With full ownership of several prospective copper-gold projects and a 25% carried interest in the El Domo project currently under construction, Salazar now offers a unique combination of near-term development exposure and large-scale exploration upside. In March 2026, Salazar completed the acquisition of Ecuadorian exploration assets from Silvercorp Metals, acquiring two subsidiaries holding interests in the Santiago, Pijilí & Tarqui-Quimi projects, which materially expands Salazar's ownership across several prospective exploration projects.
Cyborg Score Rationale
Salazar is a junior explorer with meaningful optionality: a 25% carried interest in an advancing mine project (El Domo, construction phase with H2 2027 production target) and a consolidated portfolio of 100%-owned copper-gold exploration assets in Ecuador. However, the company is pre-revenue as an explorer, faces Ecuador regulatory and geopolitical risk, has limited financial resources ($34.6M market cap per April 2026 data), and depends heavily on partner funding and permitting outcomes.
Top Insights
A 2021 Feasibility Study indicated an IRR of 32% and NPV8% of US$259 million for initial open-pit development only
El Domo is planned to produce 10,463 tpa copper and 21,390 tpa copper equivalent over the life-of-mine
El Domo is fully financed to production with start-up capital expenditure being met with funding by Wheaton Precious Metals and Silvercorp Metals
In April 2026, Salazar consolidated 100% ownership of the Santiago Project, located approximately 37 km north of the city of Loja in southern Ecuador
Named Competitors
Adventus Mining — Joint venture partner at El Domo, acquired by Silvercorp in 2024
Ecuador Exploration Portfolio — Junior explorer in Latin America
Ecuador Exploration Portfolio — Junior explorer in Latin America
Recent Developments
(June 2025) Salazar commented on new Ecuadorian mining inspection fee being implemented by ARCOM
(April 2025) Construction plan and schedule update for El Domo project development
(December 2025) Completed private placement financing raising $1,430,498 at $0.13 per share