Investment in the Mexican mining sector falls to its lowest level in 13 years

Fernando Alanís, president of the Mining Chamber of Mexico (Camimex), revealed that Mexico received $2.5billion of investment in the mining sector in 2020, its lowest level in the last 13 years; 4.9% less compared to 2018, due to the unfavorable conditions of demand and prices at a global level.

In 2020, the activities of the mining industry were closed for two months, as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, a pandemic that has also affected the arrival of capital because of  the uncertainty it has created within the global economy. Alanís however, estimated that 2021 will have a better outlook compared to 2020 in terms of the arrival of investments in the Mexican mining.

Mexico is a global mining power, in 2019 it ranked among the first 10 positions in the world production of 17 minerals, including first in silver, second in fluorite, sixth in zinc, seventh in salt, eighth in copper and ninth in gold, among others.  The mining-metallurgical GDP represented 8.1% of the industrial GDP and 2.3% of  total Mexican GDP, in 2019

According to Camimex, in recent years the sector has faced difficulties in both an international and domestic context. Following  a downward trend in mineral prices, after the boom that ended in 2011, the sector has mirrored the world economy over the last decade, in losing much of it’s dynamism. Domestically, the sector’s competitiveness has been affected by factors such as the fiscal and security conditions under which it has to operate, placing it at a disadvantage in the face of global and regional competition.

In a virtual conference, Alanís said that it is important to work in coordination with the government to improve the conditions that have impacted on these factors and stimulate investment. In Camimex’s 2020 Sustainability Report , he mentioned that mining participates in 0.9% of national water consumption. It has also been one of the driving activities in the use of renewable energies as a source to provide the energy needs of its industrial processes.