Toronto, Canada - McEwen Mining Inc. is reeling from an armed robbery at its El Gallo operation in Mexico, where the thieves made off with about US$8.5-million worth of concentrate containing about 7,000 ounces of the precious metal.

McEwen said its insurance policies will not be enough to cover the losses.

Its shares were down about 6.7 per cent in early trading Wednesday.

McEwen said no one was injured and mining operations were not affected, but did not provide any more details about the robbery is under investigation by Mexican authorities.

McEwen said that the theft occurred on Tuesday at the El Gallo 1 mine and involved 900 kilograms of gold-bearing concentrate, which requires further processing before it becomes gold metal.

Besides Mexico, McEwen also has operations in Nevada and Argentina.