Energy and Mines grants Calichal a quarry concession in La …

The General Directorate of Energy, Hydrocarbons, and Mines granted the company Calichal, S.A. de C.V. the concession for the exploitation of stone material in the quarry “Holcim Concretos Planta La Paz”, for a term of five years. The resolution is contained in Agreement No. 16/2026/DHM/M, issued on September 2, 2026, and published in the Official Gazette Volume No. 452, Number 180, corresponding to September 29, 2026, pages 25 to 28. The authorized area is located at kilometer 41 of the old road to Zacatecoluca, canton El Tunal, district of El Rosario, municipality of La Paz Centro, department of La Paz.

The legal framework of the decision

The concession is based on the Mining Law —articles 37 number 2, 38, 39, 40, 42, and 43— and on articles 2 number 2, 33, and 34 of its Regulations, as well as article 16 of the Law for the Creation of the General Directorate of Energy, Hydrocarbons, and Mines, in effect since November 8, 2022. This regulatory body transferred to the General Directorate the competencies previously exercised by the Ministry of Economy regarding hydrocarbons and mines.

The file records that on September 26, 2025, the recognition inspection of the area was carried out with a favorable result, and the application was admitted thereafter. Once the legal publications were completed and no opposition was filed, the surveying and boundary marking works were verified through inspections and photographic reports dated April 21 and June 30, 2026.

Concession figures

Area to be exploited: 21,338.05 square meters.
Volume to be extracted: 116,567.53 cubic meters.
Properties containing it: three, with a total surface area of 162,548.03 square meters.
Term: five years, counted from the day following the publication of the agreement in the Official Gazette.
Performance bond: 12,000 United States dollars, in favor of the State and Government of El Salvador, valid for five years from July 21, 2026.

Exploitation method and technical design

The project consists of open-pit sand extraction using heavy machinery; due to the geological characteristics of the site, the use of explosives is not required. The geological evaluation delimited three main formations: Quaternary sedimentary deposits Qf’ associated with alluvial terraces of the Jiboa River, Pleistocene acidic pyroclastics (Cuscatlán Formation), and Pliocene basic effusives (Bálsamo Formation).

The design provides for vertical cuts by levels of berms and terraces, in descending order from the average upper elevation of 80 meters above sea level to the lower elevation of 68. Slopes of three meters in height will be formed, with an angle between slopes of 70 degrees, a final angle of repose of 25 degrees, and berms five meters wide with a one percent slope. Progress is distributed by year: the first in the Northeast sector, from level 80 to 74; the second toward the Southwest; the third and fourth in levels 74 and 71; and the fifth with the final configuration in the Northeast, East, Southeast, South, West, and Southwest sectors. The infrastructure will be of a mobile type: offices, bathrooms, warehouses, laboratories, dining room-kitchen, billing booth, and security booth.

Obligations, deadlines, and guarantees

Accept the agreement in writing within eight business days and publish it in the Official Gazette at the expense of the concessionaire company.
Register the agreement in the corresponding registries, pursuant to Article 49, third paragraph of the Mining Law.
Keep the environmental permit and the bond in effect throughout the duration of the concession.
Sign the exploitation contract within fifteen business days.
Begin operations within a maximum of six months after the signing of the contract.
Request any extension at least three months prior to the expiration of the term.
Recondition the land upon completion of extraction, cover transported material with tarps, control particle emissions, and keep the boundary markers delimiting the area visible.

Representation and processing

The proceedings were initially promoted by Arnoldo José Castillo Castillo, legal representative and sole managing owner of the company, and continued by Guillermo Alberto Torres Granados, who acts in the temporary absence of the former after being elected in a vacancy call. The agreement bears the signature of Daniel Alejandro Álvarez Campos, ad-honorem general director, and was recorded under Registry No. F49131.

The concession enables Calichal, S.A. de C.V. to extract sand in a corridor of the Jiboa River valley for five years, with an authorized volume exceeding 116 thousand cubic meters destined for the construction sector. For the communities of El Tunal and El Rosario, the agreement establishes verifiable environmental and road safety obligations—particle control, tarps on trucks, signage at the access to the old road to Zacatecoluca—and conditions the validity of the concession on the maintenance of the environmental permit and the bond, such that non-compliance opens the way for revocation.

Source: Official Gazette, Volume No. 452, Number 180, September 29, 2026, Autonomous Institutions section, pp. 25-28 (official reference: Agreement No. 16/2026/DHM/M, Registry No. F49131).