Jerritt Canyon Mine: Restart Plan, Resources, History

The Jerritt Canyon mine is a gold mine in Elko County, northeastern Nevada, owned 100% by First Majestic Silver Corp. (NYSE: AG, TSX: AG). It produced about 9.85 million ounces of gold from 1981 to March 2023, has been on temporary suspension since 20 March 2023, and is being prepared for a restart, with production targeted for the second half of 2027 (First Majestic restart release, 2 April 2026).

This page sets out the facts a mining consultant or analyst needs: location and geology, the production record, why mining stopped, the US$75 million restart budget, the resource estimate and cut-off grades, the roaster, the royalties, the restart progress reported to 30 September 2026, and what to watch next. It ends with a calculator that turns a tonnage and grade into contained and payable gold after the 0.75% royalty.

Jerritt Canyon mine at a glance

“Moz” means million troy ounces. “g/t” means grams of gold per tonne of rock; the historic average of 6.6 g/t compares with resource cut-off grades of 0.43 to 1.13 g/t (see below).

Where the Jerritt Canyon mine is and what the property covers

The mine sits north of the city of Elko, about 45 miles by road according to First Majestic; Elko is the supply and service town for the mine and for much of the Carlin Trend. The property is a contiguous block of 30,821 hectares, about 119 square miles, and First Majestic says about 85% of it remains underexplored (First Majestic, April 2026).

Nevada matters for context. The USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 estimate US mine output at about 160 metric tons of gold in 2025, with Nevada the leading state at about 64% of the national total. For a wider view of the state’s districts, see our guide to gold deposits in Nevada and the US mining map of active mines by state.

The mine area includes several underground mines and many old open pits. The underground workings named in recent company reports are Smith and SSX, with the Saval, Mahala and Javelin zones nearby; the company rehabilitated the West Generator and Saval II underground mines in 2021-2022 (First Majestic, March 2023).

Jerritt Canyon geology: a Carlin-type gold district

Jerritt Canyon is one of the classic Carlin-type gold districts of northern Nevada. In these deposits, very fine gold sits inside arsenic-rich pyrite in altered carbonate sedimentary rocks, so the gold cannot be seen and cannot be recovered by simple gravity or panning. The review by Cline and co-authors (Economic Geology 100th Anniversary Volume, 2005) lists Jerritt Canyon alongside the northern and southern Carlin Trend, Getchell, Battle Mountain-Eureka and Alligator Ridge as the main Carlin-type districts.

Two practical points follow for anyone studying the mine. First, much of the ore is “refractory”: the gold is locked in sulphide minerals and must be oxidised before cyanide can dissolve it, which is why Jerritt Canyon has a roaster. Second, mineralisation follows structures and favourable rock beds, which explains why the company describes Central and Northern mineralised trends and drills both from surface (near the old pits) and from underground. Our explainers on types of gold deposits and types of ore deposits place Carlin-type gold next to other styles.

Jerritt Canyon gold production history

From 1981 to March 2023 the mine produced about 9.85 million ounces of gold at an average 6.6 g/t. Open pits gave about 5.2 million ounces at 5.9 g/t and underground mines about 4.65 million ounces at 7.7 g/t. Since 2010 most output has come from the SSX and Smith deposits (First Majestic, April 2026).

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Gold output at selected Nevada mines, 2021 vs 2022

Troy ounces of gold, selected mines

The state record shows the last two full operating years. The Nevada Division of Minerals lists Jerritt Canyon at 98,303 ounces of gold in 2021 (a year split between the previous owner and First Majestic, which took over in April) and 72,411 ounces in 2022. Statewide gold output fell 10.2% between those two years, so the decline was not unique to this mine, but it was steeper here.

After mining stopped, only small amounts came out of the plant: in-circuit recovery work in 2025 produced 342 ounces of gold (First Majestic, February 2026). For other Nevada operations still producing, see our list of US gold mines.

Why First Majestic suspended mining at Jerritt Canyon

On 20 March 2023 First Majestic stopped all mining at Jerritt Canyon, and cut the workforce. The company said it had aimed to feed the plant at a minimum of 3,000 tonnes a day, but mining rates stayed below that level and cash costs per ounce stayed higher than planned. It named four causes: contractor inefficiency and high contractor costs, inflation, lower than expected head grades, and several extreme weather events in the 2022/23 winter. Jerritt Canyon had provided about 21% of the company’s 2022 revenue (First Majestic, 20 March 2023).

The restart release adds the price context: the suspension came when gold traded between about US$1,600 and US$1,900 an ounce. It also states that all environmental and permitting requirements were kept in good standing during care and maintenance (First Majestic, April 2026). “Care and maintenance” means the site is kept safe, permitted and ready, with water treatment and monitoring continuing, but no ore is mined or processed.

