Mercado Minerals: Not just another silver play – Richard Mills

2025.10.26

On Oct. 21, Mercado Minerals (CSE:MERC) announced the appointment of John Mirko and Jose Vizcarra to its advisory board.

The appointments coincided with Mercado’s acquisition of Concordia Silver, thereby giving Mercado ownership of the Copalito and Zamora projects located in Sinaloa state, Mexico.

Under the terms of the agreement, Mercado acquired all of Concordia’s outstanding shares in exchange for USD$105,000 and the issuance of 6 million Mercado shares to Concordia shareholders. Mercado will issue a further 2 million shares on the first anniversary of closing the acquisition, and another 2 million shares on the second anniversary.

The Concordia acquisition completes a process that started in June with a Letter of Intent (LOI) between the two companies stating Mercado’s intention to obtain 100% of Concordia and its Mexican properties, named Copalito and Zamora. Both are located along the western side of the Sierra Madre Occidental, a world-class mining district hosting many silver and gold deposits.

While understated in the news release, having Mirko on its advisory board is huge for Mercado because of his background in the region.

A prospector and 40-year mining industry veteran, Mirko is the individual who consolidated and sold the Panuco Project to Vizsla Silver Corp (TSX:VZLA), which trades on both the Toronto and New York stock exchanges and has a current market cap of CAD$2.1 billion.

He was the founder and president of Canam Alpine Ventures before selling Canam to Vizsla Silver, then known as Vizsla Resources, in September 2019.

When the transaction closed two months later, Vizsla had acquired an option over the consolidated mineral rights, infrastructure and processing facilities comprising the large-scale Panuco-Copala (Panuco) precious metals camp in Sinaloa, Mexico.

Canam Alpine Ventures and President John Mirko sold all their issued and outstanding shares to Vizsla Resources for CAD$45,000 and $6 million in Vizsla shares.

Mercado’s other appointee, Jose Vizcarra, is an exploration geologist based in Sinaloa. He has over 40 years of experience in the Mexican mining industry, specifically in the exploration of epithermal deposits in the Sierra Madre Occidental. Most recently, Vizcarra was instrumental in the discovery of the Napolean Vein on the Panuco Project currently owned by Vizsla Silver.

“Having people who have made discoveries and understand what the process is about is key to the success of Mercado. We have in-country support in Mexico to help with community engagement, exploration, access and ultimately be a part of the team to grow Mercado,” CEO Daniel Rodriguez said in the Oct. 21 news release. He added: “John Mirko has created a vast network in Sinaloa and the rest of Mexico and his proven track record with the amalgamation and eventual sale of the Panuco district to Vizsla Silver Corp is invaluable. Jose Vizcarra is an expert in his field and an expert in his own backyard. I look forward to leveraging his knowledge and expertise in the Sierra Madre.”

Vizsla Silver: the making of a silver giant

Vizsla Silver’s story is one of consolidating a large, historically productive district and aggressively exploring it to unlock a world-class resource through a dual strategy of advancing the existing Copala Mine and continuing to discover new high-grade deposits elsewhere in the district. Vizsla is positioned as a leading silver company with strong project economics, aiming for production through a combination of aggressive drilling, a test mine for de-risking, and a completed preliminary economic study. (AI Overview)

Writing about Vizsla Silver in November 2024, Crux Investor maintains Vizsla Silver has bolstered its financial position through a successful financing, attracting both institutional and retail investors in September 2024.

The acquisition of the La Garra-Metates district [in October 2024] doubles Vizsla’s land holdings, unlocking significant exploration potential in a highly prospective region.

Infill drilling at the Copala project confirmed high-grade continuity, with silver equivalent grades exceeding 5,000 grams per ton.

Vizsla targets initial production by 2027, supported by a test mine and an upcoming bankable feasibility study.

“This is one of the most exciting silver districts globally. With high-grade resources, existing infrastructure, and strong exploration potential, Panuco has the scale and quality to become a billion-ounce district.”

— Vizsla Silver’s CEO Michael Konnert

Though the Panuco District has a rich history of silver production, it remains underexplored. Vizsla Silver managed to consolidate the district — a complex task involving several landowners — and build a silver resource topping 200 million silver-equivalent ounces.

Since acquiring Panuco from Canam and John Mirko, Vizsla Silver has acquired more land, made discoveries, and become a stock market darling, catapulting from a $5 million market cap to a peak of $2.5 billion. Now sitting healthily at 2.1 billion with a royalty spin-out (Vizsla Royalties Corp), Vizsla Silver currently trades at CAD$4.25/sh.

The point I’m making here is that John Mirko was a key figure in the making of Vizsla Silver; in fact, without Mirko’s role in the amalgamation and sale of Panuco to Vizsla, it arguably might not have become the 200Moz behemoth on track to advancing the world’s largest undeveloped primary silver resource to production.

