Hudbay Minerals receives Aquifer Protection Permit for Copper World project

Hudbay Minerals has received an Aquifer Protection Permit for the Copper World project. from the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. The company proactively engaged with the ADEQ, ensuring a transparent and thorough permitting process by providing comprehensive and detailed information. The issuance of this permit is a key milestone in the advancement of Copper World, which is a standalone operation requiring state and local permits and is expected to produce 85,000 tonnes of copper per year over a 20-year mine life . Once in production, Copper World is expected to be a meaningful copper producer in the U.S. domestic copper supply chain, which will be required to help secure growing U.S. metal demand related to increased manufacturing capacity, infrastructure development, increased energy independence and domestic battery supply chain and production needs. The “Made-in-America” copper cathode anticipated to be produced at Copper World is expected to be sold entirely to domestic U.S. customers and would make Copper World the third largest cathode producer in the U.S. There are three key state permits required for Copper World sanctioning: Mined Land Reclamation Plan – Completed – the Mined Land Reclamation Plan was initially approved by the Arizona State Mine Inspector in October 2021 and was subsequently amended and approved to reflect a larger private land project footprint. This approval was challenged in state court, but the challenge was dismissed in May 2023. Aquifer Protection Permit – Completed – the Aquifer Protection Permit was received on August 29, 2024 from the ADEQ following a robust process that included detailed analysis by the agency and Hudbay, along with a public comment period that was completed in the second quarter of 2024. Air Quality Permit – On Track – the Air Quality Permit application was submitted to the ADEQ in late 2022 and follows a similar robust process, including a public comment period that commenced in July and is scheduled to conclude in September 2024.