120.70 metres at 1.02 g/t gold and 72.6 g/t silver. Through 2012 the company stepped out in several directions, found silver-rich intervals in the north, and reported 188.70 metres at 1.32 g/t gold on the main zone. In November 2012 it finished drilling for a first resource estimate, 225 holes and 81,971 metres since the 2010 discovery. Days later, holes just beyond the edge of that resource found a new high-grade area with visible gold, so the estimate was bound to understate the deposit.
The first resource came in February 2013: 56.99 million tonnes indicated and 41.53 million tonnes inferred. Early metallurgical tests recovered 88% of the gold overall but only 54% from the volcanic rocks. In July 2013 the company raised $5.47 million by placing 4,376,000 units at $1.25 with Mexico-focused strategic investors. It then switched rigs to infill drilling, aimed at turning inferred ounces into more certain categories.
2014-2015: Economics, a split and a second-hand mill
The infill drilling worked. The January 2014 update lifted measured and indicated ounces from 2.02 to 3.53 million, while inferred fell from 1.55 to 0.72 million. In April 2014 the first economic study showed an after-tax value of US$437 million but needed US$496 million of initial capital. Reworked economics in September cut that to US$399 million, and a smaller option starting at 7,000 tonnes a day needed US$244 million.
In October 2014 the board approved splitting the company. Everything except Ixtaca, including the El Cobre and Willow projects, 20 other exploration properties and a portfolio of royalties, went to a new listed company whose shares went to Almaden holders. Almaden became a single-asset developer; the spin-out was completed in July 2015.
In October 2015 Almaden secured an option over the Rock Creek mill, a second-hand plant. In November it raised $3.38 million at $0.75 a unit, 40% below February's $1.25 price, partly to cover near-term mill option payments. A December study rebuilt the project around that mill: initial capital fell to US$100 million and after-tax value was US$166 million, but at a smaller scale of 36 million tonnes of feed rather than 129 million.
2016-2017: Pre-feasibility and funding
Drilling in 2016 and early 2017 found a new vein zone inside the planned pit and the company's highest gold grade on record, 5.50 metres at 27.31 g/t gold. The April 2017 pre-feasibility study converted resources into reserves for the first time: 65 million tonnes proven and probable, an after-tax value of US$310 million, a 41% return and US$117 million of initial capital. The company set a 2019 production target, which now depended on permits rather than drilling.
In May 2017 it agreed a $15.0 million bought deal led by Sprott Capital Partners and Cormark Securities at $1.75 a unit. Underwriters took their full option, and it closed in June at $17,251,150 for 9,857,800 units, the largest financing in the record. Shares on issue stood at 102,199,625 at the end of 2017.
2018-2025: Permitting, delisting and a mill sale
The record from here is thin; much is known only from titles. Shares on issue were 111,726,719 at the end of 2018, a rise the record does not explain, and 137,221,408 at the end of 2020. Placements closed in March and August 2020, though the amounts and the link to the share count are not given. The company opened a community water reservoir in March 2020, and Mexico's COVID-19 decree suspended mining and exploration until 30 April 2020.
The 2019 production target was not met, and the environmental permit remained pending. Almaden announced court decisions on its permit application in September 2020 and July 2022, but the available text does not say what was decided. It also planned a human rights impact assessment and in September 2022 signed new and expanded cooperation agreements with host community groups. Exploration and drill updates followed in 2021.
In April 2023 NYSE American notified Almaden of a listing deficiency, reason not stated. In April 2024 the company confirmed its shares were delisted from a stock exchange and now listed on a marketplace, which the text does not name; the shares stayed listed. On 3 March 2025 Almaden agreed to sell the Rock Creek Mill, the mill behind its 2015 study. The buyer, price and conditions are unknown, and completion had not been shown. Almaden still held 100% of Ixtaca and its permit outcome was unknown. Shares on issue were 137,221,408 at the end of 2024 and 137,363,181 at the end of 2025.
Written from the 36 story beats below (2011 to 3 Mar 2025), which come from the company's own announcements and filings.