Now that Mirko is literally 100% on board with Mercado Minerals, could he once again use his mining expertise — as both prospector and mineral property developer — to position Mercado as the next Mexican silver powerhouse? If one were to speculate, it seems likely this is what motivates him to get involved with another company.

We know from Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) filings that Mirko received 3,600,000 shares valued @ $0.155 per share in the Concordia transaction, with a further 1.2 million shares to be issued on the first and second anniversary of the closing date of the acquisition. He is the largest recipient of shares of the two parties named in the linked Form 9. 

Mirko is no longer involved with Vizsla Silver, though he remains a major shareholder.

Mercado’s properties, Copalito and Zamora, are located within the Western Mexico Silver Belt in Sinaloa state, Mexico. The properties are located near power, roads, infrastructure and local workforces in a mining-friendly jurisdiction. This emerging belt of the prolific Sierra Madre Occidental mountain range, which hosts existing mines and recent discoveries, includes:

• Vizsla Silver’s Panuco District
• First Majestic Silver’s (TSX:AG) San Dimas
• Pan American Silver’s (TSX:PAAS) Alamo Dorado

Comparable exploration-stage juniors operating in Mexico are Pacifica Silver (CSE:PSIL) developing the Claudia Project ($47.9m market cap); and Capitan Silver (TSXV:CAPT) with its Cruz de Plata Project in Durango state ($171.1m market cap).

At a market capitalization of ~$6 million and a low 41 million shares o/s, Mercado Minerals imo might offer more immediate upside potential. 

Copalito Project

According to Mercado, their flagship Copalito Project presents a district-scale opportunity with known and drilled silver — gold low sulfidation vein mineralization that is open for expansion. Historical third-party high-grade silver and significant gold and base metal drill intercepts include 347 g/t silver, 0.22 g/t gold, 0.18% lead and 0.38% zinc over 13.10 meters in hole BDH-20-004, and 125 g/t silver, 2.00 g/t gold, 0.34% lead and 0.58% zinc over 23.00m in hole BDH-21-055.

Mercado has acquired an option to purchase seven concessions covering 2,820 ha. The option is to earn 100% over five years, with staged cash payments totaling $3.5 million. Six known veins on the project have a cumulative strike length of 8 km.

The Copalito Project is located approximately 123 km northeast of Culiacan, Sinaloa. The property has good access, moderate topography and infrastructure nearby. The neighboring property to Copalito is McEwen Inc’s (NYSE:MUX) El Gallo mine complex, located 35 km to the west. Kootenay Silver (TSXV:KTN) was the most recent operator of the project.

Kootenay drilled 81 diamond drill holes over six veins. This historical drilling has only tested approximately 60% of the veins’ strike and only to an average depth of 100m. Several productive veins and vein segments delineated in the drilling are ready for follow-up deeper drilling.

Mercado has also acquired the existing drill data, which provides an excellent base for future exploration drill targeting of higher and thicker-grade portions of veins along strike and to depth.

Investors are warned: the data for the Copalito property appears to be of a good standard. However, the Qualified Person (QP) has not conducted sufficient work to independently validate the assay drill core results. Therefore, the company is treating the Copalito results as historical in nature and are not to be relied on. The QP will independently verify results of the historical work during a site visit later this year.

In talking with Rodriguez, he said the technical team, including Senior Technical Advisor Robert Duncan, believes they are at, or near, the top of the mineralizing system as evidenced by vein textures including chalcedonic quartz, geochemical signatures and precious to base metal ratios.

Rodriguez noted the veins pictured in the above image present ample opportunities for expansion. After Kootenay Silver had finished drilling, they uncovered new veins to the northwest of Cinco Senores, north of La Chiva, and also found 300 meters strike length of vein to the southeast.

These areas remain untouched by exploration. 

“Not only do we have targets to fill in the gaps on 5 Señores, but we actually also have veins to go prospect and then extensions to go drill,” he said, adding, “We have multiple angles on this property to grow the discovery and make new ones.”

Copalito has four high-priority targets at 5 Señores, El Agua, Pilar and La

Chivas.

Zamora Project

The Zamora Project, and surrounding area, presents district-scale potential that, according to historical reports, has never been drilled.

Mercado has acquired four concessions covering 378 ha, which covers small-scale historical underground production at Campanillas, and the right to potentially bring another 2,999 ha of concessions back into good standing with the government, thereby securing title.

If successful, Mercado will own a total of 3,377 ha covering a cumulative strike length of over 8 km of structures with 14 historical high-grade silver gold mines on them.

