Le Cuivre

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Le marché du cuivre en train de passer d'un léger surplus à un petit manque en 2024 :

The world’s copper supply is suddenly looking scarce

Bloomberg News | December 11, 2023 |

A forecast surplus of copper going into 2024 has suddenly all but disappeared.


The next couple of years were supposed to be a time of plenty for copper, thanks to a series of big new projects starting up around the world. The expectation across most of the industry was for a comfortable surplus before the market tightens again later this decade, when surging demand for electric vehicles and renewable energy infrastructure is expected to collide with a lack of new mines.

Instead the mining industry has highlighted how vulnerable supply can be — whether due to political and social opposition, the difficulty of developing new operations, or simply the day-to-day challenge of pulling rocks up from deep beneath the earth.

In the past two weeks, one of the world’s biggest copper mines was ordered to close in the face of fierce public protests, while a slew of operational setbacks has forced one of the leading miners to slash its production forecasts.

The sudden removal of around 600,000 tons of expected supply would move the market from a large expected surplus into balance, or even a deficit, analysts say. And it’s also a major warning for the future: copper is an essential metal needed to decarbonize the global economy, which means mining companies will play a key role in facilitating the shift to green energy.

While the price reaction to the supply disruptions has so far been muted — amidst ongoing worries about China’s property sector — any sign of demand recovery would hit a tight market.

Last week, Panama’s government formally ordered First Quantum Minerals Ltd. to end all operations at its $10 billion copper mine in the country. The order followed weeks of protests and political wrangling that came to a head when the country’s Supreme Court invalidated the law that underpinned its mining license. The giant Cobre Panama can produce about 400,000 tons of copper a year.

As the market was digesting the news that one of the biggest mines was closing (at least for now), Anglo American Plc delivered its own production bombshell on Friday with the announcement that it will slash production from its flagship copper business in South America.

While problems at its platinum and iron ore mines in South Africa were well publicized, the copper cuts caught investors off guard, sending the company’s shares plunging by 19%. Anglo has reduced its copper production target for next year by about 200,000 tons, essentially removing the equivalent of a large copper mine from global supply. Production will fall even further in 2025.


BMO Capital Markets, which was forecasting a large surplus of refined copper next year, now sees a small deficit instead. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. — which has been much more bullish on copper and already forecast a deficit of refined metal for 2024, now sees that shortfall ballooning to more than half a million tons. Jefferies also now expects a major deficit next year.

“The supply cuts reinforce our view that the copper market is entering a period of much clearer tightening,” Goldman analysts including Nicholas Snowdon said.

The expectation for a looser market in the near term has weighed on prices for much of this year, leaving copper drifting sideways. In early October, the International Copper Study Group said it expects a surplus of 467,000 tons next year — its largest forecast for a glut since 2014.

Live copper inventories on the London Metal Exchange had surged since mid-year to a two-year high, but have now retreated for three straight weeks.

“Disruptions have significantly increased, and a market deficit is now increasingly likely,” said Jefferies. “We could be at the foothills of the next copper cycle.”

https://www.mining.com/web/the-worlds-c ... ng-scarce/

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De plus en plus de cuivre raffiné en Indonésie :

Mitsubishi, Freeport completes copper smelter expansion in Indonesia

Reuters JAKARTA 14th December 2023

Indonesian copper smelter operator PT Smelting, a joint venture between Mitsubishi Minerals Corp and PT Freeport Indonesia, inaugurated on Thursday an expansion in capacity of its smelter facility in East Java.

The processing capacity was expanded to 1.3-million metric tons of copper concentrate, from 1-million tons previously. It was unclear when production at the expanded facility would commence.

The expansion was to meet demand for domestic processing of copper concentrates as Indonesia is set to ban exports of the raw material next year.

Combined with Freeport's upcoming $3-billion smelter in another part of East Java, Indonesia will have smelting capacity of three-million tonnes per year next year, said President Joko Widodo at the inauguration.

"This means value add will be created in Indonesia and new industries will emerge, such as for copper coil that is currently in development process," Jokowi, as the president is known, said.

Development of processing industries for Indonesia's natural resources is the main economic agenda for Jokowi, whose second term in office will end next year.

https://www.miningweekly.com/article/mi ... 2023-12-14

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Un nouveau projet de retraitement de ''déchets'' miniers de surface pour en extraire à nouveau du Cuivre, en Zambie.

