The mining record of Honduras
175 concessions in INHGEOMIN's 2026 cadastre, 87 of them at the exploitation stage, held by 122 named concessionaires; 701 dated records back to 1938 in the 2020 layer; and at least 28 mining deaths reported by the Honduran press.
The Instituto Hondureño de Geología y Minas publishes no data on its own site; its cadastre is served instead by a GeoServer at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Honduras, open to anyone, as a family of yearly layers. The 2026 layer says who holds what today: holder, stage (explore or exploit), class and hectares. The 2020 layer says since when and for what: registration dates back to El Mochito's 1938 grant, minerals, municipalities and departments, including the artisanal and small-mining classes the later layers drop. A departmental employment layer is the only denominator. No layer carries an RTN, Honduras's tax id, so holders are matched by name only. What no agency publishes is an inspection, a sanction or an accident record: the deaths here come from Spanish-language press, which names the mine (El Mochito, El Corpus) often enough to join a formal-mine death to its operator, so every count is a floor.
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The current layer's estado is the stage: Explotar (a mining concession) or Explorar (an exploration concession); it does not say whether the title is granted or applied for.175 concessions and applications held by 122 named concessionaires in the Catastro_Minero_2026 layer (last refreshed Nov 4, 2026), synced weekly; the layer carries no dates, no minerals and no place, which the 2020 layer supplies where the code and name match.
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A row in the Concesiones_Mineras_2020 layer, the only one with registration dates, minerals and places; its 950 features fold to about 700 records because a multi-part polygon repeats its code.ⓘ
Rows the 2020 layer classes Artesanal Metálica or Artesanal No Metálica: concessions held by artisanal miners' groups, the closest thing Honduras publishes to an artisanal register.Registration dates from 1938 to Jan 7, 2021, minerals, municipalities and departments, from the Concesiones_Mineras_2020 layer (last refreshed Nov 4, 2026); the 2023 layer adds a stage and a department to the years between.
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Counted from press headlines only; Honduras publishes no official per-fatality mining record, so the true number is undoubtedly higher.ⓘ
Events the headline itself places in an artisanal, informal or illegal working (güiriseros), as against a named company's mine.Spanish-language headlines naming Honduran mines and places from 2014 to Oct 26, 2026, read daily through Google News (last pull Nov 4, 2026) and classified by a language model against the headline's own words.
INHGEOMIN publishes no inspections, sanctions or accidents, and the Secretaría de Trabajo and the IHSS publish none either. Asked under the Ley de Transparencia y Acceso a la Información Pública, INHGEOMIN delivered its inspection register and its resolutions file (both below) and refused its accident register, and its reports on El Mochito in 2024, in these words:
“Conforme al Artículo 53 literal h) de la Ley General de Minería, además de los artículos 46 y 47 en sus numerales 2 de Exploración y 4 de Explotación, esta información gozará de confidencialidad.”
Its MAPE coordination says its database records no accident, death or injury in artisanal or illegal mining. Its Unidad de Desarrollo Social keeps no accident register for bancos de préstamo. For San Juan Arriba, El Corpus (2014), it points to the Ministerio Público, COPECO and the Secretaría de Seguridad.
Filed September 17, 2026 by email to INHGEOMIN; answered in part on October 2, 2026 (memoranda UT-402 to UT-405-2026).
308 inspection reports at 15 mines, 2014 to 2026, delivered on October 2, 2026 by INHGEOMIN's Unidad de Ambiente y Seguridad in answer to our request. 278 carry a concession code that is in the cadastre; 30 do not.
