Gold Mining Bottleneck Shifts from Capital to Equipment

The gold mining industry is facing a new bottleneck - not capital, but equipment and labor. With record high gold prices, exploration budgets have increased sharply, but the capacity to spend it has not kept pace.

Drill rigs are contracted months ahead, and haul trucks and loaders have lead times measured in quarters rather than weeks. Experienced operators, who keep circuits running through wet seasons, are scarcer still.

Major Drilling Group International Inc., the largest provider of drilling services to the mining sector, reported record revenue of $889.1 million for fiscal 2026, up 22% from a year earlier. Fourth-quarter revenue rose 25%, with EBITDA up 37% to $28.0 million.

JZR Gold Inc. assumed direct operatorship of the Vila Nova Gold Project in Amapá State, Brazil, taking responsibility for plant operations, staffing, and production performance from ECO Mining Oil & Gas Drilling and Exploration Ltda.