Florence copper mine must triple output to hit Trekor target: CEO
The world’s first in-situ copper recovery operation, located 100 km southeast of Phoenix, produced 6.7 million lb. in the six months ended June 30.
Trekor Metals aims for a threefold increase in production at its Florence copper mine in Arizona by the second half of the year to meet a goal of producing at least 30 million pounds of copper annually. The mine, located southeast of Phoenix, has already produced 6.7 million pounds in the first half of 2023, with 5.2 million pounds in the second quarter.
To reach the target, Florence must deliver another 23.3 to 28.3 million pounds. CEO Stuart McDonald stated that the company plans to bring about 26 new wells online this month, leading to a faster ramp-up in production. Currently, the wellfield has an average flow of about 12,000 liters per minute, with a recovered solution grading 1.6 grams of copper per liter.
McDonald expects individual wells to meet expectations and anticipates that the wellfield could produce for about five years before shifting to another area of the orebody. The cost of production for the second quarter reached $4.72 per pound, and McDonald expects this figure to decrease later in the year. Trekor's Gibraltar mine provides financial support during the Florence mine's ramp-up, with the company expecting near-constant production levels for the next few years.
Written by urgent.news from Mining.com's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
