DPM Metals has declared commercial production at the Vareš silver-lead-zinc-gold mine in Bosnia and Herzegovina, while Eldorado Gold’s Skouries copper-gold project in northern Greece is approaching first concentrate.
Vareš advances to commercial operations
Vareš reached commercial production after maintaining more than 60% of design throughput and recovery for 30 consecutive days. Daily processing has since averaged about 72% of design capacity, with DPM targeting the full rate of approximately 850,000 tonnes of ore annually by the end of 2026.
DPM completed its acquisition of Adriatic Metals and Vareš in September 2025. The mine is expected to contribute toward the upper end of DPM’s 105,000–130,000 gold-equivalent ounce production guidance for 2026. The company is continuing investment in paste-backfill and tailings-management infrastructure as it works to increase underground development rates, maintain recoveries and sustain processing throughput.
Skouries prepares for production
Eldorado Gold’s Skouries project was approximately 97% complete at the end of June 2026, with first ore crushed during July. The company expects first copper-gold concentrate in the third quarter of 2026 and commercial production in the fourth quarter.
Development capital is estimated at approximately US$1.315 billion, with US$1.27 billion invested by the end of June. The programme also includes around US$260 million in accelerated operational capital, while the approximately €740 million Greek project-financing package has been fully drawn. Skouries is designed for an operating life of about 20 years, with expected average annual production of approximately 140,000 ounces of gold and 67 million pounds of copper. The project is now focused on commissioning, including energisation, equipment reliability, metallurgical recoveries and the transition from construction to operating teams.