The Jerritt Canyon restart plan and budget

On 2 April 2026 First Majestic announced a restart plan. Its stated reasons were the larger resource estimate, stronger long-term gold price assumptions and two years of drilling results. Stantec Consulting Services was hired to complete a pre-feasibility level study, due in the fourth quarter of 2026, which will compare open-pit and underground designs and schedules. A pre-feasibility study is an engineering and cost study that tests whether a mine plan works before the final, more detailed feasibility stage.

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Jerritt Canyon 2026 restart budget

US$ million, total US$75 million

The company budgeted US$75 million for 2026, split as follows (First Majestic, April 2026):

• Exploration programme: US$15 million
• Surface support and initial mining fleet: US$13 million
• Underground preparation and development: US$13 million
• Plant upgrading and winterisation: US$12 million
• Technical studies: US$10 million
• Workforce and staffing: US$7.5 million
• Dewatering upgrades: US$4.5 million

Two changes stand out against the 2021-2023 period. The company plans owner-operated mining instead of relying on contractors for the whole mine, and it plans to add bulk, lower-cost open-pit mining alongside the Smith and SSX underground mines. The 2026 work plan included about 600 metres of underground development, 19,000 metres of underground drilling at Smith-SSX and 23,000 metres of surface drilling, 42,000 metres in total. In July 2026 the company kept the US$75 million figure inside a raised group capital budget of US$318 million to US$344 million (First Majestic Q2 2026 production release).

Jerritt Canyon resources and cut-off grades

With an effective date of 31 December 2025, First Majestic reports 4.1 million ounces of gold in Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources and a further 3.7 million ounces in Inferred Mineral Resources, prepared under the CIM standards and NI 43-101, the Canadian disclosure rule for mineral projects (First Majestic, April 2026). Resources are estimates of mineralised rock; unlike reserves, they do not have demonstrated economic viability.

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Historic mined grades vs new resource cut-offs

Grams of gold per tonne

The growth was large. In the company-wide update, Measured and Indicated gold ounces at Jerritt Canyon rose 116% year on year, and the Inferred category added 33.6 million tonnes containing 1.7 million ounces. The company explains that higher gold price assumptions lowered the cut-off grades, which brought lower-grade rock, mainly suited to bulk open-pit mining, into the resource. The result is more tonnes at a lower average grade (First Majestic resource update, 31 March 2026).

The key assumptions behind the estimate are a gold price of US$3,400 an ounce, an underground cut-off of 1.13 g/t and an open-pit cut-off of 0.43 g/t, with no dilution applied. A cut-off grade is the lowest grade at which rock is counted as ore under a given cost and price; below it, rock is treated as waste. The gap between the historic 6.6 g/t mined grade and a 0.43 g/t open-pit cut-off shows how different the next mine plan may look from the old one.

Results from the 2025 drilling programme that arrived after 31 December 2025 were not in this estimate, so the next update may change the numbers again.

The roaster: how Jerritt Canyon processes refractory ore

Jerritt Canyon hosts one of only three permitted gold plants in Nevada that use roasting, with a nominal capacity of about 4,000 tonnes a day (First Majestic, April 2026). A roaster heats crushed and ground sulphide ore in air, which burns off the sulphur and turns the sulphides into oxides; the gold can then be leached with cyanide. The US EPA’s technical review of gold processing describes roasting, autoclaving and bio-oxidation as the main ways of treating sulphide ores of this kind (US EPA, Gold technical resource document).

Roasting generates sulphur dioxide, so off-gas cleaning is part of the plant. First Majestic upgraded the roaster and refinery off-gas handling systems after it bought the mine, to keep the plant compliant (First Majestic, March 2023). For the restart, engineers BBA Consultants USA have inspected the plant, and a Metso Loesche vertical roller mill has been chosen to grind ore more efficiently; it is due to start arriving on site in the first half of 2027 (First Majestic Q3 2026 release).

▶ How gold is mined and refined, from rock to bar, step by step. · 5:27

Royalties on Jerritt Canyon gold

First Majestic’s financial statements describe two royalties. A 0.75% net smelter return (NSR) royalty applies to gold and silver from the Jerritt Canyon mines and plant, charged on proceeds after deducting treatment, refining, transport, insurance, taxes and levies. A second NSR of 2.5% to 5% applies to production inside specific boundary lines at certain mining areas. An NSR royalty is a share of the money received for the metal, paid to the royalty holder whatever the mine’s profit. No royalty was paid in the first half of 2026 because there was no production (First Majestic Q2 2026 financial statements).

The calculator below applies the 0.75% royalty to a block of ore you define. It does not include the 2.5-5% royalty, which only applies in certain areas.

