Taseko fires up Arizona Florence copper mine

[Ben Graham]

Canada’s Taseko Mines (NYSE: TGB)(TSX: TKO) has begun wellfield operations at its Florence copper project in Arizona, marking the start of commercial production at the facility, part of one of the few new sources of refined copper coming online in the United States.

The company expects to produce its first copper cathode within three months. Its solvent extraction and electrowinning (SX/EW) plant reached substantial completion on Sept. 19, it said, with construction crews now demobilizing as commissioning proceeds in tandem with wellfield operations. 

President and CEO Stuart McDonald called the milestone a major achievement by the Arizona-based construction team, which completed the facility in under two years. 

“With copper prices approaching record levels, and a growing focus on security of critical mineral supply, the timing is ideal to bring on a major new source of refined copper inside the US,” McDonald said.

Taseko’s announcement comes as global demand for copper is projected to climb 24% by 2035, from 34.5 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) to 42.7 Mtpa, according to consultancy Wood Mackenzie. Its latest Horizons report warns that additional disruptors could push demand up by another 3 Mtpa, roughly 40% of total growth, heightening market volatility.

Production at home

In British Columbia, Taseko’s Gibraltar mine is on track to produce between 120 and 130 million pounds of copper this year. Third-quarter output reached 27.6 million pounds of copper, including 900,000 pounds of cathode and 560,000 pounds of molybdenum. This represents an increase of 39% and 211%, respectively, from the previous quarter. 

Gibraltar mine. (Image courtesy of Taseko Mines.)

The company, which sold 26.3 million pounds of copper during the period, said mill throughput reached its design capacity of 85,300 tonnes per day. Copper recoveries averaged 77% in the third quarter and improved to 83% in September. Although head grades of 0.22% were below plan, they still represented a meaningful rebound from earlier quarters.

Taseko also holds two other copper assets in BC: the Yellowhead project, now in the environmental permitting phase, and a 77.5% stake in the New Prosperity property near Williams Lake.