Mineros Tops Colombia's Gold Reputation Ranking: 7 Social License Signals

Reputation Evidence for a Discounted Producer

Mineros S.A. (TSX: MSA | BVC: MINEROS | OTCQX: MNSAF) was named the top gold company in Colombia's reputation ranking and 3rd in the mining sector's overall ranking in Brújula Minera 2026, released on September 4, 2026. The ranking combines ratings from company executives, government authorities, workers, and public opinion in both mining and non-mining municipalities. Mineros lists "hard-won community & regulatory relationships" under local expertise, one of the 4 pillars of its investment case alongside valuation, performance, and catalysts. The ranking puts an outside score on that pillar for a producer trading at 2.5 times enterprise value to earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation & amortization (EBITDA). Operating records at Nechí and Hemco, the Porvenir permitting timeline, and the Tolima community process test: score them against the company's assets.

1. Mineros Ranks First Among Gold Companies in Colombia's 2026 Reputation Study

Brújula Minera 2026 was conducted by Jaime Arteaga & Asociados and the Centro Nacional de Consultoría, and presented at the National Mining Congress organized by the Colombian Mining Association. Mineros placed 1st among gold companies on reputation and 3rd in the sector's overall ranking. Sector executives placed the company 3rd for management and good practices, and industry workers moved it from 8th to 3rd.

The workers result came in the period after Sun Valley Investments became the controlling shareholder in 2025 and brought in a new management team, new technical leadership, and a new strategy. A higher score from the workforce during a change of control gives an outside measure of how employees have received the transition.

Chief Executive Officer of Mineros, Daniel Henao, tied the result to how the company runs its business:

"Being recognized as the leading gold mining company in reputation validates the talent of our people and the strength of our business vision. At Mineros, we understand that trust is built through actions."

The next edition of Brújula Minera will show whether the executive and worker placements hold while the new team expands the Nicaraguan plant and advances Porvenir.

2. Colombian Officials Report Higher Trust in Miners on Environment & Human Rights

The same study recorded a rise in institutional trust in 2026. Among government authorities, 53% endorse mining companies' environmental commitment, 5 percentage points more than in 2025, and nearly 7 in 10 regulatory and oversight officials recognize companies' respect for human rights. Among the public, 70% of Colombians recognize the country's mining tradition, 71% acknowledge the need for its products in daily life, and 86% support mining's coexistence with tourism and agriculture.

These figures describe the whole sector, not Mineros alone. They show that the company's top gold ranking came in a year when the officials who issue and oversee permits reported higher trust in miners overall. That group also decides the environmental licensing milestones attached to Mineros' newest Colombian project, the Cajamarca, Tolima project.

3. Nechí's Gravity-Only, Hydro-Powered Process Removes Chemicals From Colombian Output

The Nechí Alluvial Property in Antioquia has produced gold for more than 100 years. Mineros mines it by closed-pond dredging beside the river, never in the riverbed, powers the operation from its own hydroelectric plants, and recovers gold by gravity with no chemical processing. For every hectare disturbed, the company restores 7 to 10 hectares.

Nechí holds approximately 1.24 million ounces of proven and probable reserves and 1.02 million ounces of measured and indicated resources exclusive of reserves, with a mine life of about 12 years, under an NI 43-101 technical report prepared by SLR Consulting. The operation produced 42,568 ounces of gold in the first half of 2026 against full-year guidance of 83,000 to 93,000 ounces.

Management describes Colombia as the next phase of growth and is targeting output above the roughly 90,000 ounces a year the operation has historically produced. Any expansion at Nechí would add ounces from a process with no chemical stage and power from the company's own hydroelectric plants.

4. Artisanal Miners Supply 83% of Hemco's Ore Under a Government-Backed Agreement

In Nicaragua, 83% of the ore processed at the Hemco Property in the first half of 2026 came from the Bonanza Mining Partnership (BMP), made up of miners who hold the right to operate inside Mineros' concessions. The arrangement is a 3-party agreement among the BMP, local governments, and the company, and Mineros holds the right to buy the mineral at about 40% to 50% of the spot. Because BMP ore is indexed to the gold price, Hemco's all-in sustaining cost moves with gold, and the company reports healthy margins through the price cycle.

Henao described how the partnership works on the ground:

"These guys are very good miners, very smart miners, and they produce a lot of gold. The agreement that we have is actually a three-party agreement where the government is involved. So, it's the Bonanza Mining Partnership, the local governments, and the company."

