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ASX Copper Tier List: Australian copper stocks to play the rising tide
We always here it's hard to find copper opportunities on the ASX. So with tariffs and record prices placing the red metal under the microscope, we've dug through the list to find close to 30 operating at projects in Australia alone. It's a common refrain among fundies and investors. Copper is a great market, but where do I go to look for opportunities? Attention tends to fall on the international markets in New York and Canada where the largest copper pure plays globally are based. Think Freeport-McMoran, Ivanhoe Mines, First Quantum Minerals. But the ASX is housing a growing coterie of copper stocks across all ends of the value chain, from large caps to exploration juniors, all of whom have the opportunity to benefit as copper demand scales higher. The long-term outlook for the red metal is positive: Demand is expected to hit 50Mt by 2050 according to S&P Global and production is nowhere near close to that, suggesting prices need to rise to satiate the world's need for a product that BHP says will be 70% more sought after thanks to electrification and urbanisation. Increasingly, those needs are being met by China, which has built out an enormous amount of refining capacity to capture the lion's share of the refined copper market. But that's drawn alarm bells from the US Government and the tariff happy Trump Administration. Fears the Don would levy heavy tariffs on copper sent prices in the US market soaring earlier this year, hitting an all time high of US$5.69/lb after the declaration of a 50% tariff on copper imports last month as traders position to beat copper import duties. They're now sitting at a touch over US$5.50/lb, a massive arbitrage to the US$4.34/lb mark of benchmark LME copper. Will the tariffs encourage America to reshore copper production and halt its reliance on imports (not from China, but actually from Chile, Canada and Peru)? "... to make a real dent to the supply deficit the US would need to build new smelting capacity," analysts at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence said. "Smelters are multi-year projects and wouldn't even be completed come the end of Trumps presidency, what if the next administration overturns these copper tariffs? Its this fear that will likely impact any investment decision. "The short answer is therefore it is unlikely that the tariff will immediately boost supply, and it seems likely the initial effect will just be higher prices for US metal users, and by extension higher prices for US consumers." What the tariff has done is signal the centrality of copper to the next stage of the world's economic and industrial development, and the premiums on offer for companies who can get into production as shortages emerge. And in a note this week, Argonaut research analysts George Ross and Pia Donovan said that while the reported tariff had led to sell-offs in listed copper names outside the US, it only made M&A more likely. Deals already on the table include MAC Copper's sale to Harmony Gold and the bidding war for New World Resources (ASX:NWC), which fielded competing 6.5c and 6.6c bids from warring parties Central Asia Metals and Kinterra Capital on Thursday. "Concerns over global growth and tariff uncertainties have impacted copper equities, with most stocks underperforming over the past month compared to the copper price. We suspect a new wave of deals could be just over the horizon and highlight potential ASX targets," he said. Outside of those companies already being acquired, Ross and Donovan say South Australian focused Havilah Resources (ASX:HAV), Queensland based True North Copper (ASX:TNC), Carnaby Resources (ASX:CNB) and Hammer Metals (ASX:HMX) and Zambian explorer Prospect Resources (ASX:PSC) were their picks to see potential M&A activity. ASX copper opportunities BUT THERE'S NO COPPER ON THE ASX, we hear you say. WRONG. Here's part one of our tier-list of the companies producing and exploring for copper with the potential to make it big. Today, we're focusing on the Australian miners, developers and explorers, with a focus on companies who already mine copper or have it as their key commodity. Large cap producers BHP (ASX:BHP) Starting with the biggest dog and it's BHP, which owns the Copper SA business in South Australia. An amalgam of the Olympic Dam mine BHP acquired in its 2005 takeover of Western Mining Corporation, it now owns three of the four largest copper producing operations in Australia with the Prominent Hill and Carrapateena mines purchased via its $9.6bn takeover of OZ Minerals. BHP reports its fourth quarter results today, having guided production of 300-325,000t out of SA in FY25. It wants to eventually ramp that up to 500,000tpa and potentially 650,000tpa by the mid-2030s, with expansions at Olympic Dam and the development of the Oak Dam discovery. Newmont Corporation (ASX:NEM) An international player largely known for being the world's biggest gold miner, it nonetheless warrants a place in this list given its Cadia and Boddington mines between them will produce around 90,000t in 2025. Cadia is going through a couple lean years, but is expected to ramp up again from 2027. The mine near Orange in New South Wales has historically produced upwards of 100,000tpa of the red metal to go alongside ~700,000ozpa of gold. Its guidance for 2025 has been set at 280,000oz and 67,000oz, with Boddington in WA to produce 560,000oz of gold and 23,000t of copper. Evolution Mining (ASX:EVN) Another primarily gold producer, $15bn EVN has nonetheless set itself apart from its gold peers by using M&A to dramatically upscale the proportion of earnings the company derives from copper. Its purchase of Glencore's Ernest Henry copper and gold mine near Mt Isa and China Moly's Northparkes mine in New South Wales saw the miner deliver 751,000oz of gold and 76,000t of copper in FY25. Similar numbers are expected in FY26, with copper now the source of around a quarter of the miner's revenue. MAC Copper (ASX:MAC) MAC burst onto the scene in 2023 with the US$1.1bn acquisition of Glencore's CSA copper mine in Cobar. After a rough couple of years dealing with the financial consequences of that big M&A deal, it'll now trade on the operation in a US$1.03bn takeover by Harmony Gold, a South African gold producer which previously acquired the Eva project in Queensland. MAC produced 8644t at a grade of 4.1% copper, the mine's calling card, in the March quarter, with total cash costs of US$2.47/lb. Before the sale, MAC had been guiding to a 50,000tpa run rate from 2026. Trading around the $18 offer price, some analysts continue to think a competing bid could fly in, with PTs closer to $22. Small cap producers 29Metals (ASX:29M) A hard luck story, 29Metals was spat out of Owen Hegarty's EMR Capital in a $2 per share, $527m IPO in 2021. We should have called the top of the market. The closure of its Capricorn copper mine due to flooding in 2023 and 2024 left 29M with only the Golden Grove mine in WA in operation, its $450m market cap propped up by cap raisings and an insurance payment for the stricken Queensland operation. 29M shares have run 32% higher YTD, taking some of the fallen angel allure out of the company from an investment perspective. It produced 5600t of copper and 12,300t of zinc in the June quarter at Golden Grove and deferred capital to 2026 to reduce its costs while it looks to open the new Gossan Valley orebody. First ore is due there in H2 2026. Guidance for calendar 2025 is 22-25,000t copper, 60-70,000t zinc, 20-25,000oz gold and 750,000-1Moz silver. Regulatory issues to secure a restart at Capricorn, the firm's big growth option, are being worked through. Canaccord's Tim Hoff has a sell rating and 16c PT, saying a quarterly miss on zinc production leads to concerns about whether Golden Grove alone could support the whole business. Hillgrove Resources (ASX:HGO) The simplest small cap copper producer on the ASX, Hillgrove owns the Kanmantoo mine in South Australia, which has been taken from an old open pit to an underground development under the guidance of former EVN and OZ executive Bob Fulker. HGO's just cracked into the Nugent orebody as it targets production of 12-14,000t of copper metal in CY2025. At 1002t, May was the project's best production performance to date. The focus there is also on the exploration potential as well. Drilling recently hit a down dip extension of the Kavanagh orebody, with an exploration target at various prospects of 25-40Mt suggesting there's plenty of mine life to be added. At a share price of 3.6c and $85m market cap, HGO is one of the cheapest exposures to copper production on the ASX. At spot prices, Canaccord Genuity's Tim Hoff says the company would generate $38m in free cash flow in 2026. Aeris Resources (ASX:AIS) Produced 24,900t of copper, slightly below guidance, in FY25 along with 55,200oz of gold. The owner of the Tritton and Mt Colin mines on