The Deposit is hosted by a Devonian-Mississippian succession of mafic to intermediate metavolcanic rocks which are intercalated with and overlain by dark grey phyllite, sandstone and grit. The nature of the structure in the region is a complex sequence of polyphase deformation consisting of a sequence of thrust faulting, intrusionrelated folding and faulting, strike-slip and normal faulting all of which impose a complex alteration and metamorphic fabric on the rocks. At the southern edge of the Project, the Eagle Bay succession is cut by the midCretaceous Baldy batholith.

The Deposit has characteristics of a polymetallic volcanogenic sulphide deposit, comprising lenses of disseminated, fracture-filling and banded iron and copper sulphides with accessory magnetite. Mineralization is generally conformable with the host-rock stratigraphy, as it is consistent with the volcanogenic model. Sulphide lenses are observed to measure many tens of metres in thickness with km-scale strike and dip extents.

The Deposit is separated by the northeast trending Harper Creek Fault into a West Domain and East Domain. In the West Domain, chalcopyrite mineralization is primarily observed in three copper bearing horizons. The upper horizon ranges from 60m to 170m in width and is continuous along an east-west strike for some 1,320m dipping approximately 30º north.

In the East Domain, mineralization is characterized by high angle, discontinuous, tension fractures of pyrrhotite, chalcopyrite±bornite which is frequently associated with quartz carbonate gangue. At the near surface areas in the south and down dip to the north, mineralization widths typically range from 120m to 160m. In the central area of the East Domain where thrust/reverse fault stacking has been interpreted, mineralization thicknesses typically range from 220m to 260m with local intersections of up to 290m.

The Project consists of a combined electric and diesel powered open pit operation and a 70,000t/d conventional copper concentrator. The mineral reserve is estimated to be 716.2Mt with an average grade of 0.26% Cu, 0.029g/t Au and 1.18g/t Ag reported at a 0.14% Cu cutoff grade. The mineral reserve will be mined by open pit methods in five phases of pit development and expansion. The overall strip ratio is 0.76:1. The total in-pit waste is 571.7Mt. The overall mine life is 28 years after start-up of the concentrator.

Mill feed and waste will be drilled by diesel and electric powered 311mm rotary drills and blasted using heavy ammonium nitrate and fuel oil. Mill feed and waste will be loaded into 227t mine trucks by 42.0m3 electric hydraulic shovels and an 18.5m3 wheel loader. Potential acid generating waste rock (PAG) will be placed in the tailings management facility (TMF). Non acid generating waste (non-PAG) will be placed in designated disposal sites adjacent to the pit. Low grade will be stockpiled south of the plant site and in the valley south of the open pit. Direct mill feed will be hauled to the primary crusher located south of the pit. Crushed ore will be conveyed to the coarse ore stockpile and subsequently to the crushing, grinding and flotation sections of the process plant.

The Concentrator is of conventional design and is designed for simplicity of operation and to maximize copper recovery. The Run of Mine (ROM) ore will be reduced through three stages of comminution and the copper minerals recovered by flotation, with rougher/scavenger concentrates reground and cleaned to final commercial concentrate grades. The concentrator is designed to process a nominal 70,000t/d of copper sulphide ore and produce marketable copper concentrate.

The flow of ore will be through crushing, grinding, mechanical rougher/scavenger flotation in tank cell banks and the rougher/scavenger concentrate cleaned through two stage column flotation cleaning to increase the quality of the concentrate. The rougher/scavenger concentrate will be sent through a regrind circuit and reprocessed through the cleaners to increase copper grade to commercial levels. Final concentrate from the second cleaner column will be densified through a thickener and dried in filter presses to a ........