Copper to be recovered from yet another on-surface copper resource in Zambia

JSE AltX company Jubilee Metals, in partnership with International Resources Holding (IRH) of the United Arab Emirates, is to recover copper from the estimated 350-million tonnes of dumped material, which early preliminary surface sampling results indicate has zones with grades higher than 1.5% copper.

Processing by Jubilee’s newly developed modular copper units aims to produce, from this historical waste rock dump, more than 20 000 t/y of copper at below $4 000/t of copper.

Overall project costs, taking in mining equipment and project infrastructure, are likely to be about $50-million.

Construction is expected to begin in the first quarter of next year, with commissioning 12 months after commencement.
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https://www.miningweekly.com/article/co ... 2023-12-12

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Antofagasta goes ahead with $4.4 billion Centinela expansion

Cecilia Jamasmie | December 20, 2023

Chilean miner Antofagasta is going ahead with the planned $4.4 billion construction of a second concentrator at its Centinela copper mine in the country’s north, which will add 170,000 tonnes copper-equivalent a year to the company’s overall production.


The miner said that early works will begin immediately, with full construction expected to start after definitive project finance documents have been executed during the first quarter of 2024.

SIGN UP FOR THE COPPER DIGEST

Chief executive Iván Arriagada said that first copper from the project is expected in 2027. It noted that this addition would help Antofagasta to progress towards its long-term ambition of 900,000 tonnes of profitable copper production and make of Centinela one of the world’s top 15 copper mines by output.

“The Centinela Second Concentrator project is a key element of our profitable growth strategy,” Arriagada said. “It will also reduce net cash costs and unlock significant value in the Centinela district’s two-billion-tonne ore reserve.”

The executive noted that the new 95,000 tonnes per day concentrator will add 144,000 tonnes of copper production, 130,000 ounces of gold production and 3,500 tonnes of molybdenum production for 36 years.

The project will be financed through a combination of direct funding from Centinela’s shareholders Antofagasta and Marubeni Corporation, which will provide about 40% of total funding, and project finance provided by lenders, the company said.
..................

https://www.mining.com/antofagasta-goes ... expansion/

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RDC : Ivanhoe Mines exporte ses premières tonnes de cuivre via le corridor de Lobito en Angola

Agence Ecofin 3 janv 2024

Le corridor de Lobito est un ensemble d’infrastructures ferroviaires et portuaires reliant le sud de la RDC, et le nord de la Zambie, à l’océan Atlantique à travers l’Angola. Son exploitation pour exporter la production congolaise et zambienne de cuivre réduira les coûts et délais d’expédition.

Ivanhoe Mines a annoncé le 2 janvier l’expédition des premières tonnes de cuivre du complexe Kamoa-Kakula à travers le corridor de Lobito. Il s’agit d’une cargaison de concentré de cuivre d’environ 1 110 tonnes qui a été transportée par rail, fin décembre 2023, depuis Kolwezi en RDC jusqu’au port de Lobito en Angola, sur la côte Atlantique.

Cette première cargaison s’inscrit dans le cadre d’un essai qui verra la compagnie minière canadienne en transporter jusqu’à 10 000 tonnes par ce corridor, qui passe à moins de 5 km de Kamoa-Kakula. Cela permettra de collecter des informations sur des facteurs comme le temps de transit, les coûts et les économies de gaz à effet de serre. Actuellement, les trajets les plus utilisés par Ivanhoe Mines et qui mènent aux ports de Durban (Afrique du Sud) et de Dar es Salam (Tanzanie) sont environ deux fois plus longs que le trajet via le corridor de Lobito.

« Notre première expédition d’essai est une étape importante sur la voie de la création d’une nouvelle chaîne d’approvisionnement reliant la ceinture de cuivre d’Afrique centrale aux marchés mondiaux », souligne Robert Friedland, coprésident exécutif d’Ivanhoe Mines.