| Mine | Reports | Reports per year |
|---|---|---|
| San Andres (45) | 66 | 2014: 4, 2015: 6, 2016: 6, 2017: 3, 2018: 7, 2019: 6, 2020: 2, 2021: 6, 2022: 6, 2023: 6, 2024: 5, 2025: 7, 2026: 2 |
| Clavo Rico (8) | 60 | 2014: 4, 2015: 6, 2016: 5, 2017: 4, 2018: 6, 2019: 6, 2020: 2, 2021: 4, 2022: 5, 2023: 5, 2024: 5, 2025: 5, 2026: 3 |
| Mochito (3) | 57 | 2014: 4, 2015: 6, 2016: 1, 2017: 5, 2018: 6, 2019: 4, 2020: 1, 2021: 4, 2022: 7, 2023: 6, 2024: 5, 2025: 5, 2026: 3 |
| Macuelizo (67) | 41 | 2014: 3, 2015: 4, 2016: 3, 2017: 4, 2018: 3, 2019: 2, 2020: 1, 2021: 3, 2022: 4, 2023: 3, 2024: 4, 2025: 5, 2026: 2 |
| Monte Redondo (98) | 21 | 2014: 3, 2015: 3, 2016: 3, 2017: 2, 2018: 2, 2019: 1, 2022: 1, 2023: 2, 2024: 1, 2025: 1, 2026: 2 |
| Asp (543) | 10 | 2018: 1, 2021: 2, 2022: 2, 2023: 3, 2024: 2 |
| Cobra Oro (2) | 9 | 2018: 1, 2019: 2, 2021: 1, 2025: 2, 2026: 3 |
| Morelia (310) | 9 | 2014: 2, 2018: 1, 2022: 1, 2024: 2, 2025: 1, 2026: 2 |
| El Venado (435) | 8 | 2014: 1, 2017: 1, 2021: 1, 2022: 2, 2023: 2, 2024: 1 |
| Aguila Dorada (7) | 6 | 2021: 1, 2025: 2, 2026: 3 |
| Anona Gold (14) | 6 | 2025: 3, 2026: 3 |
| Raptor Mining | 5 | 2025: 2, 2026: 3 |
| Sapadril (215) | 5 | 2022: 1, 2023: 2, 2024: 1, 2025: 1 |
| Raptor Mining (4) | 4 | 2018: 1, 2019: 2, 2021: 1 |
| San Martín (99) | 1 | 2018: 1 |
Each row is a report code, the mine, its concession code and the dates of the visit. The register has no findings or result column, so a row shows that a visit happened, not what it found. It covers the large concessions only. The rows are transcribed by hand from a scan, with dates and codes as printed.
78 resolutions, 2018 to 2026, from INHGEOMIN's Secretaría General in the same answer. 57 carry a concession code that is in the cadastre; 21 do not.
| Cancellation (mostly for unpaid canon or DAC) | 71 |
| Administrative sanction | 4 |
| Suspension of activities | 2 |
| Reactivation of activities | 1 |
Every resolution that is not a cancellation, as printed:
| Date | Zone | Cause | Status | Resolution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21/02/19 | El Mochito (03) | Sanción Administrativa | Vigente | 34/2019 |
| 04/11/2021 | ASP 2 (544) | Sanción Administrativa | Cancelado | 218/2021 |
| 01/08/2023 | Guasistagua II (247) | Sanción Administrativa | Vigente | 93/2023 |
| 09/05/2024 | Sapadril (215) | Suspensión de activades | Vigente | 151/2024 |
| 27/01/2025 | Sapadril (215) | Reactivación de actividades | Vigente | 30/2025 |
| 22/05/2025 | Clavo Rico (03) | Suspensión de activades | vigente | 137/2025 |
| 7/09/2026 | San Judas (17) | Sanción Administrativa | Vigente | 161/2026 |
Cause and status are INHGEOMIN's own words. The file gives no fine amounts and no grounds for the sanctions. One row prints Clavo Rico under El Mochito's code 03; it links to neither holder.
“Hondureño pierde la vida en una mina de Santa Bárbara”
“minero muere en accidente laboral en Santa Bárbara”
“Hombre muere al interior de una mina en El Mochito, Santa Bárbara”
“Minero muere soterrado en El Mochito, Santa Bárbara”
“Muere un minero en El Mochito, Santa Bárbara”
“Incertidumbre en rescate de dos mineros en Honduras”
“Minero muere soterrado en El Corpus, Choluteca”
“Joven pierde la vida al interior de la mina “El Mochito” en Santa Bárbara”
“Minero muere repentinamente cuando laboraba en mina El Mochito en Santa Bárbara”
“Trabajador muere dentro de la mina El Mochito, en Las Vegas, Santa Bárbara”
“Reanudan labores de búsqueda de los mineros atrapados en El Corpus”
“Persiste búsqueda de ocho mineros atrapados”
Every event is one press item read by a language model: the sentence shown is the headline's own words, the holder link exists only where the headline names a cadastre concessionaire exactly, and a death at a named mine (El Mochito) joins while a death in an artisanal working (El Corpus, San Juan Arriba) does not.
