Rio Tinto Announces Mineral Resource Update for Bingham Canyon Copper Mine


This diagram, released by Kennecott Utah Copper during a recent investor/analyst tour of the Bingham Canyon
mine, illustrates the location of 628 million mt of new resources at the huge open-pit near Salt Lake City, Utah.
Kennecott is currently evaluating expansion options that would extend mining to 2036 and beyond.
Rio Tinto announced in May a major upgrade of mineral resources to 637 million mt grading 0.48% copper at its whollyowned Kennecott Utah Copper (KUC) Bingham Canyon mine near Salt Lake City, Utah. The resource is located beneath the existing Bingham Canyon pit, and is currently under study for extraction by open-pit mining methods. This represents an increase of 628 million mt over the company’s December 2007 resource statement.

“We are very pleased with this substantial upgrade in resources. It will add significant value to Kennecott Utah Copper and Rio Tinto, particularly during this period of rapid long term demand growth,” said Bret Clayton, chief executive, Rio Tinto Copper. “We are continuing with our pre-feasibility studies to examine options to develop these resources.”

In a press statement, Rio Tinto noted that over the past two years, exploration has identified a large molybdenum deposit at depth underneath the current mine and there are multiple targets for further consideration within the Oquirrh Mountain range which hosts the Bingham Canyon mine and other Kennecott land holdings.

The resource upgrade at Bingham Canyon came through continuing mine planning, economic and resource development studies. These studies are a part of an ongoing technical development program, which includes new resource drilling and the study of open-pit and underground mining options.

According to KUC, preliminary pit optimization studies indicate that the reported resource falls within reach of an open-pit cutback to the existing mine operations. Continuation of the mine development studies to allow conversion of this resource to ore reserves is a high priority for the business and is scheduled for completion by the end of 2009.

The resource upgrade comes upon the heels of a March announcement by KUC that it was planning a $73-million investment for machinery and equipment to accelerate mining operations at the mine. The equipment, according to the company, will enable it to move more material per day and provide potential expansion opportunities for future operations. The money will be used to purchase additional Komatsu haul trucks, P&H electric shovels, drills and Caterpillar graders and bulldozers.

The second largest copper producer in the United States, KUC provides about 13% of U.S. copper needs. The Bingham Canyon mine has been in operation for more than a century and, according to KUC, has produced 16.4 million mt of copper to date. Annually, KUC produces approximately 272,000 mt of copper, along with 500,000 oz of gold, 4 million oz of silver, about 30 million lb of molybdenum and about 900,000 mt of sulphuric acid.

As featured in Womp 08 Vol 5 - www.womp-int.com