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Chile
Zaldivar Mine

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 Location:
150 km SE from Antofagasta, Chile

  Address:
Av. Grecia # 750
Antofagasta
Chile
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  • Overview
  • Owners
  • Geology
  • Mining
  • Processing
  • Production
  • Reserves
  • Costs & Financials
  • Fleet
  • Personnel
  • Filings & News

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Overview

StageProduction
Mine TypeOpen Pit
Commodities
  • Copper
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
Processing
  • Bacterial leaching
  • Sulfuric acid (reagent)
  • Crush-and-stack plant
  • Flotation
  • Heap leach
  • ROM/dump leach
  • Solvent Extraction & Electrowinning
Mine Life2036
During the fourth quarter of 2021, the fourth solvent extraction processing stream (Train D) was modified and recommissioned.
Construction of the project was completed in January 2022 and the plant is currently being operated by the operations team. All the construction contractor personnel have demobilized as of the end of February 2022.

Upon commissioning, the project is expected to increase copper recoveries by more than 10 percentage points at Zaldíva. This process is based on a proprietary technology called CuproChlor® that was developed by Antofagasta.


Owners

Source: p. 249
CompanyInterestOwnership
Barrick Gold Corp. 50 % Indirect
Antofagasta plc. (operator) 50 % Indirect
Compañía Minera Zaldívar SpA, a 50-50 joint venture with Barrick Gold, which operates the Zaldívar copper mine in Chile. Antofagasta is the operator of the mine.

Deposit Type

  • Porphyry


Summary:

The Zaldívar porphyry copper deposit is situated on the western margin of the Atacama Plateau in northern Chile. The deposit is part of a large Tertiary porphyry copper system which includes the scondida porphyry copper deposit. This porphyry complex occurs within the large West Fissure structural system which controls most of the large porphyry copper deposits in Chile. The Zaldívar porphyry system is at the intersection of the West Fissure and a series of Northwest and Northeast striking faults. The deposit is generally centered on a Northeast striking granodiorite porphyry body that intrudes andesites and rhyolites, and cuts across the north-south striking Portezuelo fault. Although the geology and the Zaldívar mineral deposit are generally continuous from east to west, the orebody was arbitrarily divided into two zones: the Main zone (area east of 93,000E) and the Pinta Verde zone (area west of 93000E).

The Zaldívar orebody contains both sulfide and oxide copper mineralization. The majority of the copper occurs in a blanket of oxide (covering an area of approximately 2 kilometers by 1.5 kilometers with an average thickness of approximately 90 meters) and secondary sulfide ore (covering an area of approximately 2.5 kilometers by 1.5 kilometers with variable thickness from a few meters in the southwest extremity to over 300 meters in the northeast extremity) which overlays deeper primary sulfide mineralization of lower grade. The economically important mineralization types are secondary sulfide (chalcocite), oxide (brochantite and chrysocolla) and a mixed mineralization type of combined sulfide and oxide copper minerals. Primary sulfide mineralization consists of pyrite, chalcopyrite, bornite and molybdenite.

In the Main zone orebody, to the east of the Portezuelo fault, rhyolite is the host rock and secondary sulfide mineralization is dominant (85% to 90%) with the balance of the copper present as oxide minerals. West of the fault, andesite and granodiorite are the host rocks and the copper is present as a mixture of both oxide and secondary sulfide minerals.


Mining Methods

  • Truck & Shovel / Loader


Summary:

The Zaldívar Mine is a traditional open pit truck/shovel operation. The ultimate pit will measure approximately 2.8 km east to west, 2.6 km north to south, and have a maximum depth of approximately 630 m. Waste and ore are mined on 15 m benches.


Crushing and Grinding


Processing

  • Bacterial leaching
  • Sulfuric acid (reagent)
  • Crush-and-stack plant
  • Flotation
  • Heap leach
  • ROM/dump leach
  • Solvent Extraction & Electrowinning

Flow Sheet: Subscription required

Summary:

Zaldívar is an open-pit, heap-leach copper mine which produces copper cathodes using the solvent extraction and electrowinning (SX-EW) process.