Il faut rappeler que le corridor de Lobito est stratégique non seulement pour la RDC, mais aussi pour la Zambie, deuxième producteur africain de cuivre. Cela justifie l’intérêt des États-Unis et de l’Union européenne qui, désireux d’assurer l’approvisionnement de leurs industries pour ce métal indispensable à la transition énergétique, ont signé en 2023 plusieurs accords pour le développement de ce corridor.

https://www.agenceecofin.com/transport/ ... -en-angola

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suite de ce post du 8 oct 2023 http://www.oleocene.org/phpBB3/viewtopi ... 7#p2377967

Cordoba rises on $40 million for Colombian copper project

Henry Lazenby | January 4, 2024 |

Shares in Cordoba Minerals (TSXV: CDB) gained on Thursday after it received a second tranche of $40 million from China-based partner JCHX Mining Management to advance its Alacran copper project in Colombia.

The latest installment from JCHX bolsters Cordoba’s financial standing as it seeks to reorganize its debt and advance the project near Bogotá and Medellín past a feasibility study and environmental impact assessment (EIA) submitted in December. The funding kickstarts detailed mine engineering targeted for completion by the end of June.


Cordoba closed at C$0.36 on Thursday in Toronto, up 4.3%, for a market capitalization of C$32 million. The shares had traded 23% higher early in the session, although they’re still down 27% over the past 12 months.

The open-pit project, expected to become Colombia’s largest copper mine, is a key component of the San Matias land package and the government has declared it a “project of national interest.” JCHX Mining Management acquired a half interest in the project in late 2022 for $100 million to be paid in three instalments. The final payment of $20 million is due after approval of the feasibility study and EIA.

Ivanhoe-backed

Cordoba used a portion of the funds to clear a $4 million bridge loan previously extended by its majority shareholder, Ivanhoe Electric (TSX: IE), as a convertible debenture.

Further, Cordoba is slated to repay an equal-value short-term loan from JCHX as outlined in a Nov. 8 agreement.

The Alacran feasibility study details a $420.4 million copper project with a 14.2-year mine life.

The study projects an after-tax net present value of $360 million, an internal rate of return of 23.8%, and a three-year payback period. These figures largely align with a 2022 prefeasibility study.

The project boasts probable reserves of 97.9 million tonnes at 0.42% copper, 0.24 grams gold per tonne and 2.69 grams silver per tonne, yielding 797.2 million lb. of copper, 550,000 oz. of gold, and 5.35 million oz. of silver.

https://www.mining.com/cordoba-rises-on ... r-project/

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suite de ce post du 7 octobre 2023 http://www.oleocene.org/phpBB3/viewtopi ... 7#p2377897

RDC : la production du complexe de cuivre Kamoa-Kakula a augmenté de 18 % en 2023

Agence Ecofin 9 janvier 2024

Premier producteur africain de cuivre, la RDC a vu ses performances progresser significativement ces dernières années, au point de ravir en 2022 le statut de troisième producteur mondial du métal rouge à la Chine. La mine Kamoa-Kakula, entrée en production en 2021, contribue à ces performances.

Le complexe congolais de cuivre Kamoa-Kakula a livré 393 551 tonnes de concentré de cuivre en 2023. C’est l’annonce faite le 8 janvier 2024 par son propriétaire canadien, Ivanhoe Mines qui précise qu’il s’agit d’une hausse de 18 % en glissement annuel, conformément à ses objectifs de produire au moins 390 000 tonnes.

Avec cette performance, Kamoa-Kakula s’installe surtout parmi les plus grandes mines de cuivre de RDC, poursuivant son chemin vers le statut de plus grande mine du pays et deuxième plus grande au monde dans quelques années. En 2024, Ivanhoe veut faire mieux, notamment avec la mise en service au troisième trimestre d’un troisième concentrateur pour le traitement. La nouvelle usine permettra à Kamoa-Kakula d’atteindre une production située entre 440 et 490 000 tonnes de concentré de cuivre cette année.

Pour rappel, le complexe est une coentreprise à parts égales entre Ivanhoe Mines et le chinois Zijin Mining, respectivement à 39,6 % d’intérêts. Le gouvernement congolais détient 20 % dans le projet, contre 0,8 % pour Crystal River Global Limited. À pleine capacité de production, Kamoa-Kakula devrait livrer plus de 800 000 tonnes de concentré de cuivre par an.

https://www.agenceecofin.com/cuivre/090 ... 18-en-2023

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suite de ce post du 17 decembre 2023 http://www.oleocene.org/phpBB3/viewtopi ... 6#p2381796

Zijin Mining invests $97 million in Solaris Resources for a 15% stake

Staff Writer | January 11, 2024 |


Solaris Resources’ Warintza project in Ecuador. Credit: Solaris Resources

An affiliate of Chinese Zijin Mining Group is investing about C$130 million (about $97m) in Solaris Resources (TSX: SLS) via the recent private placement of common shares. Solaris intends to use the funds to advance its flagship Warintza copper project in southeast Ecuador.