the east coast, Aeris has a couple growth options at Stockman in Victoria and, potentially, the reopening of the Jaguar mine in WA. It also owns the Cracow gold mine in QLD, which produced around 45,000oz in FY25. The company is chasing a long term production rate at Tritton of over 30,000tpa after a refinancing in May, with the 2026 development of its higher grade Constellation underground a key step. Jaguar still has five years of mine life remaining, if a PFS supports its reopening two years on from its closure due to seismicity. Aurelia Metals (ASX:AMI) More a gold miner, but base metals are becoming a larger part of the $330m company's product mix. AMI produced 45,400oz of gold, 2700t copper, 16,800t zinc and 15,700t lead in FY25 from its Peak and Federation mines in NSW's Cobar Basin, as the higher cost Hera and Dargues wound down. It has aspirational guidance that would be a major body recomposition effort, targeting production in FY28 of 30-40,000t gold, 6-8000t copper, 40-50,000t zinc and 23-33,000t lead. AIC Mines (ASX:A1M) AIC produced 12,863t of copper and 5955oz gold at the Eloise mine in Queensland, its second straight year of achieving (and in fact exceeding) production guidance. Aaron Colleran-led AIC announced a $55m placement in June to bankroll the development of the Jericho mine, a satellite to Eloise that should lift production to ~20,000tpa from FY27 on. $230m capped AIC is down 20% over the past year. Develop Global (ASX:DVP) Bill Beament brings a big reputation to this one, the former Northern Star boss carrying DVP to a $1.5bn valuation just weeks into its life as a base metals producer. Its mining services business is part of the reason, but the company is also on track to open two production fronts for copper and zinc in NSW at Woodlawn and in WA's Pilbara at Sulphur Springs. The first concentrate has been produced at Woodlawn, which is expected to deliver 22,000tpa of copper equivalent production from an underground resource of 11.3Mt at 4.1% CuEq. Explorers Cannindah Resources (ASX:CAE) Cannindah shot to prominence last year when it announced an update to the resource of its Mt Cannindah copper and gold project, located 90km southwest of Gladstone in central Queensland. The 14.5Mt at 1.09% copper equivalent resource represented a 183% increase in tonnage, 117% increase in copper metal, 229% increase in gold ounces and 148% increase in silver ounces to 104,800t copper, 197,000oz gold and 6.4Moz silver for 158,300t copper equivalent. That's substantial by Aussie exploration standards, famously pulling in Chilean State copper miner in to look over a project on our shores for the first time. Drilling this year has uncovered thick intercepts like 71m at 0.95% CuEq and 274m at 0.49% CuEq, with intriguing high grade gold zones at depth, including a standout hit of 1m at 31.07g/t Au from 464m. Recent exploration has picked up high grade shoots that aren't fully defined in the current mineral resource estimate, strike extensions to the north, south and at depths and a 700m stretch of strike to test between the Cannindah Breccia and Little Wonder prospect, a similar target identified four footy fields to the south. Despite small-scale mining from 1884-1920 and a leach operation from 1947-1965, exploration at Mt Cannindah has been spotty. But CAE views the ground as a potential pencil porphyry in the style of Northparkes and Cadia, a nature of discovery that would be very well received indeed. CAE has some heavy hitters on board as well, with MD Tom Pickett flanked by chair Michael Hansel and non-executive director Tony Rovira, of Azure Minerals fame. Loyal Metals (ASX:LLM) When operations ceased at the Highway Reward copper and gold mine in July 2005, copper prices have increased an astonishing 680%, while gold has run 1250% higher since the Queensland project's 1997 feasibility study. So the binding option to acquire the mine, which delivered 3.65Mt of ore at a ridiculous grade of 5.7% copper (1987-2005) and 260,000t of gold ore at 4.5g/t Au (1987-1989), could be a canny one. Highway Reward is located 37km south of Charters Towers and 172km from the Glencore copper refinery and port of Townsville. And it hasn't been explored since 2005 or studied in 28 years, when copper was fetching $1.14/lb AUSSIE and gold A$399/oz. "We are thrilled to secure this incredibly rare opportunity for our current and future Loyal investors. The Highway Reward Copper Gold Mine, considered one of the highest-grade copper mines in the world, is now primed for a revisit after 20 years of dormancy," Loyal MD Adam Ritchie on announcing the deal. "The granted mining leases of the Highway Reward mine provide an amazing speed to market opportunity - especially when both copper and gold are near all-time highs." Mining was only conducted to 220m in the open pit and 390m for underground, with limited drilling at depth. QMines (ASX:QML) Located just 90km northwest of Rockhampton, QML boasts one of the most advanced undeveloped copper projects in Queensland, with 15.5Mt of ore at 0.82% copper, 0.47% zinc, 0.35g/t gold and 5g/t silver between its Mt Chalmers and Develin Creek resources. Mt Chalmers contains the bulk of the copper and gold, 84,750t of the 126,750t copper inventory and 152,588oz of the 172,843oz gold bounty. That's important, with the intention to make Mt Chalmers the processing hub around which satellite mines can be developed and brought into a future mine plan. A PFS in 2024 suggested the Mt Chalmers project, alone, could produce 65,000t copper, 160,000oz of gold, 30,600t zinc, 1.8Moz silver and 583,000t pyrite over a 10.4 year life to generate $636m of life of mine free cash flow. A new study incorporating Develin Creek, where one standout drill hit in the Scorpion deposit struck 114m at 1.65% copper from just 11m, is in the works. A proposed doubling of the project's plant could increase annual production to 14,000t copper metal, 25,000oz gold, 7500t zinc and 300,000oz silver from 482,000tpa of concentrate. On top of that, QMines has picked up the Mount Mackenzie gold and silver project, which contains 3.3Mt at 1.4g/t Au and 8.4g/t Ag for 151,000oz gold and 902,000oz silver. Drilling is planned. LinQ Minerals (ASX:LNQ) One of the newest copper explorers on the ASX, LinQ is gold-focused first and foremost. But the size of its copper inventory warrants inclusion on this list, boasting 3.7Moz of gold and 1.2Mt of copper at its Gilmore project in New South Wales. Located in the Macquarie Arc, that includes the Gidginbung mine and adjacent Dam porphyry deposit, which contain a combined 1.2Moz of gold and 120,000t copper. Gidginbung was last mined in 1996 when gold and copper prices sat well below today's heady levels. A driller has been contracted to upgrade the resource at Gidginbung at depth and along strike in the first campaign since a successful $10m IPO in July. Cyprium Metals (ASX:CYM) $75m capped Cyprium owns the Nifty copper mine, a deposit that sits among the pantheon of discoveries made and developed by legendary Aussie mining company Western Mining Corporation. But the mine had seen better days by the time is was sold by Metals X (ASX:MLX), which failed to make it work after purchasing the Pilbara operation from India's Aditya Birla in 2016. A pre-feasibility study last year suggested the project had enough juice to deliver 718,000t of copper over its life, with annual production over its first ten years of 37,300tpa. The long term concentrate operation could be preceded by a cathode project, which could extract copper cathode from oxide sitting on Nifty's existing heap leach pads at a capital cost of just $30m. Cyprium estimated capex of $239m to refurbish and expand the Nifty concentrator and $189m of capitalised operating costs for a total bill of $458m – roughly 2.3x the mine's annual EBITDA for its first decade. A phase 1 feasibility study is in the works. Caravel Minerals (ASX:CVV) Another WA-focused company, Caravel owns the copper project of the same name near the farming town of Calingiri. Caravel is a massive porphyry deposit in the style of those found in South America with a 3.03Mt copper metal resource at a grade of 0.245% Cu. With an ore reserve containing 1.4Mt of copper metal, the $86m company claims it as Australia's largest undeveloped copper deposit. A study update in 2024 suggested the project, located just 150km inland from Perth, could produce 65,000tpa at steady state and 71,000tpa over its first five years but carries a capital bill of $1.7bn with a 4.9 year payback. A definitive engineering study is ongoing. Coda Minerals (ASX:COD) Coda's Elizabeth Creek project in South Australia sits 16km southwest of BHP's Oak Dam discovery and contains 65.5Mt at 1.6% CuEq, or over 1Mt of copper equivalent. Most of that sits in Emmie Bluff, a flat-lying underground copper and cobalt deposit running at a depth depth of around 400m. A scoping study suggested a future mine could deliver 26,700tpa of copper, 1300tpa cobalt and 1.13Moz of silver, with pre-production