In 2013, KPMG identified 44 major foreign mining companies operating in Mexico. Of these, the vast majority were Canadian. Many of the larger mines in the country, whether in production or in development, are Canadian-owned operations or are owned by TSX-listed mining companies.

In 2012, the value of Canada's mining assets in Mexico was about USD 21 billion, or around 14 per cent of the industry's total foreign assets of USD 149 billion. Among the opportunity areas for equipment suppliers are drills and breakers; crushing, pulverizing, and screening equipment; analytical services; compressors; geophysical instrumentation, hydraulics; and mineral processing, ore handling and transportation equipment.

Historically, the Mexican mining industry was free of royalties. In 2014, however, as part of its fiscal reforms, the government imposed a 7.5-per cent royalty on companies' EBITDA (a measure of operating income), with a further 0.5 per cent to be levied on gold and silver mining companies. In addition, the new tax regime will increase the effective marginal tax rate on mining companies' income from roughly 30 per cent to about 41 per cent. The effect of these changes on investment and activity in the sector remains to be seen.