Zijin will purchase approximately 28.5 million shares of Solaris at a price of C$4.55 each, a 14% premium to the closing price at the end of day Jan. 10. Upon closing, Zijin will own about 15% of the Canadian company and will appoint a member of the board.

The Warintza property is located close to all infrastructure, including the hydroelectric power grid. The in-pit indicated resource is 379 million tonnes grading 0.47% copper, 0.03% molybdenum, and 0.05 g/t gold (0.59% copper equivalent). The indicated resource is 887 million tonnes at 0.39% copper, 0.01% molybdenum, and 0.04 g/t gold (0.47% copper equivalent).

Solaris has also outlined a high-grade starter pit at Warintza central of 180 million indicated tonnes grading 0.67% copper, 0.03% molybdenum, and 0.07 g/t gold (0.82% copper equivalent). There are also 107 million inferred tonnes at 0.64% copper, 0.02% molybdenum, and 0.05 g/t gold (0.73% copper equivalent.

The company says it plans to publish updated resource numbers by the middle of this year.

The Warintza deposit was discovered by David Lowell in 2000 but sat dormant for two decades due to a breakdown in social acceptance from local communities. In mid-2019, Solaris undertook extensive dialogue to understand the root causes of conflict and to resolve them. An impact and benefits agreement was signed in 2020 and updated in 2022.

Solaris Resources’ stock was up 4.2% midday Thursday in Toronto, capitalizing the company at C$625.1 million ($466.1m)

https://www.mining.com/zijin-mining-inv ... -15-stake/

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Un nouveau prospect de cuivre et Zinc en Alaska, the Palmer Project

American Pacific Reports Most Significant Copper Drill Intersections To-Date at Its Palmer VMS Project, Including 43.8 Metres of 6.54% and 23.9 Metres of 9.03% Copper

American Pacific Mining Corp.

Thu, January 11, 2024
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https://finance.yahoo.com/news/repeat-a ... 00079.html

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suite de ce post du 26 sept 2021 http://www.oleocene.org/phpBB3/viewtopi ... 6#p2327356

QC Copper says Opemiska resource tops 1.88 billion lb. copper, 915,000 oz. gold

By Marilyn Scales January 8, 2024

QC Copper and Gold (TSXV: QCCU) has updated the resource estimate for its Opemiska project to Over 1.88 billion lb. of copper and 915,000 oz. of gold. The project is located in the Chapais-Chibougamau district of Quebec.

The pit-constrained measured and indicated resource is 87.3 million tonnes grading 0.77% copper (0.93% copper equivalent), containing 1.49 billion lb. copper, 762,000 oz. of gold, and 762,000 oz. of silver. The pit-constrained inferred resource is 9.8 million tonnes at 0.48% copper (0.59% copper equivalent), containing 104 million lb. copper, 55,000 oz. of gold, and 689,000 oz. of silver. A cut-off of 0.15% copper equivalent was used in this estimate.

Opemiska also has out-of-pit resources calculated with a cut-off of 0.8% copper equivalent. The measured and indicated portion is 10.1 million tonnes grading 1.20% copper (1.37% copper equivalent), containing 268 million lb. of copper, 83,000 oz. of gold, and 5.5 million oz. of silver. The inferred portion is 11.0 million tonnes at 0.53% copper (0.54% copper equivalent), containing 127 million lb. of copper, 70,000 oz. of gold, and 907,000 oz. of silver.

"We are proud to deliver to shareholders an MRE that defines Canada's highest grade copper open pit deposit,” said QC Copper CEO and chair Stephen Stewart. “This MRE details the immense value of owning such a sizable, high-grade asset with excellent accessibility and infrastructure. Furthermore, QC Copper and Gold's Opemiska is in the heart of NW Quebec, a stable mining jurisdiction, where we see Opemiska as the anchor to revitalizing the storied Chapais-Chibougamau copper-gold district in Eastern Canada.”

The project has a starter pit of 19.1 million tonnes at 1.1% copper equivalent and confirmed potential to expand the pit and go underground. Potential satellite pits to the east as well as the former Cooke and Robitaille mines have been identified. As well, preliminary metallurgical tests have confirmed favourable recovery characteristics.