capex oc $331m and AISC of US$1.80/lb. Hammer Metals (ASX:HMX) and Carnaby Resources (ASX:CNB) Hammer is one of the best endowed copper juniors on the ASX, hosting more than 530,000t of copper equivalent metal across a host of partly or 100% owned deposits next door to Mt Isa. While it is also drilling for gold in the Yandal Belt of WA, Hammer has a host of prospects to test in Mt Isa, including Bullrush where maiden drilling with its Japanese JV partner Sumitomo has detected a potential iron-oxide-copper-gold system, the style of mineralisation at EVN's nearby Ernest Henry mine. We've grouped it here with Carnaby, which owns the Greater Duchess project, boasting 26.9Mt at 1.3% copper and 0.2g/t gold. The largest project held by Hammer, Kalman, holds 39.1Mt at 1.07% CuEq. Grouped together why? Well, Ross and Donovan from Argonaut view them as a likely merger combination. "The majority of HMX and CNB's deposits are within a 25km window. While both contain respectable inventories in their own right, combined, the two entities would host deposits aggregating to ~66mt grading 1.25% CuEq," they said. "There is a strong argument for consolidation of these deposits under one banner, enabling construction of a significant scale central plant (3-4mtpa) amongst this hub of deposits. An operation of this scale would be capable of producing ~40kt of CuEq metal per annum. "CNB's current market capitalisation is currently ~$102m, while HMX's is only ~$25m, making CNB the likely leader in a merger. Otherwise, perhaps a larger company could enter the fray as part of a larger regional consolidation strategy." CuFe (ASX:CUF) CuFe owns 55% of the Orlando copper deposit, an historic brownfields mine near Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory containing 5.95Mt at 1.16% copper and 1.5g/t gold for 69,000t copper metal and 287,300oz of gold. It's part of a larger resource across Tennant Creek of 10.35Mt at 1.53% Cu and 0.92g/t Au for 160,000t copper and 302,000oz gold. A scoping study on Orlando is due soon, with CuFe progressing plans for share plant infrastructure and operations synergies with fellow NT explorers Emmerson Resources (ASX:ERM) and Tennant Minerals (ASX:TMS). Orlando has been mined both as an underground operation up to 1975, when it produced 121,282oz of gold and 4852t of copper, and as an open pit before Normandy Gold closed the mine in the 1990s with copper trading below US$1/lb. "Even though it's been mined previously, we do need to still get some further approvals,' CuFe executive director Mark Hancock told Stockhead last month. 'But in terms of the complexity of construction and in our case in particular, being a cutback of an existing open pit, the lead times on that should be pretty short once we can get all those necessary approvals in place.' KGL Resources (ASX:KGL) Staying in the NT and KGL holds the Jervois copper project, the subject of a feasibility study update earlier this year. Based off a 510,000t resource and reserve of 14.38Mt at 1.77% Cu for 265,000t copper, 9.4Moz silver and 76,100oz gold, the company suggested it could be in production as soon as 2027. The mine would deliver average annual production of ~30,000tpa copper, 1.016Moz silver and 8900oz gold, with a capital estimate of $362m. That would be paid back in 3.4 years of a 10-year mine life, with C1 costs of US$1.95/lb over the seven years of steady state production, at which point KGL believes it would be raking in $208m of operating cash flow per annum. KGL in April appointed Cutfield Freeman and amicaa Advisors to lead its financing efforts for what could be one of Australia's largest copper operations, though its $61m market cap could be a hurdle. True North Copper (ASX:TNC) Rescued from administration via a deed of company arrangement effected at the start of this year, TNC owns the Cloncurry project in Queensland, which includes the Great Australia Mine. With Tembo Capital and Glencore as major shareholders, the company's attention has turned to exploration near the Vero resource at its Mt Oxide project. Vero contains 15.03Mt at 1.46% copper, 10.59g/t silver and 9.15Mt at 0.23% cobalt. MD Bevan Jones claimed a new discovery this month at Aquila, 140km north of Mt isa, as a "game changer". Ross and Donovan see it as a potentially attractive takeover prospect for 29M if Aquila continues to deliver exploration success, with Capricorn Copper just 20km to the south. Havilah Resources (ASX:HAV) Another potential takeover target, according to Ross and Donovan, they view Havilah's Kalkaroo in South Australia as one of a handful of large open pit copper opportunities in Oz after the sale of Rex Minerals and its Hillside project to MACH in 2024 and the Eva project's sale to Harmony Hold in 2022. Kalkaroo hosts a 100Mt reserve at 0.47% Cu and 0.44g/t gold for 474,000t copper and 1,4Moz gold, with annual production on a now ageing PFS of 30,000tpa copper and 72,000ozpa gold. OZ Minerals and later BHP conducted some work on Kalkaroo but left HAV heading back to the drawing board after The Big Australian pulled out. Havilah also owns the large Mutooroo resource near the SA-NSW border, containing 195,000t copper and 20,200t cobalt. Alma Metals (ASX:ALM) Alma last year moved to 51% ownership in its farm-in to the Briggs copper project in Queensland with the project's original owner Canterbury Resources (ASX:CBY). A favourite of John Forwood's Lowell Resources Fund, which took a ~8% stake according to a substantial shareholder notice in early July, Briggs is a massive low grade porphyry near Gladstone containing over 2Mt of copper metal. The current resource sits at 439Mt at 0.25% copper and 36ppm molybdenum, including 110Mt in indicated resources and a small oxide resource, with a scoping study under way. Peel Mining (ASX:PEX) A pre-feasibility study is in the works for the South Cobar project, which contains a string of deposits discovered by Peel across the NSW basin. The plan is to supply a 1.1Mtpa plant with polymetallic material lead by copper dominant ore from the Mallee Bull and Wirlong deposits, around 100km south of Cobar. The South Cobar project contains a total of 235,000t copper, 271,000oz fold, 25,400oz silver, 166,000t lead and 331,000t zinc, with a new resource at the Wagga Tank deposit contributing 21,100t of copper, 72,500oz gold, 3.77Moz silver, 22,900t lead and 24,900t zinc to that total. A hot stock around 2017 as it made a string of discoveries, the Lassonde Curve has not been kind to Peel, with the $43m company's shares ~63% lower over the past five years. But the location of the South Cobar project and grade of the copper deposits at Mallee Bull and Wirlong means it's well placed to benefit from consolidation in the region. Horseshoe Metals (ASX:HOR) Horseshoe owns the historic Horseshoe Lights mine, located just 60km west of Sandfire Resources' (ASX:SFR) legendary, mothballed, DeGrussa copper and gold mine. It was nowhere near as spectacular as DeGrussa, but still produced a tidy 316,000oz gold and 55,000t copper metal. And the original Bryah Basin copper volcanogenic massive sulphide discovery still has some tasty dirt left, a. in situ resource of around 128,000t copper metal at 1% Cu, along with 36,000oz of gold. A plan to begin DSO mining was approved by the WA mines department, with the operation expected to start up this quarter. "As well, given the strengthening copper price, we plan to update our last Scoping Study based on an optimised pit shell that will encompass part of the 134,000 tonnes of contained copper at HSL, and we will also undertake some additional drilling this quarter to test new areas of interest which we are confident will define more ounces," executive director Kate Stoney said this month. "In our view HSL is still vastly underdeveloped and underexplored now is the right time at in the cycle to unlock the project's considerable value.' Anax Metals (ASX:ANX), GreenTech Metals (ASX:GRE) and Artemis Resources (ASX:ARV) Anax owns 80% of the Whim Creek project in the Pilbara, where it boasts a resource of 11Mt at 1.1% Cu and 1.7% zinc, the other 20% geld by Bill Beament's Develop, the operator of the nearby Sulphur Springs project (13.8Mt at 1.1% Cu, 5,7% Zn). While its completed a DFS on a standalone project, the true benefits of Whim Creek could come by using its plant as a centralised processing hub for projects in the region, which could create a 20,000tpa copper operation. To that end, ANX has formed a base metal alliance with other deposit holders in the region. They include GreenTech, which has a resource of 6.2Mt at its Whundo-Ayshia project of 6.2Mt at 1.12% copper and 1.04% zinc. An exploration target compiled in June suggests it could get much larger – 15-23Mt at 0.9-1.4% copper and 0.2-0.4% zinc for 176,500-264,800t copper and 46,000-69,000t zinc. Nearby, Artemis Resources has taken a more gold-forward focus at its Carlow project, but has around 64,000t of copper among the resource, which also includes 374,000oz gold and 8000t cobalt.
