Leaching Phases 8 and 9 expansion — Veladero Mine (gold)
Engineering, construction, operation and maintenance of new leach pads (phases 8 and 9) at Veladero Mine, to sustain gold production and exports. Official portal: projected exports of USD 3,800 M and 1,048 jobs (direct and indirect).
The projectwhat it is, the route, the owners, the works and the contractors
Who owns it
Minera Andina del Sol S.R.L. Sucursal Dedicada 1 (MAS-SD1, CUIT 30-71906943-2) verif Apr 1, 2026 ↗
The works, milestone by milestone
Ley provincial 2827-M on Local Mining Development comes into force, changing the entry door for anyone wanting to sell to this project: from now on, «únicamente serán computables las contrataciones realizadas con proveedores inscriptos y con certificado vigente en RE.PRO.MIN» — only contracts with suppliers registered and holding a valid certificate in the RE.PRO.MIN count towards the miner's 60 % local procurement target. Its article 31 repeals Ley 1208-M, the previous regime, which had created the R.U.P.E.M.
At the close of the second quarter of 2026 sub-phases 8A and 8B are completed on schedule — «Phase 8A and 8B have been completed on schedule» — and cumulative spending on Phase 8 reaches USD 131 million against an estimated cost of approximately USD 250 million. Sub-phase 8C remains without a declared date.
It becomes known that in July the invitations go out for the private tender of the next stage of Phase 8: «Este proceso lo encara la compañía, una vez conocido el proyecto se presentan las oferentes y después del análisis técnico y del presupuesto, se elige a la firma que encarará los trabajos, lo que se especula que arrancará en octubre» — the company runs the process itself, bidders come forward once the project is known, and after the technical and budget review the firm that will carry out the work is chosen, with a start expected in October. The work would run from October 2026 to May 2027, before winter closes the high mountains. The UOCRA union estimates 800 workers, out of 2,500 unemployed construction workers in the province, and notes that «todos los años suelen ser entre 600 y 800» (it is usually between 600 and 800 every year).
Resolución 413/2026 of the Ministerio de Economía is published, approving accession to the RIGI. The resolution declares USD 380,116,079.91 of investment in countable assets — USD 350,116,079.91 of capex plus USD 30,000,000 under the cap of article 174 — the construction window for Phase 8 between July 2024 and May 2027, that of Phase 9 between September 2027 and June 2028, and the commitment of 20 % local procurement on the amount allocated to suppliers.
Accession date to the regime set by article 2 of the resolution: «Determínase como fecha de adhesión al RIGI del Proyecto “Ampliación Fases 8 y 9 del Sistema de Lixiviación en Valle de Mina Veladero”, el día 28 de enero de 2026» — 28 January 2026. It is the date that starts the two-year clock of article 50 of Decreto 749/2024, with a first deadline on 28 January 2028.
Milicic starts Phase 8A of the leach valley: earthworks, geosynthetics installation and HDPE piping, «durante cuatro meses, desde enero hasta abril» (over four months, from January to April), with «un pico de 500 colaboradores en el sitio y una logística que involucra cerca de 80 equipos» — a peak of 500 workers on site and logistics involving around 80 machines. It is the third time the same company handles the geosynthetics at this mine.
The San Juan branch of the Cámara Argentina de la Construcción, signed by its president Ramón Martínez, sends Barrick a letter for leaving local firms out. It names three cases: the tender for Phases 7, 7b and 8 of the leach valley, awarded «con una empresa de Rosario con el argumento de que tenían mejor capacidad técnica y que esto prevaleció sobre las ofertas más bajas que habían brindado las de San Juan» — to a Rosario company on the argument that it had better technical capacity, which prevailed over the lower bids submitted by San Juan firms; the Zocarrón airfield, awarded directly to a Córdoba company in 2019, where «se concluyó que se había actuado incorrectamente» (it was concluded that the process had been improper); and the maintenance of the access road, won on the lowest bid by a company that «no tiene ningún equipo a su nombre y no declara personal» — owns no equipment and declares no staff.
The resolution sets the project's assets to be counted «a partir del 8 de julio de 2024» — from 8 July 2024 — that is, nineteen months before the accession date and twenty-one months before publication. That is what places Phase 8A, carried out between January and April 2025, inside the regime's countable window.
Who already has a contract
It has won the valley phase tenders for six years running. ⚠️ It does NOT qualify as a local San Juan supplier: art. 12 of Law 2827-M requires, among the local-roots criteria, «at least FIFTY-ONE PER CENT (51%) of share capital» held by people from the province, and its head office is in Rosario. Its contract does not count towards the 60% local purchasing target.
It has provided technical support to the mine since 2005 and has accumulated more than 100 specialised engagements in environment, engineering and quality control.
How to supply itwhere to register, what they ask for and what they will buy
How to become a supplier
The operator contracts mining, ore haulage, plant processing and closure from its own parent company, according to the RIGI adhesion act itself. For a third party, the open market is the CONSTRUCTION of the leach pads, which is tendered phase by phase.
The registration routes that exist today, with their status. The one that is up and running is not always the official one.
