Orvana Minerals Hits Spain Gold Targets Amid Bolivia Expansion

The company’s Orovalle operation in northern Spain served as the primary engine for growth, delivering 37,775 ounces of gold. This result exceeded the firm's upper-end guidance of 37,000 ounces, a feat CEO Juan Gavidia attributed to the strategic deployment of contractors to mitigate labor shortages and absenteeism. While Spain remained stable, the Don Mario plant in Bolivia faced a more turbulent year. The facility, which recently began producing gold doré bars and copper cathodes following an expansion, fell short of its annual targets after civil unrest and supply chain bottlenecks delayed the processing of oxide stockpiles.

Management is now shifting focus toward stabilizing the Bolivian plant, where the current objective is to reach a design capacity of 1,700 tonnes per day by the end of calendar 2026. Optimization efforts are concentrated on the acid leaching and filtration circuits, which the company identified as bottlenecks during the initial ramp-up. Orvana opted to withdraw its production guidance for the Bolivian asset in September, citing the need for greater operational clarity. Looking toward fiscal 2027, the company aims to maintain efficiency at Orovalle while managing inflationary pressures and broader global economic volatility.