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ivanhoe Mines: Buy, Sell, or Hold in July 2025?
Written by Brian Paradza, CFA at The Motley Fool Canada Ivanhoe Mines (TSX:IVN) is painting a picture of explosive growth in 2025. Record second-quarter copper output, near-record zinc production, and a massive palladium-nickel-platinum project nearing its grand debut – it sounds like an investor's dream. Yet, the TSX mining stock sits 36% lower this year and trades nearly half off its 2024 peak, appearing potentially undervalued. This stark contrast makes Ivanhoe stock a fascinating, yet complex, puzzle for Canadian investors right now. So, what's the best move for July: buy, sell, or hold? There's no denying Ivanhoe Mines' operational momentum in 2025. The company's July 8th second-quarter (Q2) production report delivered fireworks. Its Kamoa-Kakula complex in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) churned out a record 112,009 tonnes of copper. While output from the flagship Phase 1 and 2 concentrators dipped due to seismic activity at Kakula, the newer Phase 3 concentrator smashed records, operating 30% above its design capacity. Something good is taking shape here. Meanwhile, Ivanhoe's Kipushi zinc mine in the DRC milled a record 153,342 tonnes of ore, producing a near-record 41,788 tonnes of zinc at stellar average grades. A debottlenecking program underway promises even higher output in the second half of 2025. Most noteworthy is the mining company's Platreef project in South Africa, which remains firmly on track for first production during the fourth quarter of this year. Management envisions Platreef becoming the world's largest, lowest-cost producer of platinum-group metals (PGMs), nickel, copper, and gold. Bay Street analysts project Ivanhoe's revenue could skyrocket 10-fold in 2025, from US$40 million last year to over US$400 million, driven by production and sales ramp-ups. The DRC asset's brand-new, on-site copper smelter is scheduled to start heating up in September, with first copper anode production expected in October. This eliminates third-party processing costs and potentially boosts margins. Furthermore, recent copper price surges, fueled partly by trade policy noise (like potential U.S. tariffs), provide a favourable near-term tailwind. However, beneath Ivanhoe Mines's impressive production figures lie significant challenges that explain the stock's weakness. The seismic event at Kakula in May was a major setback, forcing a temporary shift to mining lower-grade areas and impacting Q2 performance. While recovery plans are progressing, the path back to full, high-grade mining is still unfolding. Accessing the richest copper zones on Kakula's western side is only expected towards year-end. Financially, Ivanhoe is still in the investment phase, where business risk is highest. The company has yet to generate a positive gross profit, and cash flow from operations remains negative. A massive US$750 million debt added during the first quarter weighs on its balance sheet. Until Platreef is fully online and Kamoa-Kakula consistently operates at peak capacity post-recovery, Ivanhoe isn't a 'de-risked' mining stock, yet. The mining stock remains highly sensitive to operational hiccups and commodity price swings. Execution risk is ever-present, especially with three major projects advancing simultaneously across different countries. The reliance on 'income from equity investment' prior to 2025, while not detailed in the recent reports, also reminds us that core mining revenue is still relatively new. Ivanhoe Mines stock is a Hold for now. It offers a compelling, high-growth narrative backed by world-class assets with significant potential for exponential revenue growth this year and beyond. Shares could soar if Platreef hits its year-end targets and Kakula recovers fully. However, the current picture is one of transition and lingering risk. The seismic impact, negative cash flow, and significant debt demand respect. The upcoming second-quarter financial results on July 30th are crucial. Investors need to watch cash burn and capital expenditure, and be encouraged by Ivanhoe's path to profitability as the mining business graduates to positive gross profits and works towards cash flow positive operations. Given near-term uncertainties and the proximity of Ivanhoe's earnings date (July 30th), jumping in aggressively right now may feel premature for most investors. The prudent move is to Hold. If you already own Ivanhoe, the long-term potential likely still warrants staying invested. If you've been watching from the sidelines, use the next two weeks to dig into the business's fundamentals and look for signs that operational recovery is accelerating and the financial strain is manageable. Confirmation of progress this month end could make late summer or early fall a more strategic entry point into this high-risk, potentially high-reward mining stock. The story is exciting, but July demands patience before placing your next bet. The post Ivanhoe Mines: Buy, Sell, or Hold in July 2025? appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada. Before you buy stock in Ivanhoe Mines Ltd., consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor Canada analyst team just identified what they believe are the Top Stocks for 2025 and Beyond for investors to buy now… and Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. wasn't one of them. The Top Stocks that made the cut could potentially produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider MercadoLibre, which we first recommended on January 8, 2014 ... if you invested $1,000 in the 'eBay of Latin America' at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $24,927.94!* Stock Advisor Canada provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month – one from Canada and one from the U.S. The Stock Advisor Canada service has outperformed the return of S&P/TSX Composite Index by 30 percentage points since 2013*. See the Top Stocks * Returns as of 6/23/25 More reading 10 Stocks Every Canadian Should Own in 2025 [PREMIUM PICKS] Market Volatility Toolkit A Commonsense Cash Back Credit Card We Love Fool contributor Brian Paradza has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 2025 Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
AU Financial Review
10-07-2025
- Business
- AU Financial Review
Trump's ‘intelligent' copper tariffs will ‘wake people up', says mining billionaire
London | Billionaire mining entrepreneur Robert Friedland welcomed US President Donald Trump's vow to impose a 50 per cent tariff on copper imports, arguing that domestic production of the metal was 'fundamental to America's national security'. Analysts and other executives have questioned the logic of imposing such a high levy when the US remained so dependent on imports of the metal, but the founder of Toronto-listed Ivanhoe Mines said the move was needed to 'wake people up' to America's vulnerability.