| Class | Stage | Concessions | Holders | Hectares | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No Metálica | exploit | 75 | 66 | 23,954 | |
| No Metálica | explore | 59 | 36 | 15,710 | |
| Metálica | explore | 29 | 15 | 30,030 | |
| Metálica | exploit | 12 | 12 | 33,064 |
Class (metallic or non-metallic) and stage (explore or exploit) as the current layer prints them; the 2020 layer's finer classes (small mining, artisanal, banco de préstamo) are on the holder pages.
| Department | Concessions | Holders | Mining jobs | Deaths (floor) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olancho | 129 | 63 | 457 | 0 | |
| Choluteca | 106 | 52 | 900 | 5 | |
| Cortes | 84 | 71 | 360 | 0 | |
| Santa Barbara | 56 | 47 | 1,258 | 0 | |
| Comayagua | 52 | 35 | 270 | 0 | |
| Francisco Morazan | 52 | 40 | 994 | 0 | |
| El Paraiso | 37 | 25 | 258 | 0 | |
| Colon | 23 | 20 | 203 | 0 | |
| Yoro | 20 | 18 | 108 | 0 | |
| Atlantida | 17 | 11 | 95 | 0 | |
| Copan | 14 | 7 | 501 | 0 | |
| Valle | 14 | 9 | 378 | 6 | |
| Lempira | 10 | 8 | 47 | 0 | |
| El Paraíso | 8 | 3 | – | 0 | |
| Ocotepeque | 8 | 7 | 41 | 0 | |
| Francisco Morazán | 7 | 4 | – | 0 | |
| Copan Y Lempira | 5 | 5 | – | 0 | |
| Santa Bárbara | 5 | 5 | – | 5 | |
| Santa Barbara Y Lempira | 5 | 4 | – | 0 | |
| Yoro Y Cortes | 5 | 4 | – | 0 |
Dated concessions from the 2020 layer by department (the current layer carries none), mining employment from the UNAH employment layer, and press deaths by the department in the headline.
| Commodity | Concessions | Holders | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dentrítico | 97 | 78 | |
| Oro | 85 | 48 | |
| Óxido de Hierro | 29 | 22 | |
| Cobre | 22 | 9 | |
| Plata | 21 | 16 | |
| Caliza | 18 | 18 | |
| Basalto | 13 | 12 | |
| Puzolana | 12 | 9 | |
| Yeso | 10 | 10 | |
| Toba | 7 | 6 | |
| Antimonio | 6 | 5 | |
| Mármol | 5 | 5 | |
| Arcillas | 2 | 2 | |
| Detrítico | 2 | 2 |
Each mineral the 2020 layer names on a concession, counted once per concession; a concession naming five minerals counts under each.
