Hot Chili at Precious Metals Summit Beaver Creek 2026: la verde lifts outlook

On Wednesday, 23 September 2026, Hot Chili (HCH) presented its Costa Fuego copper project at the Precious Metals Summit in Beaver Creek, emphasizing that the project has reached a turning point with the addition of the La Verde asset. Management highlighted how La Verde has increased the project's scale and economics, with a projected 50% boost in bulk tonnage inventory.

HCH expects the combined project to extend mine life to 30 years and increase annual copper equivalent production to approximately 150,000 tonnes. The CEO stated that the project could move toward quartile-one cash costs due to low strip ratios, coastal infrastructure, and seawater processing. Hot Chili noted that while the stock has re-rated sharply, it still trades at a 2.5x discount to North American peers on similar metrics.

Key milestones include an environmental impact assessment due by the end of Q1 2025, final investment decision in 2029, and first production in 2031. The CEO emphasized that Hot Chili has spent 15 years developing Costa Fuego and that the company is now entering a more favorable phase of the copper cycle.