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ivanhoe Mines Reports 112,009 Tonnes of Copper Produced by Kamoa-Kakula in Q2 2025
Stage 1 dewatering of the Kakula Mine progressing as planned; Stage 2 dewatering on schedule to commence next month Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 1 and 2 concentrators now operating at approx. 85% of design capacity, including 45% ore feed from Kakula western side; Phase 3 concentrator operating 30% above design capacity Construction of Kamoa-Kakula's Project 95 is approximately 50% complete and on schedule for completion in Q1 2026 Kipushi concentrator milled a record 153,342 tonnes of ore in Q2 2025, producing near-record 41,788 tonnes of zinc Platreef on schedule for first production in Q4 2025 Ivanhoe Mines to issue Q2 2025 financial results after market close on July 30, host conference call for investors on July 31 Johannesburg, South Africa--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2025) - Ivanhoe Mines' (TSX: IVN) (OTCQX: IVPAF) Executive Co-Chair Robert Friedland, and President and Chief Executive Officer Marna Cloete announced today the company's second quarter production results and an update on operational and project activities. During the second quarter, Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 1, 2, and 3 concentrators milled a total 3.62 million tonnes of ore, producing 112,009 tonnes of copper, representing an 11% year-on-year increase. As previously guided, "Stage One" dewatering activities have been in place and operating to plan as of June 2, 2025. Water levels on the eastern side of the Kakula Mine have decreased modestly ahead of "Stage Two" dewatering activities from next month. The five, procured high-capacity, submersible "Stage Two" dewatering pumps are currently undergoing factory assembly in China and are expected to be air-freighted to site within the coming weeks. In early June, mining on the western side of the Kakula mine restarted. By mid-June, the mining rate had ramped up to 300,000 tonnes per month (3.6 million tonnes on an annualized basis), with grades ranging from 3% to 4% copper. As a result, since mid-June, the combined processing rate of the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators ramped up to approximately 670,000 tonnes per month (8 million tonnes per annum on an annualized basis). Underground development of a new mining area, located on the far eastern side of the Kakula Mine, has recently commenced. The development of the two new access drives will be conducted from existing underground infrastructure. Founder and Co-Chairman Robert Friedland commented: "We commend the hard work and dedication of our management team, mining and engineering crews at Kamoa-Kakula, who continue to work tirelessly to turn around operations at Kakula. "Operational recovery plans are well underway at Kamoa-Kakula following the decisive and proactive actions undertaken by management in response to the seismic activity first announced on May 20. Safety of our employees and contractors remains our top priority at Kamoa-Kakula ... and we are now systematically and judiciously increasing development activities to increase the supply of high-grade, fresh ore to the Phase 1 and Phase 2 concentrators from mining areas on the western side of the Kakula ore body. We expect to return to mining areas grading approximately 5% copper on the western side of Kakula towards the end of the year, which will drive a further improvement in operating results and efficiency. "Meanwhile, we have commenced development towards a new high-grade mining area on the far eastern side of Kakula, which is expected to provide additional high-grade ore by Q2 2026. We also expect to transport excess ore from the Kamoa and Kansoko mines, which continue to outperform on all metrics, to further augment feed of fresh material to the Phase 1 and Phase 2 concentrators as soon as possible. "Dewatering efforts of the Kakula Mine are proceeding to plan, which will provide us access to assess additional high-grade ore from the affected workings that can be safely mined to feed the Phase 1 and Phase 2 concentrators. "We also commend our management team at Kipushi for a strong quarterly operating performance. Kipushi is now well on track as one of the world's largest, highest-grade, and greenest major zinc mines. Lastly, but certainly not least, we are extremely excited for first production at Platreef later this year... which will set the stage for a phased expansion that is set to position the operation as the world's largest, and lowest-cost producer of platinum-group metals, nickel, copper, and gold. Given the current rally in platinum-group metals prices and the rising interest in these metals, we firmly believe Platreef is positioned to emerge at the right moment in the cycle to deliver exceptional returns for our shareholders." The heat-up of Kamoa-Kakula's state-of-the-art, 500,000-tonne-per-annum direct-to-blister copper smelter is expected to start in September 2025, with the first production of 99.7%-pure copper anodes anticipated in October 2025. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Summary of quarterly production data from Kamoa-KakulaQ2 2024 Q3 2024 Q4 2024 Q1 2025 Q2 2025 Phase 1 & 2Ore tonnes milled (000's tonnes) 2,288 2,215 2,329 2,211 1,991* Feed grade of ore processed (% copper) 5.04% 4.86% 5.08% 5.01% 4.12%* Copper recovery (%) 87.0% 86.6% 87.0% 88.3% 85.4%* Copper in concentrate produced (tonnes) 99,706 94,214 102,042 97,575 71,401* Phase 3Ore tonnes milled (000's tonnes) 93 1,050 1,326 1,512 1,631 Feed grade of ore processed (% copper) 1.67% 2.64% 2.82% 2.76% 2.92% Copper recovery (%) 83.3% 79.9% 85.1% 85.1% 85.5% Copper in concentrate produced (tonnes) 1,106 22,099 31,777 35,545 40,608 Combined Phase 1, 2, and 3Ore tonnes milled (000's tonnes) 2,381 3,266 3,655 3,723 3,622 Feed grade of ore processed (% copper) 4.91% 4.14% 4.26% 4.10% 3.58% Copper recovery (%) 86.9% 85.3% 86.6% 87.4% 85.4% Copper in concentrate produced (tonnes) 100,812 116,313 133,819 133,120 112,009 Data in bold denotes a quarterly record*Phase 1 & 2 production in the second quarter was impacted by seismic activity at the Kakula Mine as announced on May 20, 2025. Phase 1 and 2 concentrators are operating at approximately 85% capacity, with approximately 45% of feed coming from the western side of the Kakula Mine During the second quarter, the Phase 1, 2, and 3 concentrators milled 3.62 million tonnes of ore, producing 112,009 tonnes of copper, representing an 11% year-on-year increase. Copper production for the first half of 2025 totaled 245,127 tonnes. In June, Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 1, 2, and 3 concentrators produced a total of 28,147 tonnes of copper. During the month, approximately 15,000 tonnes of copper were produced by the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators, at an average grade of 3.3% copper and an average recovery rate of 79%. The lower-than-average recovery rate is due to lower recoveries achieved from processing lower-grade ore from surface stockpiles. The Phase 1 and 2 concentrators commenced the processing of ore from the western side of the Kakula Mine on June 8, 2025. Since mid-June, the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators ramped up to a combined processing rate of approximately 670,000 tonnes per month, or 8 million tonnes per annum on an annualized basis. It is expected that the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators will continue to process ore at this rate for the remainder of 2025, with a target of approximately 50% of ore feed coming from surface stockpiles and 50% from the western side of the Kakula Mine. The processing of surface stockpiles is expected to continue until they are depleted in Q1 2026. As announced on June 11, 2025, mining operations on the western side of the Kakula Mine restarted on June 7, 2025. By mid-June, the mining rate had ramped up to 300,000 tonnes per month (3.6 million tonnes on an annualized basis). As previously guided, mining in the western side of the Kakula Mine will initially focus on higher-elevation areas in the north and southwest, as shown in Figure 1, where copper grades range between 3% and 4%. Mining of these areas will continue into the fourth quarter, until Stage Two dewatering of the eastern side of the Kakula Mine is well advanced. From late 2025, mining crews plan to advance deeper into the western side of the Kakula Mine, where copper grades are expected to increase to approximately 5%. The Phase 3 concentrator milled a record 1,631 tonnes of ore in the second quarter, producing a record 40,608 tonnes of copper. The milling record is equivalent to an annualized rate of 6.5 million tonnes, which is 30% higher than the Phase 3 concentrator's design capacity of 5.0 million tonnes per annum. The average quarterly feed grade for the Phase 3 concentrator was a record 2.92% copper. For the remainder of 2025, it is expected that the feed grade into the Phase 3 concentrator will average approximately 2.5% copper, as the cut-off grade is lowered to achieve a greater mining rate. Currently, all ore mined at the Kamoa and Kansoko mines is processed by the Phase 3 concentrator. During the second half of 2025, the combined mining rate from the Kamoa and Kansoko mines will increase, with up to 100,000 tonnes per month of this ore fed into the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators, replacing a portion of the stockpile feed. Stage One dewatering underway as planned; delivery of Stage Two dewatering pumps expected from next month As previously guided, "Stage One" dewatering activities have been in place and operating to plan as of June 2, 2025. This has enabled the water levels on the eastern side of the Kakula Mine to decrease modestly, ahead of "Stage Two" dewatering activities which are expected to commence in August. In the meantime, the declining water levels have enabled mining crews to access additional areas and commence selective rehabilitation. "Stage Two" dewatering involves the installation of high-capacity, submersible pumps and new permanent infrastructure to fully dewater the entire Kakula Mine from surface. Kamoa Copper has ordered five high-capacity pumps, each rated at 650 litres per second, from Hefei Hengda Jianghai Pump Co., Ltd. of Anhui Province, China. The pumps are currently undergoing factory assembly and are expected to be air freighted in August. Looking north with the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators in the background, cranes and steel piping are mobilized to one of the two existing vertical shaft sites that will be used to dewater the eastern side of the Kakula Mine. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Concurrently, site preparation activities are advancing well. The high-capacity, submersible pumps will be installed in pairs down two adjacent shafts that access the deepest sections of the eastern side of the Kakula Mine, as shown in Figure 1. The remaining pump will be kept in reserve. The pumps will be connected to piping and lowered down the existing shafts from the surface. Discharged water from the submersible pumps will be fed into existing surface water channels that feed into on-site settling and treatment ponds. The total capital cost of the Stage One and Stage Two dewatering activities, including the purchase, transport, and installation of the high-capacity, submersible dewatering pumps, is expected to be up to $70 million, including contingency. Figure 1. An illustration of the Kakula Mine's existing underground infrastructure as of June 2025, showing the depth profile of the western and eastern sections and existing (Stage One) and new (Stage Two) vertical pumping locations. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Development to the new mining area on the far eastern side of the Kakula Mine has commenced A new mining area, located on the far eastern side of the Kakula Mine, as indicated by the red arrows in Figure 2, will be initially accessed via two new access drives. The mining crews commenced construction of the access drives in the past week. Development of the new mining area is expected to be initially conducted in waste before entering ore from early 2026. Mining of the area is expected to commence in Q2 2026. The new access drives will be developed simultaneously, advancing east from existing underground infrastructure. The new mining area will not require new mine access from the surface. The area will be accessed from existing underground infrastructure that is not affected by the ongoing dewatering activities. Figure 2. An illustration of the Kakula Mine's existing underground infrastructure, showing the grade profile and the location of the two access drives (red arrows) to the new eastern mining area. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Notes: Existing underground development as at June 2025. Illustration is based on the 2023 Kamoa-Kakula IDP showing the estimated average grade of each vertical stack of blocks above a 2% total copper cut-off. A minimum 6-metre thickness is applied. Smelter heat-up scheduled to start in September; first copper anode production expected in October As announced on June 11, 2025, Kamoa-Kakula's senior management confirmed that the start-up of the on-site direct-to-blister copper smelter will commence in early September 2025, with the first production of anode expected in October. The smelter can operate at a minimum operating capacity of 50%, or approximately 250,000 tonnes of copper on an annualized basis. Kamoa-Kakula's management team expects to prioritize the processing of all concentrates produced by the Phase 1, 2, and 3 concentrators through the on-site smelter, with any excess concentrate toll-treated at the nearby Lualaba Copper Smelter. As at June 30, 2025, Kamoa-Kakula's total on-site, unsold concentrate stockpiles consisted of 53,600 tonnes of copper, of which approximately 31,500 tonnes are stored on the smelter site. In preparation for the first feed of concentrate, approximately four to six weeks after start-up in early September, it is expected that total on-site, unsold concentrate stockpiles will be approximately 35,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate. First copper anode production from Kamoa-Kakula's state-of-the-art, on-site copper smelter is expected in October. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Kamoa-Kakula's Project 95 is approximately 50% complete and on schedule for completion in Q1 2026 Kamoa-Kakula's Project 95 is advancing well at 50% complete and is on schedule for completion in Q1 2026. The "Project 95" initiative for Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 1 and 2 concentrators aims to increase the overall recovery rate to 95%, up from the design recovery rate of 87%, based on a high-grade feed of 5% copper. During the interim period, while the Kakula Mine is undergoing turnaround, a portion of the ore feed to the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators, sourced from both the Kakula and Kamoa mines, will be of lower grade. Kamoa-Kakula's engineering team aims to maintain a recovery rate from the lower-grade sources of at least 90%. Project 95 construction works are advancing well, as shown in the foreground, with the adjacent Phase 1 and 2 concentrator storage shed in the background. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Site clearance and early earthworks for Kamoa-Kakula's 60-megawatt, on-site solar facility with battery storage have commenced During late March and early April 2025, Kamoa Copper signed power purchase agreements (PPA) with CrossBoundary Energy DRC of Nairobi, Kenya, and La Societe Green World Energie SARL of Beijing, China, to provide up to 60 megawatts (MW) in baseload clean energy to Kamoa-Kakula's operations from an on-site solar facility. The facilities, which will be owned, operated, and funded by CrossBoundary Energy and Green World Energie, will comprise a total of 406 MWp of Solar Photovoltaic (PV) capacity, with up to 1,107 MWh of battery energy storage (BESS). Kamoa Copper will be the sole off-taker of the electricity produced by both facilities. Kamoa-Kakula plans to expand the on-site solar facilities over time further, targeting a capacity of up to 120 MW. Early construction works commenced in the second quarter with geotechnical surveying of the site, site clearing, and the ordering of long-lead items, including the BESS, E-house, and mounting structures. Construction completion is expected in mid-2026. Site clearing and early earthworks are underway at Kamoa-Kakula's 60 MW on-site solar (PV) facility, which is scheduled for completion in mid-2026. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Revised 2025 cash cost (C1) and capital expenditure guidance to be provided with Q2 2025 financial results; Kamoa-Kakula 2026 and 2027 production guidance to be provided in September As announced on June 11, 2025, Kamoa-Kakula's revised annual production guidance is 370,000 to 420,000 tonnes of copper. Ivanhoe Mines is expected to provide Kamoa-Kakula's 2026 and 2027 copper production guidance in September, 2025. In addition, Ivanhoe Mines will provide, with the company's second quarter financial results, on July 30, 2025, revised 2025 group capital expenditure and Kamoa-Kakula cash cost (C1) guidance. It is expected that Kamoa-Kakula's revised 2025 capital expenditure guidance will not exceed the upper end of the original 2025 guidance range of $1,420 to $1,670 million, as announced on January 8, 2025, on a 100% basis. Offtake agreement signed for the remaining 20% of copper anode production from Kamoa-Kakula's on-site smelter; offtake-linked advanced payment facility of $200 million also signed As previously announced on January 8, 2025, CITIC Metal Limited and Gold Mountains International Mining Company Limited, a subsidiary of Zijin Mining, signed offtake agreements with Kamoa Copper for a combined 80% of the copper anode production from the Kamoa-Kakula smelter. The CITIC Metal and Gold Mountains anode offtake agreements also included offtake-linked advance payment facilities totalling $500 million. This facility was in addition to a $300 million Phase 3 concentrate offtake-linked advanced payment facility signed with both offtakers in 2024. In June, an agreement for the remaining 20% of the smelter's anode offtake was signed over a three-year term with Trafigura Asia Trading Pte Ltd. The offtake agreement with Trafigura also included a $200 million offtake-linked advance payment facility. The facility has an interest rate of the 1-month Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) plus 