| Concessionaire | 2026 cadastre | Dated records | Press accidents | Minerals | Departments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Galsa, S. de R.L | 10 | 3 | 0 | Dentrítico | Choluteca |
| Dise�os Y Construcciones Sandoval (DICONSSA) | 10 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Argos Honduras S. A. DE C.V | 6 | 1 | 0 | Comayagua | |
| Grupo Olancho Recursos S. de R.L | 5 | 5 | 0 | Oro | Olancho |
| Golden Spark, S.A | 5 | 4 | 0 | Olancho | |
| Minera Sierra Verde S. de R.L | 4 | 4 | 0 | Oro y Plata; Oro, Cobre | Lempira Y Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara Y Lempira |
| Minerales de Occidente S.A. de C.V | 3 | 5 | 0 | Oro, Plata | Copan |
| Ercome S.A | 3 | 4 | 0 | Basalto; Dentrítico; Toba y Basalto | Cortes, Cortes Y Santa Barbara |
| Productora de Agregados y Derivados de Concreto S.A. de C.V | 3 | 3 | 0 | Dentrítico | Cortes, Francisco Morazan |
| Asociaci�n de Balastreros y Constructores de Atl�ntida "ABACTLAN" | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Empresa Minera La Victoria S.A. DE C.V | 2 | 6 | 0 | Óxido de Hierro | Atlantida, Olancho |
| Five Stars Mining, S.A de C.V | 2 | 4 | 0 | Óxido de Hierro; Puzolana; Yeso | Francisco Morazan |
| Barro Mining S.A de C.V | 2 | 3 | 0 | Oro, Plata y Cobre; Oro, Plata, Cobre | El Paraiso |
| CONHSA PAYHSA S.A. de C.V | 2 | 3 | 0 | Dentrítico | Cortes |
| Canteras de Honduras S.A. de C.V | 2 | 2 | 0 | Basalto y Andesita; Dentrítico | Cortes, Francisco Morazan |
| Harry Stephen Panting Zelaya | 2 | 2 | 0 | Dentrítico; Óxido de Hierro | Cortes |
| Inversiones Mineras Lara | 2 | 2 | 0 | Antimonio | Olancho |
| Jose Gabriel Duarte | 2 | 2 | 0 | Toba | Cortes |
| Minas Azules, S. de R.L | 2 | 2 | 0 | Oro, Cobre | Lempira, Santa Barbara Y Lempira |
| Alquileres de Maquinaria Pesada y de Agricultura Midence | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| MINERALES Y TRITURADO ODESSA,S.A. DE C.V | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Green Global Investment S.A | 1 | 6 | 0 | Oro; Oro, Plata | Choluteca, El Paraiso Y Olancho, Olancho, Valle |
| Minas y Extracciones S.A. de C.V | 1 | 6 | 0 | Óxido de Hierro | Colon, Copan, Yoro |
| Constructora y Transportes Mary S. de R.L. de C.V | 1 | 4 | 0 | Santa Barbara, Santa Bárbara | |
| Infraestructura y Servicios Publicos "INSEP" | 0 | 14 | 0 | Choluteca, Comayagua, Copan, Cortes, El Paraiso, El Paraíso, Lempira, Lempira, Copan, Santa Barbara | |
| American Pacific Honduras S.A | 1 | 3 | 0 | Oro, Plata, Plomo, Óxido de Hierro y Cobre | Choluteca, Santa Barbara |
| Profesionales de la Construccion S.A. de C.V. (PRODECON) | 1 | 3 | 0 | Dentrítico | Cortes, Francisco Morazan |
| SOCIEDAD MERCANTIL MAQUINARIA Y PROYECTOS S.A. (MYPSA) | 1 | 3 | 0 | Dentrítico | El Paraiso, Francisco Morazan |
| Cementos del Norte S.A | 1 | 2 | 0 | Caliza | Cortes |
| Jorge Alberto Salguero Barrera | 1 | 2 | 0 | Ocotepeque |
Ranked by press events, current concessions and dated records. Every concessionaire has a page; this table shows the top of the ranking.
Instituto Hondureño de Geología y Minas (INHGEOMIN), Resoluciones de la Secretaría General sobre concesiones mineras, 2018 a 2026 (entregadas por solicitud de información pública): 78 records, fetched Oct 2, 2026. →
Instituto Hondureño de Geología y Minas (INHGEOMIN), Registro de informes de inspección de la Unidad de Ambiente y Seguridad, 2014 a 2026 (entregado por solicitud de información pública): 308 records, fetched Oct 2, 2026. →
INHGEOMIN cadastre on the UNAH GeoServer (territoriosenriesgo.unah.edu.hn, WFS), Catastro_Minero_2023: 246 records, fetched Nov 4, 2026. →
INHGEOMIN cadastre on the UNAH GeoServer (territoriosenriesgo.unah.edu.hn, WFS), Catastro_Minero_2026: 175 records, fetched Nov 4, 2026. →
INHGEOMIN cadastre on the UNAH GeoServer (territoriosenriesgo.unah.edu.hn, WFS), Concesiones_Mineras_2020: 701 records, fetched Nov 4, 2026. →
UNAH GeoServer (territoriosenriesgo.unah.edu.hn, WFS), empleo_energia_mineria: 18 records, fetched Nov 4, 2026. →
All layers are read from the UNAH GeoServer; the press through Google News RSS. The weekly read also checks for a new cadastre year.