Pure cathode copper is produced by three stages of crushing and stacking of ore, followed by heap leaching and bacterial activity to remove the copper from the ore into solution. Run of mine dump leach material is placed on the old sulfide ore pad, and is also leached. A solvent extraction and electro-winning process then removes the copper from solution and produces the cathode copper. A flotation plant is also used to recover copper, in the form of copper concentrate, contained in the fine material produced in the tertiary crushing process. The heap leach cycle time is approximately 330 days.

Zaldívar Chloride Leach

In December 2019, the Board of Compañía Minera Zaldívar approved the Chloride Leach Project. The project contemplates the construction of a chloride dosing system, an upgrade of the solvent extract ........

Recoveries & Grades:

CommodityParameter2021202020192018201720162015
Copper Head Grade, %  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required0.60.590.50.53

Production:

CommodityUnits2022202120202019201820172016
Copper M lbs  ......  Subscription required ^  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required208228228
All production numbers are expressed as cathode. ^ Guidance / Forecast.
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Operational Metrics:

Metrics202120202019201820172016
Total tonnes mined  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required71,462 kt60,902 kt59,252 kt68,700 kt
Ore tonnes mined  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required30,048 kt32,704 kt24,152 kt
Waste  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required41,414 kt28,198 kt35,100 kt
Stripping / waste ratio  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required1.38 0.86 1.45
Tonnes processed  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required34,458 kt33,658 kt29,794 kt36,326 kt
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Reserves at December 31, 2021:
Heap leaching (HL) and dump leaching (DL) materials are defined based on total copper cut-off grades (COG). The cut-off grade applied to the determination of ore reserves for Heap Leach ore is 0.30% copper, while the cut-off grade for dump leach material is 0.21% copper. For resources the COG is 0.21% for HL and 0.10% for DL, throughout the LOM period. The COG applied to the primary mineral resources is 0.30%.

CategoryTonnage CommodityGradeContained Metal
Proven 360 Mt Copper 0.45 % 3,600 M lbs
Probable 84 Mt Copper 0.34 % 640 M lbs
Proven & Probable 460 Mt Copper 0.43 % 4,200 M lbs
Measured 780 Mt Copper 0.4 % 6,800 M lbs
Indicated 480 Mt Copper 0.36 % 3,800 M lbs
Inferred 52 Mt Copper 0.3 % 380 M lbs

Commodity Production Costs:

CommodityUnits2021202020192018201720162015
All-in sustaining costs (AISC) Copper USD  ......  Subscription required 2.47 / lb 2.21 / lb 2.05 / lb 2.11 / lb
All-in sustaining costs (AISC) Copper USD  ......  Subscription required†  ......  Subscription required†
C1 cash costs Copper USD  ......  Subscription required 1.97 / lb 1.66 / lb 1.55 / lb 1.74 / lb
C1 cash costs Copper USD  ......  Subscription required†  ......  Subscription required†
^ Guidance / Forecast.
† Net of By-Product.
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Financials:

Units2021202020192015
Sustaining costs M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
Capital expenditures M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required 85  
Revenue M USD  ......  Subscription required 528  
Pre-tax Income M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
After-tax Income M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
EBITDA M USD  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required 154  
Subscription required - Subscription is required


Heavy Mobile Equipment as of April 8, 2014:
HME TypeModelQuantity
Dozer ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Dozer (crawler) ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Drill ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Excavator ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Grader ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Loader ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Loader ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Shovel (hydraulic) ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Truck (haul) ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Truck (haul) ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Truck (haul) ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Truck (haul) ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Mine Management:

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 30, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 30, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 30, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required May 30, 2022
Subscription required - Subscription is required.


Corporate Filings & Presentations:

DocumentYear
................................... Subscription required 2021
................................... Subscription required 2021
................................... Subscription required 2021
................................... Subscription required 2021
................................... Subscription required 2020
................................... Subscription required 2020
................................... Subscription required 2020
................................... Subscription required 2019
................................... Subscription required 2019
................................... Subscription required 2019
Other 2018
Quarterly Report 2018
Other 2017
Quarterly Report 2017
Management Discussion & Analysis 2016
Other 2016
Press Release 2016
Annual Report 2015
Other 2015
Annual Report 2014
Corporate Presentation 2014
Form 40-F 2014
Other 2014
Technical Report 2012
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Aerial view:

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