Los Chancas - Apurimac: This greenfield project, located in Apurimac, Peru, is a copper and molybdenum porphyry deposit. Current estimates of indicated copper mineral resources are 98 million tons of oxides with a copper content of 0.45% and 52 million tons of sulfides with a copper content of 0.59%. The Los Chancas project envisions an open-pit mine with a combined operation of concentrator and SX-EW processes to produce 130,000 tons of copper and 7,500 tons of molybdenum annually. The estimated capital investment is $2,600 million and the project is expected to begin operating in 2031. We continue to engage in social and environmental improvements for the local communities and are working on the project’s environmental impact assessment.
Project update: The Company continues to coordinate efforts with the Peruvian authorities to eradicate illegal mining activity. Once this process is completed, we will resume the environmental impact assessment and initiate hydrogeological as well as geotechnical studies. We also will conduct a diamond drilling campaign for 40,000 meters to gather additional information on the characteristics of the Los Chancas deposit.
Michiquillay Project - Cajamarca: In June 2018, Southern Copper signed a contract for the acquisition of the Michiquillay project in Cajamarca, Peru. Michiquillay is a world-class mining project with inferred mineral resources of 2,288 million tons and an estimated copper grade of 0.63%. When developed, we expect Michiquillay to produce 225,000 tons of copper per year (along with by-products of molybdenum, gold and silver) at a competitive cash-cost for an initial mine life of more than 25 years. We estimate an investment of approximately $2.5 billion will be required and expect production start-up by 2032. Michiquillay will become one of Peru´s largest copper mines and will create significant business opportunities in the Cajamarca region; generate new jobs for the local communities; and contribute with taxes and royalties to the local, regional and national governments.
Project update: As of June 30, 2024, total advancement on the exploration project stood at 30%. We drilled 104,000 meters (total program = 148,000 meters) and obtained 33,991 core samples for chemical analysis. Diamond drilling is underway, which will provide data for cross-section interpretation, geological modeling and resource evaluation. This month, we will begin hydrogeological studies and in August, geotechnical studies will commence. We will also assess the results of metallurgical testing at the deposit in August.
Environmental, Social & Corporate Governance (ESG) Practices
Renewable energy. On August 1st 2024, the Company will start receiving eolic energy from the Fenicias wind park, operated by Grupo Mexico Infraestructura. This will reduce our CO2 emission by approximately 250.000 tons per year, which is equivalent to 7% of SCC’s carbon footprint.
Transparency and accountability. SCC recently published its Sustainability Development Report, significantly improving the granularity and specificity of information regarding our performance, commitment, and efforts in the environmental, social, and governance areas.
Responsible production. Our Buenavista mine in Sonora, Mexico, has received The Copper Mark, The Zinc Mark and The Molybdenum Mark certifications for responsible production following a third-party independent evaluation of our performance in environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters, including human rights. Consequently, all of our open pit Mexican copper, zinc and molybdenum production has been certified with these standards.
Education. Our IMPULSA program seeks to provide our workers in Mexico with opportunities to qualify for certification of attainment of primary and secondary education and bachelors’ degrees. From 2022 to date, more than 970 people have participated in this program and 430 have graduated. At present, there are 540 workers actively participating in IMPULSA.
Human Development. The sports advisor and coach of the Sonora operations’ swimming team, Jorge Iga, qualified for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games after breaking the Mexican record for the 100-meter freestyle. Thanks to Mr. Iga's support, in 2024, 17 students from our academies participated in 6 top-level competitions.