3.75%. Also in June, Kamoa Copper's existing $200 million loan facility with Standard Bank has been extended for a further 12 months on favourable terms. The funding arrangements will provide balance sheet flexibility in supporting the ongoing turnaround of the Kakula Mine. Kipushi concentrator milled a record 153,342 tonnes of ore, producing a near-record 41,788 tonnes of zinc; zinc production rates expected to significantly improve in H2 2025 Summary of quarterly production data from KipushiQ2 2024 Q3 2024 Q4 2024 Q1 2025 Q2 2025 Kipushi ConcentratorOre tonnes milled (tonnes) - 108,065 119,619 151,403 153,342 Feed grade of ore processed (% zinc) - 32.12 31.72 32.16 33.37 Zinc recovery (%) - 75.78 85.07 87.93 85.22 Zinc in concentrate produced (tonnes) - 18,946 32,490 42,736 41,788 Data in bold denotes a quarterly record Zinc production from the Kipushi concentrator continued to improve during the second quarter. Multiple production records were achieved in May, with a record 60,182 tonnes of ore processed, producing a record 18,305 tonnes of zinc. In June, only 41,107 tonnes of ore were processed due to a nine-day shutdown to integrate the first phase of the debottlenecking program, as well as the temporary feed of lower-grade ore for the three weeks ahead of the shutdown. The first phase of the debottlenecking program focused on improving the tailings pumping systems to enable the concentrator to consistently operate at its nameplate capacity. This work is now complete. The second and final phase of the debottlenecking program will upgrade certain processing equipment within the concentrator to boost the throughput by 20%, from 800,000 to 960,000 tonnes of ore per annum. This phase is on track to be complete in the third quarter, with a 7-day shutdown planned in August to integrate all remaining equipment upgrades. Concurrent with the integrations of the debottlenecking program, the June shutdown also included upgrades to the concentrator's dense media separation (DMS) circuit. As reported on October 7, 2024, excessive fine material in the ore (fines) was causing unscheduled shutdowns due to blockages in the DMS circuit. Following the completion of the upgrades, the availability of the DMS has increased from approximately 6 to 16 hours per day, resulting in a significant reduction in lost operating time. Further upgrades will take place during the planned August shutdown, after DMS availability is expected to further increase up to 22 hours per day. Based on the completion of the above initiatives, Kipushi's 2025 production guidance remains unchanged at between 180,000 and 240,000 tonnes of zinc. (L-R) Akshay Panchal, Supervisor, and Moise Kibambe, Safety Officer, from Mining Chemical Suppliers overseeing the installation of cabling, as part of the debottlenecking program, at Kipushi's main electrical substation. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Kipushi's project engineering team continues its strong track record of safe and reliable project delivery. The debottlenecking program, which commenced in Q3 2024, continues to advance on schedule and with zero lost time injuries (LTI) reported. Therefore, since September 2022, when construction of the Kipushi concentrator commenced, up until today, the project engineering team has not recorded a single LTI, an incredibly rare industry feat. First production from the Platreef project's Phase 1 concentrator is tracking on schedule for first production in the fourth quarter. As announced on May 8, 2025, underground development of the Flatreef orebody on the 850-metre level commenced on April 30, 2025. Since then, a total of 43 metres of reef development in ore has been completed. From now on, the rate of reef development is expected to increase to 80 metres per month. Reef development at the 750-metre level is scheduled to commence in October 2025. Development ore is being hoisted to the surface and stored in stockpiles. The Ivanplats team aims to accumulate a stockpile of approximately 60,000 tonnes of development ore ahead of the first feed into the Phase 1 concentrator. First production from the Platreef Phase 1 concentrator remains on track to take place in the fourth quarter. The concentrator will be fed primarily by development ore during the initial stages of ramp-up. Stoping (production mining) is expected to commence in Q1 2026, following the completion of Shaft #3. The proportion of ore from stoping will gradually increase, compared with development ore, as the ramp-up advances. The underground delineation drilling program, which commenced last year, is progressing well. The first ore block on the 850-metre level, where the initial stoping will take place, has been drilled, and the assays reconcile well with Ivanplats' grade models. Equipping of Shaft #3 continues to progress well and is on schedule to be 'ready to hoist' ore in Q1 2026. The shaft's 5.1-metre-diameter barrel support is complete from surface to shaft bottom at 950 metres depth, and the excavation for the shaft loading box has also been completed. The head gear assembly and rock winder installation are advancing well, with the rock winder mechanical installation is nearing completion. Aerial view of the surface infrastructure of the Platreef site at dusk, showing shaft locations, the phase 1 concentrator, the dry stack tailings facility, as well as the reef development ore stockpiles. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Shaft #3 head gear assembly and rock winder installation are advancing well, with the mechanical installation of the rock winder (pictured below) nearing completion. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Excavation and civil work for the underground rock-breaker and grizzly system on the Platreef Mine's 950-metre level. The rock-breaker will resize blasted ore before it is hoisted up Shaft #3. Shaft #3 is expected to be ready to hoist in Q1 2026. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: Ivanhoe Mines to issue Q2 2025 financial results after market close on July 30, and host conference call for investors on July 31, 2025 Ivanhoe Mines will report its Q2 2025 financial results and a detailed update on its operations after market close on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. The company plans to hold an investor conference call to discuss the second quarter financial results the following day on Thursday, July 31, 2025. Details of the call will be shared closer to the date. An audio webcast recording of the conference call, together with supporting presentation slides, will be available on Ivanhoe Mines' website at After issuance, the Financial Statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis will be available at and Qualified Persons Disclosures of a scientific or technical nature at the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex, the Platreef Project and the Kipushi Project, other than stockpiles, in this news release, have been reviewed and approved by Steve Amos, who is considered, by virtue of his education, experience, and professional association, a Qualified Person under the terms of NI 43-101. Mr. Amos is not considered independent under NI 43-101 as he is Ivanhoe Mines' Executive Vice President, Projects. Mr. Amos has verified such technical data disclosed in this news release. Disclosures of a scientific or technical nature regarding the stockpiles in this news release have been reviewed and approved by Joshua Chitambala, who is considered, by virtue of his education, experience, and professional association, a Qualified Person under the terms of NI 43-101. Mr. Chitambala is not considered independent under NI 43-101 as he is the Resource Manager for Ivanhoe Mines. Mr. Chitambala has verified the technical data regarding the surface stockpiles disclosed in this news release. Ivanhoe has prepared an independent, NI 43-101-compliant technical report for the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex, the Platreef Project, and the Kipushi Mine, each of which is available on the company's website and under the company's SEDAR+ profile at Kamoa-Kakula Integrated Development Plan 2023 Technical Report dated March 6, 2023, prepared by OreWin Pty Ltd., China Nerin Engineering Co. Ltd., DRA Global, Epoch Resources, Golder Associates Africa, Metso Outotec Oyj, Paterson and Cooke, SRK Consulting Ltd., and The MSA Group. The Kipushi 2022 Feasibility Study, dated February 14, 2022, prepared by OreWin Pty Ltd., MSA Group (Pty) Ltd., SRK Consulting (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, and METC Engineering. The Platreef Integrated Development Plan 2025, dated March 31, 2025, prepared by OreWin Pty Ltd., Mine Technical Services, SRK Consulting Inc., DRA Projects (Pty) Ltd, and Golder Associates Africa. The technical reports include relevant information regarding the assumptions, parameters, and methods of the mineral resource estimates on the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex, the Kipushi Mine and the Platreef Project cited in this news release, as well as information regarding data verification, exploration procedures and other matters relevant to the scientific and technical disclosure contained in this news release. About Ivanhoe Mines Ivanhoe Mines is a Canadian mining company focused on advancing its three principal projects in