Mining in Mexico: The sovereign take

The spectre of past mining busts

BRADFORD COOKE runs his finger along a vein of ore rich in silver and gold and comes as near to purring as a veteran Canadian miner can. “This place has been mined for 450 years yet this little treasure box has been hiding less than 25 metres below ground,” he says. He points to the mine’s British manager, scrambling excitedly across the newly blasted rocks, and chuckles: “This is what Dave calls ‘horny’.”But the object of their affection is rapidly tarnishing before their eyes. On October 30th, the day that Mr Cooke brought the board of his Vancouver-based company, Endeavour Silver, on their annual inspection of one of its three mines in central Mexico, the upper house of Congress approved a new mining tax proposed by the government of Enrique Peña Nieto. “If it goes through as is, our fourth mine will not be in Mexico,” declared Mr Cooke.Mining is not the only industry up in arms over Mr Peña’s broad tax overhaul. In fact, there is hardly a business group that has not dispatched lobbyists to Congress in a forlorn attempt to soften its impact; from soft-drinks and food manufacturers who face a new...



via The Economist: The Americas http://www.economist.com/news/americas/21588891-new-royalty-rattles-investors-sovereign-take?fsrc=rss|ame