Mexico Spends Over 42 Million Pesos on Legal Advisers for Canadian Mining Dispute

Mexico City — The Mexican government has awarded five contracts worth 42.1 million pesos to consulting firms for legal advice in an international arbitration case filed by Canadian mining companies Almaden Minerals Ltd. and Almadex Minerals Ltd.

The companies initiated the case, numbered ARB/24/23, in 2024 at the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). They allege Mexico violated the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) after authorities revoked two mining concessions in the northern highlands of Puebla. The companies seek at least $200 million in compensation plus interest.

The Economy Department, led by Marcelo Ebrard, hired the advisers for a two-year period covering 2026 and 2027 to help defend against the claim.

The contracts include:

• 1.3 million pesos to Mexican lawyer Fabian María Aguinaco Bravo for expertise in administrative law, particularly regarding concession reviews.
• $1.83 million (approximately 31.3 million pesos) to U.S. firm Quadrant Economics to assess potential economic damages from this case and another ICSID case, ARB/24/21, involving Bacanora Lithium Limited, Sonora Lithium Ltd., and Ganfeng International Trading.
• $386,375 (about 6.6 million pesos) to Canadian consultancy Watts, Griffis and Mcouat Limited for mining industry expertise focused on gold and silver.
• 1.85 million pesos to Mexican consultant Carlos Federico del Razo Ochoa for social impact expertise, especially concerning rural or indigenous communities.
• 736,600 pesos to Gabriela Torres Mazuera for environmental law and regulatory expertise, particularly on environmental impact assessments.

According to technical annexes in the contracts, all advisers must prepare reports for Mexico’s submissions to the ICSID tribunal. Their specific tasks vary by specialty.

Aguinaco will analyze the legal framework of the Ixtaca Project under Mexican mining law and review an injunction filed by the indigenous community of Tecoltemi that led to the concession cancellations.

Quadrant Economics must evaluate the sufficiency and relevance of data supporting the claimants’ economic damage assessment and provide opinions on Mexico’s tribunal submissions.

Del Razo Ochoa will focus on environmental law reports to counter the claimants’ arguments, while Torres Mazuera will advise on issues related to indigenous peoples and communities.