RE.PRO.MIN. — Provincial Registry of Mining Suppliers
being builtIt is the registry created by Law 2827-M and the only one the law recognises: without a valid certificate there, a purchase does not count towards the miner's local contracting target. ⚠️ It is not operational yet.
Calidad en Comunidad — the provincial ISO 9001 certification programme
up and running todayA programme run by the provincial ministries of Minería and Producción so that SMEs in Iglesia, Jáchal and Calingasta can certify the quality management standard. In August 2026 it entered the implementation stage with some 24 companies: Universidad Católica de Cuyo provides the technical support and the certification body Lenor audits those that qualify. It runs until December 2026, and the Ministerio de Minería's director of Sustainable Development clarifies that «la certificación no será automática, sólo accederán a ella aquellas empresas que logren superar las auditorías correspondientes» — certification will not be automatic, only firms that pass the corresponding audits will obtain it.
What they ask you for
Local roots: for a commercial company, having at least 51% of share capital — or of the stake that forms the corporate will — held by people from the province; and employing no less than 80% local workers on the average annual payroll. verif Jul 2, 2026 ↗Art. 12, verbatim: «Meet at least one (1) of the following local-roots criteria: a) For Commercial Companies, having as holders at least FIFTY-ONE PER CENT (51%) of the share capital, or of the stake granting the votes needed to form the corporate will»; and «Employ local workers from the community of influence or from the rest of the provincial territory, as applicable, in a proportion no lower than eighty per cent (80%) of the total average annual payroll».
The door for those who fall short of local roots: partnering. A joint venture can register as an «Association of Companies with Local Participation» with a minimum 25% local stake, but it only counts as local contracting in the amount proportional to that stake. verif Jul 2, 2026 ↗Art. 14, verbatim: «they must have a minimum local participation of no less than TWENTY-FIVE PER CENT (25%) of the capital, contractual participation, economic results or decision rights of the association, made up of one or more Local Suppliers»; and «they shall be considered local contracting, as the case may be, only in the amount proportional to the participation of the local member companies». It also requires a special and tax domicile in the province and an authorised operating establishment in San Juan.
What the law demands from the MINER, and why it moves demand: a Local Supplier Development Plan that is mandatory to implement, with increasing, verifiable targets up to 60% of annual purchasing and 80% local workers, reported under sworn statement. verif Jul 2, 2026 ↗Verbatim: «The Plan shall set out concrete, increasing, verifiable and measurable targets for contracting Local Suppliers, to reach during the execution of the project a share equivalent to SIXTY PER CENT (60%) of the total annual amount of purchases and contracts linked to the mining project»; «The submitted Local Supplier Development Plan shall be mandatory to implement»; and for workers, «local worker hiring equivalent to eighty per cent (80%)». Non-compliance carries a «fine of up to TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND TAX UNITS (200,000 u.t)» (art. 20).
What it will buy, and when
Two successive phases with a gap in between: Phase 8 between July 2024 and May 2027, and Phase 9 between September 2027 and June 2028. Between May and September 2027 the work drops off and then picks up again: for an earthworks and geomembrane supplier that discontinuity is the difference between keeping equipment on site or dismantling it.
Veladero is not being built: it is producing, and the new pads operate from the last quarter of 2026. The expansion is about sustaining production, so the dominant market is replacement —reagents, spares, mine services— and not that of a new build.
Each phase buys different things at different times. The links lead to the matching market or trade.
Construction of Phase 8 of the valley leach system
under wayVerbatim from the act: «estimating a total construction time for Phase 8 from the month of July 2024 to the month of May 2027». Investment plan from notification: USD 79,228,583 in the first year and USD 83,169,124 in the second, with a Dec 31, 2028 deadline.
They are not buying any of this today. Open the phase to see the detail and arrive qualified the day it goes to tender.
Construction of Phase 9September 2027 → June 2028not started7 ítems+
Verbatim: «and Phase 9 from the month of September 2027 to the month of June 2028». The two phases add capacity to leach 1,626,034 equivalent ounces without changing the mine’s useful life.
Operation of the new leach padsfrom the last quarter of 2026not started6 ítems+
Verbatim: «with an estimated start of operation for the last quarter of 2026», which means the new pads start leaching while Phase 8 is still being built.
What it will need and has no supplier for yet
Certified geomembrane installation for leach pads
highWhat is approved is, literally, new lined surface: two further phases of valley leaching. The pad is a lining job where the critical work is not the material but the welding of the geomembrane and its testing, because a badly made seam is a solution leak. Catamarca already has this same service measured as a niche of its own for lithium ponds; San Juan, with a gold mine expanding pads, does not, and certified installation is brought in by crews from outside the province. The window is construction of the phases, not operation.
Management, audit and certification of the cyanide solution circuit
mediumValley leaching recovers the gold with cyanide solution in a closed circuit, so expanding phases 8 and 9 expands the circuit that has to be contained, monitored and audited: balance of rich and barren solutions, leak detection, barrier control and periodic external audit under the international standard the industry requires in order to sell. It is a permanent obligation and not a construction cost, and independent audit capacity in the province is scarce: whoever provides it is often the same party that designed the installation.
