Huarón Mining District

The following three mines operate presently in the Huarón Mining District:

• The Huarón mine (11°00′19″S 76°24′52″W, 4530 m.a.s.l.) operated by Pan American Silver. Flottation plant capacity is 2400 t/d.[5]
• The Animón mine, located 3 km SSW of the Huarón mine (11°01′56″S 76°25′24″W, 4500 m.a.s.l.) (not to be confused with the inactive Chungar Mine, located 16 km to the SW, see below), operated by the mining company Volcan. In 2005, production was of about 4000 t per day, the flottation plant has a capacity of 5500 t per day and processes also the ore of the Islay Mine.[6]
• The Islay mine, located 6 km W of the Huarón mine (11°00′36″S 76°28′08″W, 4500 m.a.s.l.) also operated by the mining company Volcan. In 2005 production was of about 1800 t per day.[6]

Entrance to the Huarón mine in 1913

Modern mining operations at the Huarón mine began in 1912 by Compagnie des Mines de Huarón, subsidiary of Société minière et métallurgique de Peñarroya. In 1987 the Huarón mine was acquired by the Hochschild Group, and in 2000 by Pan American Silver. On April 22, 1998, the Naticocha Lake flooded underground workings of the Animón Mine and of the Huarón mine killing several miners and causing the suspension of the mining operations at both mines.[13][14] Pan American Silver acquired Huarón from Hochschild in 2000 and reopened the mine in 2001.[4]

Modern activity in the Animón mine started in the 1960s on extensions of veins known in the Huarón mine. After the 1971 disaster at the Chungar Mine, Compañía Minera Chungar S.A.C. transferred its operations to Animón. In 2000, the mining company Volcan acquired Compañía Minera Chungar S.A.C. along with the Animón Mine.[15] Subsequently Volcan opened the Islay mine.[16]