Ivanhoe Electric has completed an updated Preliminary Feasibility Study (PFS) for its 100%-owned Santa Cruz Copper Project in Arizona, outlining a faster production ramp-up and higher copper output while increasing initial capital expenditure and pushing first copper cathode production to 2029.
According to the September 23 study, Santa Cruz is expected to produce an average of approximately 75,000 mt/year of copper cathode during its first 15 years of operation. The optimized mine plan incorporates a faster production ramp-up compared with the 2025 PFS, supported by changes to mine access, material handling and paste backfill design.
Initial project capital is now estimated at US$1.43 billion, compared with US$1.24 billion in the 2025 PFS. Ivanhoe Electric attributed the increase partly to inflation in construction materials and labour, as well as updated engineering for mine development, ventilation shafts, tunnel access and changes to the surface processing facilities.
Life-of-mine C1 cash costs are estimated at US$1.47/lb of copper, up from US$1.32/lb in the previous study, while all-in sustaining costs are estimated at US$2.28/lb. The project is expected to achieve an average life-of-mine copper recovery of 92.3%.
Santa Cruz is designed as an underground operation using heap leaching and downstream processing to produce 99.99% pure copper cathode on site without requiring external smelting. The updated study supports a 24-year mine life.
Early site preparation and development activities have commenced, with box-cut development expected to begin in October 2026 and tunnel-boring-machine decline development targeted for summer 2027. First copper cathode production is now targeted for 2029, compared with the 2028 target outlined in the 2025 PFS.
The updated PFS presents a higher copper production profile for Santa Cruz but also reflects increased development costs and a later first-production schedule. The approximately US$190 million increase in initial capital and higher operating costs reflect inflation and further engineering work as the project advances toward development. Meanwhile, the optimized mine plan raises average copper cathode production during the first 15 years to approximately 75,000 mt/year. With early development activities underway, attention will now turn to execution of the underground development programme, project financing and progress toward first copper production in 2029.
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