Artisanal activity on company concessions is treated as a problem in many jurisdictions. At Hemco, it supplies most of the plant feed under a contract with local governments as a named party. Hemco is guided to 137,000 to 147,000 ounces of gold in 2026, so the durability of that agreement is tied directly to the larger of the 2 producing assets.

5. Porvenir's Tailings Permit Arrived Ahead of Management's Year-End Guidance

Porvenir is a polymetallic project within the Hemco Property, immediately southwest of the 2 producing mines, and its mine was already permitted. By May 12, 2026, Mineros had received the major environmental permits for Porvenir's tailings facility. Management had initially told the market to expect that permit around the end of 2026, and says it worked with authorities on the case for fast-tracking projects of this kind for the country. Final permits remain outstanding, and detailed engineering is running in parallel.

The prefeasibility study shows an after-tax net present value at a 5% discount rate (NPV5%) of US$460 million, a 37.9% after-tax internal rate of return, and a 2.0-year payback on US$206.8 million of initial capital, at a base case of US$3,150 per ounce gold and a mine life of more than 9 years. The planned 2,000 tons per day plant is being engineered so it can double in size. The company's growth bridge attributes 55,000 to 72,000 gold-equivalent ounces to Porvenir on the way to a short-term target above 300,000 ounces.

A permit delivered ahead of guidance in Nicaragua is concrete evidence on the jurisdiction question, drawn from the company's own growth project. Receipt of the final permits is the next marker for construction timing.

6. Tolima Is the Social License Test Still Ahead

In Colombia, Mineros acquired the Cajamarca, Tolima exploration project for contingent consideration of up to US$60 million, payable against Official Mining Plan tonnage and environmental license milestones. AngloGold Ashanti's December 2024 historical estimate put the deposit at 23.35 million ounces measured and indicated at 0.87 grams per tonne gold and 4.98 million ounces inferred at 0.71 grams per tonne. Mineros has not verified that historical estimate as a current mineral resource, and the delineation of the Los Nevados Páramo under Resolution 1987 of 2016 remains subject to legal proceedings that may affect portions of it.

Henao said the company plans to take a different route with the communities around the project:

"It was an asset that was struggling for many, many years. And we want to have a very different approach, something much closer to the communities. Listening first, and we hope we can do something significant there with the communities and only with them."

The payment structure links Mineros' outlay to licensing progress, so the company pays for Tolima as Official Mining Plan tonnage and environmental license milestones are met. Community engagement and the Páramo proceedings will decide how much of the historical estimate can move toward a current resource.

7. Index Membership Puts a High-Margin, Low-Multiple Producer Before Global Gold Funds

Mineros is a constituent of the MVIS Global Junior Gold Miners Index, the Solactive and Sprott Junior Gold Miners ETFs, the FTSE Global Equity Series (Small Cap), and the S&P/TSX Global Mining Index, among others. On the company's figures, the stock trades at 1.3 times price to revenues and 2.5 times enterprise value to EBITDA, with a company-calculated return on capital employed of 62%. Its first-half 2026 adjusted EBITDA margin of 46.6% compares with a 47.4% peer median.

At a share price of C$8.1 on September 11, 2026, Mineros had a market capitalization of C$2.7 billion. Research coverage lists target prices of C$9.50 from SCP Resource Finance and C$11.00 from Atrium Research.

Index funds now hold a producer whose margins match the peer median and whose multiples sit well below it. The reputation ranking, the Hemco partnership, and the Porvenir permit give fund holders operating evidence on the jurisdiction question for Colombian and Nicaraguan assets.

Key Takeaways for Investors

• Mineros ranks 1st among gold companies in Colombia's 2026 reputation study, with sector executives and workers both placing it 3rd.
• In Nicaragua, 83% of Hemco's first-half 2026 ore came from the Bonanza Mining Partnership under a 3-party agreement that includes local governments.
• Porvenir received its major tailings environmental permits ahead of the end-of-2026 guidance, and final permits are the next permitting marker.
• The Tolima historical estimate is unverified, the Páramo delineation proceedings may affect part of it, and the acquisition payments depend on mining plan tonnage and environmental license milestones.
• The stock trades at 2.5 times enterprise value to earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, with a first-half adjusted margin on that measure of 46.6% against a 47.4% peer median.

Bottom Line

Mineros is now held in junior gold indexes with a reputation score from Colombian officials, workers, and executives, a government-backed artisanal supply model in Nicaragua, and an early environmental permit at its main growth project. Porvenir's final permits and Tolima's community process are the 2 tests of whether that social license extends from the producing assets to the growth pipeline, and Porvenir's NPV5% of US$460 million depends on the first.