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Chile
NuevaUnion (El Morro) Project

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 Location:
85 km E from Vallenar, Chile

  Project Contacts:
Avenida Apoquindo 4501, oficina 703. Las Condes
Santiago
Chile
Phone  ...  Subscription required
WebsiteWeb
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  • Overview
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  • Geology
  • Mining
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Overview

StageFeasibility
Mine TypeOpen Pit
Commodities
  • Gold
  • Copper
  • Molybdenum
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
Processing
  • Flotation
Mine Life18 years (as of Jan 1, 2012)
During the first quarter, NuevaUnión continued to advance the Feasibility Study which commenced in the third quarter of 2018 and is anticipated to be complete in late 2019.


Owners & OPERATOR

Source:
CompanyInterestOwnership
Teck Resources Ltd. 50 % Indirect
Newmont Corp. 50 % Indirect
NuevaUnión SpA (operator) 100 % Direct
In August 2015, Teck and Goldcorp announced an agreement to combine their respective Relincho and El Morro projects, located in the Huasco Province in the Atacama region of Chile, into a single project.
The combined project is a 50/50 joint venture named NuevaUnión.

Deposit Type

  • Porphyry
  • Breccia pipe / Stockwork


Summary:

The La Fortuna deposit of the El Morro Project can be classified as a typical copper-gold porphyry deposit. Porphyry copper-gold deposits are associated with the intrusion of multiple phases of similar composition porphyritic rocks into the country host rocks and the fluids that accompany them during the transition and cooling from magma to rock. Successive envelopes of hydrothermal alteration typically enclose a core of ore minerals disseminated in breccia zones, stockwork hairline fractures and veins. The deposits typically have an outer chlorite mineral alteration zone. Quartz-sericite alteration typically occurs closer to the center and may overprint. A central potassic alteration zone is commonly associated with most of the mineralization. Fractures are often filled or coated by sulfides, or by quartz veins and veinlets with sulfides. The upper portions of the deposit are often subjected to supergene enrichment whereby the metals in the upper portion of the deposit are dissolved and carried down to below the water table where they are precipitated.

At the El Morro Project, centres of mineralization have been identified at El Morro, El Negro and La Fortuna which is the most significant. At La Fortuna, mineralization is developed in an Eocene to Oligocene multiphase porphyry system that has intruded volcanic rocks of the Paleocene to Early Eocene Los Altares Formation.

The mineralized multiphase porphyry system is a vertically dipping cylindrical shape that covers an approximate area of 800 m by 600 m, and exists to a vertical extent of at least one kilometre. It remains open at depth. North-northwest trending faults and the La Fortuna and Cantarito Faults appear to constrain the northern and southern limits of the intrusive complex. The two most productive porphyries at La Fortuna are the Feldspar Porphyry (FP) and Quartz Porphyry (QP). A third porphyry, the Biotite Porphyry (BP), is also mineralized.

Four distinct zones of mineralization have been defined:

• Upper leached cap horizon
• Transitional assemblage of secondary supergene copper oxides
• Intermediate assemblage of secondary supergene copper sulphides (“enrichment blanket”)
• Deeper assemblage of primary hypogene sulphides.

The leached cap varies markedly in thickness from tens of metres up to 300 m. Copper grades typically range from 0.01% to 0.04% Cu, while gold grades tend to reflect original primary hypogene grades.

The copper oxide zone is poorly developed and is typically less than 30 m in thickness and grades on average 0.5% Cu. Copper oxide minerals are located directly on top of the secondary enrichment blanket and preferentially inside the FP unit. Mineralogy consists of both copper oxides and a mixed assemblage of copper oxides and secondary copper sulphides. Copper oxide minerals include atacamite, chrysocolla and minor cuprite and copper wad.

The secondary enrichment zone is a 30 m to 40 m thick blanket on average but is up to 100 m in thickness in the northeastern part of the deposit. Copper mineralization includes chalcocite, digenite, and lesser covellite. Grades within the blanket range from about 0.2% Cu in the volcanic host country rocks to 0.7% to 1.0% Cu in the intrusive units.

Chalcopyrite, bornite, minor tennantite and tetrahedrite, and associated pyrite form the copper mineralization in the primary zone. Gold occurs as free grains, and as inclusions in bornite and pyrite. Mineralization remains open at depth and is associated with three main vein types which are the following;

• Quartz veinlets with magnetite (or hematite), potash feldspar, occasional chalcopyrite and bornite, and no alteration halo
• Quartz veinlets with chalcopyrite, bornite, and pyrite with no alteration halo
• Sulphide veinlets, with pyrite-chalcopyrite, and a sericitic halo.

Primary copper sulphides and gold mineralization are strongest within the FP unit where average grades are 0.6% Cu and 0.7 g/t Au. Lower grade mineralization occurs within the BP with grades averaging 0.4% Cu and 0.44 g/t Au. Copper and gold grades within the AP and tuff units are still lower, averaging 0.22% and 0.18% Cu, and 0.32 g/t Au and 0.15 g/t Au, respectively.

In the primary zone, gold and copper ratios are approximately 1:1, and the grade distribution is laterally and vertically uniform.


Mining Methods

  • Truck & Shovel / Loader


Summary:

The El Morro Project will be an open pit truck/shovel operation. The open pit has six phases. The ultimate pit will measure approximately 2.0 km east to west, 2.5 km north to south, and have a maximum depth of approximately 825 m. The Main Waste Rock Facility (WRF) is located to the south of the open pit. The Tailings Storage Facility (TSF) is located to the south and west of the open pit and downstream of the Main WRF.


