Mining and milling operations were suspended on June 25 after 19 workers tested positive for covid-19. One person has been admitted to intensive care and is currently in stable condition, the company said.

The restart of Santander is expected to take approximately two weeks to reach stable production levels.

In late March, the company temporarily suspended its Caribou zinc-lead-silver mine in New Brunswick, Canada, due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The Santander mine is located approximately 215 kilometres northeast of Lima, Peru and is comprised of an underground mine, a 2,000-tonne-per-day processing mill, a conventional sulphide flotation mill, and associated infrastructure.