Geotechnical monitoring of pad stability
mediumA valley leach pad is a structure that grows in height while it is being loaded, in a seismic, high-mountain area. Its stability is not verified once at design stage: it is instrumented and measured while it operates, with piezometers, inclinometers and topographic deformation control. The province's road works and earthmoving niche measures construction; the instrumented monitoring that runs afterwards, throughout the life of the pad, has nobody quantifying it and no local supplier.
We cross what you manufacture or do against the 3 phases of this project and tell you which ones you fit into and when each one buys. Two pages, with the evidence behind them.
Analyze my companyWhat it leaves in San Juanjobs, works, taxes, promises and the outlook
The works that stay behind
The infrastructure that stays standing once the works end, with its size and its source.
The two new leach pads of the valley leach system (Phases 8 and 9), with their lining, underdrainage, leak collection and pregnant solution recirculation systems
ProductiveThe mine itself: it is what sustains Veladero's output over the seven years of remaining life the resolution recognises. It is not infrastructure for public use.
Verbatim from the resolution: the expansion «agrega capacidad para lixiviar y procesar un millón seiscientos veintiséis mil treinta y cuatro (1.626.034) onzas de oro adicionales» — it adds capacity to leach and process 1,626,034 additional ounces of gold, which cannot be treated at the current facilities. The same resolution estimates the mine's remaining life at seven years.
The four public works in Iglesia and Jáchal paid for by the trust fund of 1.5 % of Veladero's gold sales: the first section of the Agua Negra canal, the Iglesia irrigation network (Buena Esperanza, Las Flores, Malimán and Las Cuevas), the Jáchal aqueduct with two new drinking-water wells and the equipment of the Rodeo Hospital
Watermillion in April 2024 pesos — canal $3,200 M, Jáchal aqueduct and wells $2,500 M, irrigation network $1,054 M, hospital $600 M
The departments of Iglesia and Jáchal, which receive 60 % and 40 % of the fund. It is irrigation, drinking water and health equipment: it stays with the province, not with the mine.
On 10 April 2024 the governor announced four works for ARS 7,404 million with funds from the mining trust: Agua Negra canal first section ARS 3,200 M, Jáchal aqueduct plus two drinking-water wells ARS 2,500 M, Iglesia irrigation network ARS 1,054 M and Rodeo Hospital equipment ARS 600 M. The fund is fed by 1.5 % of Veladero's gold sales and is split 60 % Iglesia and 40 % Jáchal.
- What it already pays in taxes and royalties — We have not broken down this project’s local fiscal contribution: the primary source that sets each item still has to be opened, and an act of the State is not published on press backing.
- Who promised what — We have not surveyed the public promises about this project. A dated, verifiable commitment with its source closes them.
What could stall itrisks and how to track them
- What could stall it — We have not documented this project’s risks. An identifiable vector with its source closes them.
- How to tell whether it is advancing — We have not defined this project’s indicators: what observable fact marks its progress still has to be identified.
How we verified thisthe act, the gaps and the sources
The RIGI act, in detail
EX-2025-84957022- -APN-SCEYM#MEC verif Apr 1, 2026 ↗
Jan 28, 2026 verif Apr 1, 2026 ↗
The act’s articles, in detail
3 facts on the commitment
20 % of the amount earmarked for suppliers that goes to LOCAL suppliers verif Apr 1, 2026 ↗
The entire investment amount earmarked for paying suppliers, goods and infrastructure works verif Apr 1, 2026 ↗
Minera Andina del Sol S.R.L. Sucursal Dedicada 1 (MAS-SD1), tax ID 30-71906943-2. verif Apr 1, 2026 ↗
What we could not confirm
There are 3 in this project. Each says why it could not be confirmed and what it would take to close it.
H-01How many people the Phase 8 and 9 works employ+
Resolución 413/2026 does not publish employment. It is reported that the expansion creates more than 500 direct jobs per summer season between 2026 and 2028, with 90% San Juan labour, but the outlet publishing it does not allow the article to be read. The coverage that can be opened only carries the «more than 2,300 direct and indirect jobs» that Minister Caputo attributed to Veladero and Diablillos TOGETHER, which serve for neither of them separately.
H-02Who won the private tender of July 2026 and who is building sub-phases 8C and 9+
The tender is private and by invitation: the company itself runs it, it is not published in any official gazette, and there are no bid documents, list of bidders or award record in any open source. The historic contractor's project page still reads «En ejecución» with no cut-off date, which is not enough to attribute this stage to it. This is a gap of access, not of existence: the document is not public.
H-03The kilometres of road, the megawatts and the access works the expansion leaves behind+
The resolution lists none of the three. Both research passes agreed on the gap, which is the sign that it is not published rather than that nobody looked for it. Service roads inside the valley are known to exist because they are in the contractor's scope of work, but nobody publishes their size; and how the mine is supplied with power still has no source of its own, with the only clue being a connection to the Chilean grid announced in 2021 and never reconfirmed.
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