Crushing and Grinding


Processing

  • Flotation

Flow Sheet: Subscription required

Summary:

Processing is based on a sulphide flotation concentrator. Oxide material is treated as waste rock. Separation of the ore types is done by the mine department based on blast hole sample analysis. Some rehandling sulphide ores is necessary in the run-of-mine (ROM) stockpiles. The sulphide mill processing is based on feeding 90,000 tpd of sulphide ores for a period of 18 years.

For 90,000 tpd of nominal ore throughput, a process plant utilization of 92% and 63% solids in the high density tailings pulp, the desalinated water requirement is 521 L/s. The desalination plant is located at Punta Cachos on the coast. A 202 km, 30 in. diameter pipeline carries water to the concentrator and to the minesite at 4,000 masl. A potable water treatment plant will be provided for safety showers, camp, and administration areas.

The concentrate pipeline route follows the new access road. The pipeline is a 156 mm (6 in) steel pipe. It starts at the holding tanks at the concentrator ........

Recoveries & Grades:

CommodityParameterAvg. LOM
Gold Recovery Rate, %  ......  Subscription required
Gold Head Grade, g/t 0.49
Copper Recovery Rate, %  ......  Subscription required
Copper Head Grade, % 0.52
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Projected Production:

CommodityProductUnitsAvg. Annual
Gold Metal in concentrate oz 342,000
Copper Metal in concentrate M lbs  ......  Subscription required
Copper Concentrate dmt  ......  Subscription required

Operational Metrics:

Metrics
Stripping / waste ratio 3.08 *
Daily milling capacity 90,000 t *
Daily ore mining rate 90,000 t *
Annual mining capacity 140 Mt *
Waste tonnes, LOM 1,654,208 kt *
Ore tonnes mined, LOM 537,145 kt *
Total tonnes mined, LOM 2,183,839 kt *
Annual milling capacity 32.9 Mt *
* According to 2012 study.

Reserves at June 30, 2018:

CategoryTonnage CommodityGradeContained Metal
Proven 333.6 Mt Gold 0.55 g/t 5.92 M oz
Proven 885.84 Mt Copper 0.43 % 8,425 M lbs
Proven 552.24 Mt Molybdenum 0.014 % 172.2 M lbs
Probable 243.16 Mt Gold 0.38 g/t 3 M oz
Probable 1,143 Mt Copper 0.38 % 9,512 M lbs
Probable 899.84 Mt Molybdenum 0.017 % 343.74 M lbs
Proven & Probable 576.74 Mt Gold 0.48 g/t 8.92 M oz
Proven & Probable 2,029 Mt Copper 0.4 % 17,937 M lbs
Proven & Probable 1,452 Mt Molybdenum 0.016 % 515.96 M lbs
Measured 0.38 Mt Gold 0.47 g/t 0.006 M oz
Measured 132.82 Mt Copper 0.24 % 688.68 M lbs
Measured 132.44 Mt Molybdenum 0.007 % 20.86 M lbs
Indicated 52.84 Mt Gold 0.85 g/t 1.44 M oz
Indicated 382.06 Mt Copper 0.36 % 3,027 M lbs
Indicated 329.2 Mt Molybdenum 0.011 % 76.54 M lbs
Measured & Indicated 53.24 Mt Gold 0.85 g/t 1.44 M oz
Measured & Indicated 514.88 Mt Copper 0.33 % 3,715 M lbs
Measured & Indicated 461.64 Mt Molybdenum 0.01 % 97.38 M lbs
Inferred 377.04 Mt Gold 0.55 g/t 6.68 M oz
Inferred 966.88 Mt Copper 0.42 % 9,027 M lbs
Inferred 589.04 Mt Molybdenum 0.013 % 167.94 M lbs

Commodity Production Costs:

CommodityUnits2020
Cash costs Copper USD 1.35 / lb *
Cash costs Gold USD 590 / oz *
Cash costs Copper USD 0.69 / lb *†
Cash costs Gold USD -730 / oz *†
All-in sustaining costs (AISC) Copper USD 1.62 / lb *†
Assumed price Copper USD 2.75 / oz *
Assumed price Gold USD 1,200 / oz *
* According to 2012 study / presentation.
† Net of By-Product.
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Operating Costs:

Units2020
OP mining costs ($/t milled) USD 5.52 *
Direct operating costs ($/t milled) USD  ......  Subscription required
Processing costs ($/t milled) USD  ......  Subscription required
Total operating costs ($/t milled) USD  ......  Subscription required
* According to 2012 study.
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

2012 Study Costs and Valuation Metrics :

MetricsUnitsLOM Total
Initial CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Sustaining CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Closure costs $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Total CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Gross revenue (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Net Income (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscription required
After-tax Cash Flow (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Pre-tax NPV @ 5% $M USD  ......  Subscription required
After-tax NPV @ 5% $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Pre-tax IRR, %  ......  Subscription required
After-tax IRR, %  ......  Subscription required
After-tax payback period, years  ......  Subscription required
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Proposed Heavy Mobile Equipment as of March 23, 2012:
HME TypeSizeQuantity
Dozer (crawler) 410 kW 7
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required 3
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required 4
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required 3
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required 2
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required 4
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required 28
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required 3
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Subscription required - Subscription is required.


Corporate Filings & Presentations:

DocumentYear
................................... Subscription required 2019
................................... Subscription required 2019
Annual Information Form 2017
Technical Report 2012
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Aerial view:

Subscription required - Subscription is required.

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