The Opemiska project includes the former Springer and Perry copper-gold mines, operated by Falconbridge from 1953 to 1991. Together they produced 23 million tonnes of ore grading 2.4% copper and 0.3 g/t gold. QC Copper acquired the property in 2021, and the company is aiming to outline resources containing at least 2 billion lb. of copper equivalent.

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/n ... 0-oz-gold/

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confirmation de ce post du 26 nov 2023 http://www.oleocene.org/phpBB3/viewtopi ... 4#p2380734

Codelco to invest $720 million more in Chuquicamata copper mine

Reuters | January 18, 2024 |

Chile’s state-owned Codelco, the world’s largest copper producer, submitted an environmental permit request on Thursday to modify its Chuquicamata Subterranea project at a cost of $720 million.


“The general objective of the project is to incorporate optimizations to the original project and modifications in order to ensure that the operation of MCHS (Chuquicamata) can reach the authorized production” of 140,000 tons per day, the request read.

The modifications include two new extraction tunnels for ventilation, fuel and electricity installations, new haulage sublevels and an access tunnel.

Chuquicamata Subterranea is an ambitious project to extend the open-pit copper mine’s lifespan by converting it into an underground operation. The project has faced years of significant delays and cost overruns.

Codelco’s production has fallen to its lowest level in 25 years due to operational problems and delays in its expansion projects, but its top executives have given assurances that production will begin to recover this year.

https://www.mining.com/web/codelco-to-i ... pper-mine/

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suite de ce post du 12 nov 2023 http://www.oleocene.org/phpBB3/viewtopi ... 9#p2380039

Taseko Accelerates Florence Copper Mine with $50M Royalty Deal

january 2024

Taseko Mines Limited has inked a deal with Taurus Mining Solutions Fund that would allow it to speed up construction of its Florence copper mine in Arizona.

https://www.mining.com/subscribe-login/?id=1137122

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suite de ce post du 25 juin 2023 http://www.oleocene.org/phpBB3/viewtopi ... 2#p2372212

Marimaca stock up on new drill results at its copper project in the Antofagasta region

January 15, 2024

Marimaca Copper stock rose on Monday after the company announced the completion of the infrastructure condemnation drilling program at its flagship copper project located in the Antofagasta region of Chile.

The program was designed to test and confirm the planned site layout to be incorporated into the company’s ongoing permitting and Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) workstreams.

Key drilling highlights include the results from drill hole SLR-08, located south of the planned plant facilities in the San Lorenzo district. This particular drill hole intersected 30 meters at 0.99% copper (CuT) from a depth of 62 meters within a broader zone of 68 meters at 0.51% copper (CuT) from the same depth.


The Marimaca Oxide Project DFS remains on schedule for late 2024 completion with permit submissions targeting the middle of 2024, the company said.

“The discovery of a new mineralized trend identified in the San Lorenzo area will be evaluated further to determine next steps, but it appears the core zone extends to the south away from the project’s infrastructure and offers an interesting target for shallow oxide mineralization,” said Marimaca CEO Hayden Locke.

“Further afield, we have completed a review of our broader exploration package and have identified several areas with exciting potential. We are finalizing 2024 exploration plans particularly for the Sierra de Medina project and will update as new developments occur,”

Since its discovery in 2016, Marimaca has more than doubled the deposit’s resource, most recently estimated at 200 million tonnes grading 0.45% copper for 900,000 tonnes of metal in the measured and indicated category. It also contains an inferred resource of 37 million tonnes grading 0.38% copper for 141,000 tonnes.

During the first six years of mining, the open-pit, heap-leach project is expected to deliver 40,000 tonnes of copper cathodes annually. Total recovered copper over the entire 12-year mine life is approximately 430,000 tonnes.

https://minelistings.com/mine-news/mari ... ta-region/

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suite de ce post du 23 janvier 2022 http://www.oleocene.org/phpBB3/viewtopi ... 9#p2335679

Ecuador’s El Domo-Curipamba project receives environmental licence
The environmental licensing process for El Domo-Curipamba began on 4 November 2021.

January 23, 2024

https://www.mining-technology.com/news/ ... e/?cf-view

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le cours du Cuivre sur un an :



https://markets.businessinsider.com/com ... pper-price