Southern Africa: the expansion of the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the DRC, the ramp-up of the ultra-high-grade Kipushi zinc-copper-germanium-silver mine, also in the DRC; and the phased development of the tier-one Platreef palladium-nickel-platinum-rhodium-copper-gold project in South Africa. Ivanhoe Mines is also exploring its highly prospective, 54-100% owned exploration licences in the Western Forelands, covering an area over five times larger than the adjacent Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex. Ivanhoe is exploring for new sedimentary copper discoveries, as well as expanding and further defining its high-grade Makoko, Kiala, and Kitoko copper discoveries as the company's next major development projects. Follow Robert Friedland (@robert_ivanhoe) and Ivanhoe Mines (@IvanhoeMines_) on X. Information contact Investors Vancouver: Matthew Keevil +1.604.558.1034 London: Tommy Horton +44 7866 913 207 Media Tanya Todd +1.604.331.9834 Forward-looking statements Certain statements in this release constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of the company, its projects, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. Such statements can be identified using words such as "may", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "expect", "believe", "plan", "anticipate", "estimate", "scheduled", "forecast", "predict" and other similar terminology, or state that certain actions, events, or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. These statements reflect the company's current expectations regarding future events, performance, and results and speak only as of the date of this release. Such statements include, without limitation: (i) statements that Stage 2 dewatering at Kakula Mine are on schedule to commence in August 2025; (ii) statements that Project 95 at Kamoa-Kakula is on schedule for completion in Q1 2026; (iii) statements that Platreef is on schedule for first production in Q4 2025; (iv) statements that the development of the two new access drives will be conducted from existing underground infrastructure; (v) statements that the development of a new high-grade mining area on the easter side of Kakula is expected to provide additional high-grade ore by Q2 2026; (vi) statements regarding the expectation that excess ore from the Kamoa and Kansoko mines, which continue to outperform on all metrics, will be transported to further augment feed of fresh material to the Phase 1 and Phase 2 concentrators as soon as possible; (vii) statements that heat-up of Kamoa-Kakula's state-of-the-art, 500,000-tonne-per-annum direct-to-blister copper smelter is expected to start in September 2025, with the first production of 99.7% pure copper anodes anticipated in October 2025; (viii) statements that it is expected that the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators will continue to process ore at this rate for the remainder of 2025, with approximately 50% of ore feed coming from surface stockpiles and 50% from the western side of the Kakula Mine and that the processing of surface stockpiles is expected to continue until they are depleted in Q1 2026; (ix) statements regarding the expectation that for the remainder of 2025 the feed grade into the Phase 3 concentrator will average approximately 2.5% copper, as the cut-off grade is lowered to achieve greater mining rate; (x) statements that during the second half of 2025, the combined mining rate from the Kamoa and Kansoko mines will increase, with up to 100,000 tonnes per month of ore fed into the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators, replacing a portion of the stockpile feed; (xi) statements that copper grades on the western side of the Kakula mine, which mining crews plan to advance from late 2025, are expected to increase to approximately 5%; (xii) statements that total cost to purchase, transport and install the "Stage Two" high-capacity, submersible dewatering pumps is expected to be approximately $50 million; (xiii) statements that development to the new mining area at Kakula is expected to be initially conducted in waste before entering ore from early 2026, with mining of the area expected to commence in Q2 2026; (xiv) statements that the onsite solar facilities, which will be owned, operated, and funded by CrossBoundary Energy and Green World Energie, will comprise a total of 406 MWp of Solar PV capacity, with up to 1,107 MWh of BESS and that Kamoa Copper will be the sole off-taker of the electricity produced by both facilities; (xv) statements that Kamoa-Kakula is targeting on-site solar facility capacity of up to 120MW, with construction expected to be completed in mid-2026; (xvi) statements that Kamoa-Kakula's revised 2025 capital expenditure guidance will not exceed the upper end of the original 2025 guidance range of $1,420 to $1,670 million, as announced on January 8, 2025, on a 100% basis; (xv) statements that the second and final phase of the debottlenecking program will upgrade certain processing equipment within the concentrator to boost the throughput by 20%, from 800,000 to 960,000 tonnes of ore per annum, and that this phase is on track to be complete in the third quarter 2025; and (xvi) statements that stoping (production mining) is expected to commence in Q1 2026, following the completion of Shaft #3. Forward-looking statements and information involve significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indicators of whether such results will be achieved. Many factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements or information, including, but not limited to: (i) uncertainty around the rate of water ingress into underground workings at Kakula; (ii) the ability, and speed with which, additional equipment can be secured for Stage Two of the Kakula dewatering; (iii) the continuation of seismic activity at Kakula; (iv) the state of underground infrastructure at Kakula; (v) uncertainty around when future underground access can be secured at Kakula; (vi) the fact that future mine stability at Kakula cannot be guaranteed; (vii) the fact that future mining methods may differ and impact on Kakula operations; and (viii) the ultimate conclusion of the assessment of the cause of the seismic activity at Kakula and the impact of same on the mining plan at the Kamoa Kakula Copper Complex. Additional factors also include those discussed above and under the "Risk Factors" section in the company's MD&A for the three months ended March 31, 2025, and its current annual information form, and elsewhere in this news release, as well as unexpected changes in laws, rules or regulations, or their enforcement by applicable authorities; changes in the rate of water ingress into underground workings; the continuation of seismic activity; the state of underground infrastructure; delays in securing underground access; changes to the mining methods required in the future; the failure of parties to contracts with the company to perform as agreed; social or labour unrest; changes in commodity prices; and the failure of exploration programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that would justify and support continued exploration, studies, development or operations. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management of the company believes are reasonable assumptions, the company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Subject to applicable securities laws, the company does not assume any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this news release. The company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of the factors outlined in the "Risk Factors" section in the company's MD&A for the three months ended March 31, 2025, and its current annual information form. 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Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ivanhoe Mines to Issue Q2 2025 Production Results Before Market Open on Tuesday, July 8, 2025
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - July 7, 2025) - Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN) (OTCQX: IVPAF) will release its second quarter 2025 production results, as well as provide an operations and project development update, before market open, on Tuesday, July 8, 2025. About Ivanhoe Mines Ivanhoe Mines is a Canadian mining company focused on advancing its three principal projects in Southern Africa: the expansion of the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the DRC, the ramp-up of the ultra-high-grade Kipushi zinc-copper-germanium-silver mine, also in the DRC; and the phased development of the tier-one Platreef palladium-nickel-platinum-rhodium-copper-gold project in South Africa. Ivanhoe Mines is also exploring its highly prospective, 54-100% owned exploration licences in the Western Forelands, covering an area over five times larger than the adjacent Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex. Ivanhoe is exploring for new sedimentary copper discoveries, as well as expanding and further defining its high-grade Makoko, Kiala, and Kitoko copper discoveries as the company's next major development projects. Information contact Investors Vancouver: Matthew Keevil +1.604.558.1034 London: Tommy Horton +44 7866 913 207 Media Tanya Todd +1.604.331.9834 To view the source version of this press release, please visit