Restart progress at Jerritt Canyon so far

By the end of September 2026 the company reported (First Majestic Q3 2026 production release, 8 October 2026):

• Restart still on track for production in the second half of 2027.
• Underground contractor Cementation had completed 5,965 metres of underground rehabilitation year to date and started some stope access drives.
• Up to two reverse circulation surface drill rigs and two underground core rigs drilled about 16,284 metres in the quarter, after 12,815 metres in the second quarter.
• Surface drilling tested the deepest historic mining levels in partly backfilled pits along the Central and Northern trends; underground drilling targeted areas for early mining.
• Human resources and health and safety managers were hired, and a dedicated site technical team now leads the mine plan with Stantec.

Adding the two quarters gives about 29,100 metres drilled by 30 September, against the 42,000 metres planned for the year.

What consultants and analysts should watch next

• The pre-feasibility study (due Q4 2026). It should set the mix of open-pit and underground ore, the plant feed rate and the first production schedule.
• Grade versus tonnage. The resource now leans on lower-grade open-pit material; the mined grade in the study will decide unit costs at a roaster plant with fixed overheads.
• Mining rate. The 2023 suspension came from failing to reach 3,000 tonnes a day of underground feed; owner-operated mining and open pits are meant to fix that.
• Winter readiness. US$12 million went to plant upgrading and winterisation after the 2022/23 storms.
• Drilling results after 31 December 2025 and the next resource update.
• Plant equipment. Arrival of the vertical roller mill in the first half of 2027.

For consultants screening ground around a large property like this, satellite imagery helps map old pits, waste dumps, roads and altered rock before field visits; Farmonaut offers this kind of mineral mapping for client areas. Farmonaut’s other satellite services include fleet management, carbon footprinting, product traceability, crop loan and insurance data and a satellite weather API.

▶ How satellites help find gold: remote sensing explained. · 4:25

First Majestic Silver company facts

First Majestic Silver Corp. is based in Vancouver, Canada, and trades as AG on the New York Stock Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange, and as FMV in Frankfurt (First Majestic, April 2026). Its producing assets are four underground mines in Mexico: Santa Elena, Los Gatos (70% interest, acquired with Gatos Silver in January 2025), San Dimas and La Encantada. Jerritt Canyon is its only mine in the United States.

In the third quarter of 2026 the company produced 3.4 million ounces of silver; a labour dispute stopped San Dimas for 12 days in the quarter (First Majestic, October 2026). Jerritt Canyon adds gold to a company that is mostly a silver producer, which is why the restart is a large part of its 2026 capital plan.

Company filings are on SEDAR+ (annual information form) and SEC EDGAR (Form 40-F). Check those, not secondary sites, for the latest figures. This page gives facts only and is not investment advice.

Calculator: contained and payable gold for a block of ore

Enter a tonnage, a grade and a recovery to see how many ounces a block of Jerritt Canyon-style ore contains and what it could pay after the 0.75% NSR royalty. All values are examples.

Frequently asked questions

Where is the Jerritt Canyon mine?

It is in Elko County, northeastern Nevada, north of the city of Elko. The property covers 30,821 hectares (119 square miles).

Who owns Jerritt Canyon?

First Majestic Silver Corp. has owned 100% of the mine since April 2021. Nevada Division of Minerals tables list the operator as Jerritt Canyon Gold/First Majestic Silver.

Is the Jerritt Canyon mine operating?

Not yet. Mining has been suspended since 20 March 2023. A restart programme began in April 2026, and First Majestic targets production in the second half of 2027.

How much gold has Jerritt Canyon produced?

About 9.85 million ounces from 1981 to March 2023, at an average 6.6 g/t, according to First Majestic. Nevada records show 72,411 ounces in 2022, its last full year.

Why did Jerritt Canyon close?

First Majestic cited mining rates below 3,000 tonnes a day, high contractor costs, inflation, lower than expected grades and severe weather in the 2022/23 winter.

How much gold is left at Jerritt Canyon?

At 31 December 2025, resources were 4.1 million ounces Measured and Indicated plus 3.7 million ounces Inferred. These are resources, not reserves, and are based on US$3,400 gold.

What type of gold deposit is Jerritt Canyon?

A Carlin-type deposit: very fine gold in sulphide minerals inside altered sedimentary rocks. Much of the ore is refractory and needs roasting.

What is the Jerritt Canyon roaster?

It is the mine’s processing plant, one of three permitted gold plants in Nevada that roast ore, with a nominal capacity of about 4,000 tonnes a day.

How much is First Majestic spending on the restart?

US$75 million in 2026, covering exploration, mining fleet, underground development, plant upgrades, studies, staffing and dewatering.

What royalties apply at Jerritt Canyon?

A 0.75% NSR royalty on gold and silver from the mines and plant, and a 2.5% to 5% NSR on production inside certain boundary areas.