If you’re subscribed to this Substack, then this new PDF from global mining giant BHP is probably bedtime reading material for you. BHP examines the challenges facing the global copper mining industry while emphasizing the integral role that copper plays in human progress:

“Through the 21st century, we expect copper to remain an essential building block to modern life as the world seeks to improve living standards for billions of people, transitions towards a net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions economy, and further digitalises its industries and societies.”

A few graphics from BHP’s Insights stood out to me, including this one:

New major copper discoveries are becoming about as rare as spotting a Florida Panther in the wild. In addition, the discoveries that have been made in the last twenty years are getting progressively deeper in the Earth. The world class Resolution Copper discovery in Arizona is famous for a number of things, including the fact that the high-grade ore body sits more than 1,000 meters below the surface.

The South American porphyry discovery boom of the 1990s and 2000s has given way to a period of relative scarcity in terms of new discoveries. In addition, the political backdrop in several Latin American countries has become significantly more challenging for the mining industry in recent years.

This is causing many major mining companies to turn back to North America with a new set of eyes and modern technology that can see much deeper below the Earth’s surface. Some recent examples of major mining companies looking for buried (concealed) porphyry copper systems at depths that previously seemed unimaginable:

  • Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD, TSX:ABX) has made significant investments in an emerging porphyry copper belt in western Idaho through an enormous claims staking program (more than 100,000 acres) and a 14% stake in Hercules Metals (TSX-V:BIG). This prospective terrane for porphyry copper discoveries is covered by a layer of basalt in many areas, with little to no surface expression indicative of a copper deposit at depth.
  • Ivanhoe Electric's (NYSE:IE) Typhoon™ technology is a powerful geophysical survey system designed to transform the process of mineral and water exploration. It is capable of detecting sulfide minerals, such as copper, nickel, gold, and silver, at depths of over 1.5 km, which is deeper than most conventional methods. This capability allows it to identify potential deposits that might otherwise remain undetected by traditional technologies, making it especially valuable for discovering hidden porphyry copper deposits. The technology has been successfully deployed at Ivanhoe Electric's Santa Cruz Project in Arizona, where it helped to identify deeper zones of copper mineralization that were previously undetected​.
  • South32 (LSE:S32) recently signed an earn-in agreement with Nevada junior Ridgeline Minerals (TSX-V:RDG) in which it can earn up to an 80% interest in the Selena CRD Project in Nevada. Selena is adjacent to copper giant Freeport McMoRan’s Butte Valley Porphyry Project. South32 acquired Selena from Ridgeline in order to test a conceptual polymetallic skarn target (Taylor Deposit analog) that sits 1,000+ meters deep.

In order to find something new, explorers are being forced to look deeper, in places that had been previously overlooked or misunderstood.


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