Historic sampling by the previous operators on concessions currently under LOI and controlled by Concordia includes results from underground workings at Campanillas that returned 14,561 g/t silver and 15.53 g/t gold from a grab sample. Additional sampling at El Triunfo returned 286 g/t silver and 2.54 g/t gold over 1.00m, while a soil sample near the Periguete workings is reported to have returned 8.00 g/t gold.

Like at Copalito, the data for the Zamora property appears to be of a good standard. However, the QP has not conducted sufficient work to independently validate the assay rock sample results from Zamora. Therefore, the company is treating the Zamora results as historical in nature and are not to be relied on. The QP will independently verify results of the historical work during a site visit later this year.

Spanish-speaking team

It’s been said that you can’t fully understand a culture without speaking the language. Daniel Rodriguez grew up speaking Spanish, and he is fully bilingual. Knowing what the locals are saying not only allows the transfer of valuable information regarding the projects but helps to build relationships with in-country team members, nearby communities and local indigenous.

Rodriguez described a trip he made to the site in November ’24:

“My biggest takeaway was the presence and the team that John Mirko has built in Mexico in Sinaloa. Specifically, that group, their capabilities, who they know, what they’ve done, their ability to get machinery, people, access, everything ahead of time. They start eliminating surprises If that makes sense,” he said.

Jose Vizcarra plays an important in-country role. My feeling in talking to Rodriguez is that Vizcarra is his “right-hand man” in Sinaloa. As an example, he visits the properties regularly and shows them to visitors when required.  

“He’s out doing all the work for us and he’s putting it all together And I’m more than confident that I know that it’s getting done,” said Rodriguez, adding the pair have a mutual respect for each other. 

“He has spent his entire life In the Sierra Madre, and we have a great relationship. And I don’t need a translator.”

Conclusion

Mercado Minerals is an early-stage exploration company that has just acquired two silver projects in Mexico. 

There are six veins on the flagship Copalito Project. The historical drilling has only tested about 60% of strike of the veins and only to an average depth of 100m.

Four high-priority targets have been identified, and Mercado plans an initial 3,000-meter drill program starting in Q1 2026.

Like Copalito, Zamora has a large number of high-grade vein occurrences. Historical sampling includes results from underground workings at Campanillas that returned 14,561 g/t silver and 15.53 g/t gold.

Mercado got four concessions of 378 hectares, which covers some of the underground production at Campanillas, but the big thing at Zamora is the right to potentially bring another 3,000 ha of concessions back into good standing with the government and then secure title. This is a process that Mercado started a few months ago.

If they’re successful, Mercado will own a total of 3,300 ha, a strike length of 8 kilometers of structures, with 14 historical high-grade silver-gold mines on them. Extraordinary.

Rodriguez has assembled a Spanish-speaking, in-country team led by Jose Vizcarra who knows the Sierra Occidental like his own backyard.

Having John Mirko on the advisory board is another feather in Mercado’s cap. Consider: the prospector who assembled and sold the Pacuno precious metals camp to Vizsla Silver, which rocketed from a tiny $5 million market cap junior to a valuation exceeding $2 billion on the strength of its Pacuno Project and 200-million-ounce silver-equivalent resource, has again sold a company of his and is now working for Mercado in an advisory role.

Mirko is the individual behind Concordia Silver that Mercado made the deal with to acquire the two projects. He received the most shares in the Concordia transaction and he is still a major shareholder of Vizsla Silver. And again, he’s taking mostly shares, a little cash, and putting projects in another silver junior. Can lightning strike twice?

To me, the role of a junior resource management team is not only about exploration but acquiring properties, securing title, and assembling a trustworthy in-country team that speaks the language. Rodriguez has managed to do all this in a very short period of time.

One analogy I like to use is it’s a lot like landing a plane. You want a minimum of turbulence, you don’t want anything to blow you off course, and you don’t want any drama.

The “pilots” flying Mercado Minerals’ “plane” appear to have anticipated potential issues and dealt with them, greasing the way for a smooth landing as it develops two highly prospective projects in Mexico.

I’m presenting Mercado to my readers as a low-market-cap opportunity to get in on the potential building of a silver powerhouse. Of course, nothing is guaranteed and Mercado is very early-stage. But it’s also a storyline about a possible investment that in the right hands, could pay big rewards for shareholders.

Mercado Minerals Ltd.
CSE:MERC
2025.10.23 Share Price: Cdn$0.20
Shares Outstanding: 41.9m
Market Cap: Cdn$6.4m
MERC website  

 Richard (Rick) Mills
aheadoftheherd.com

Subscribe to AOTH’s free newsletter

Richard owns shares of Mercado Minerals Ltd. (CSE:MERC). MERC is a paid advertiser on his site aheadoftheherd.com This article is issued on behalf of MERC