Vancouver, B.C., September 13, 2021. Kutcho Copper Corp. (TSXV: KC, OTCQX: KCCFF) (“Kutcho Copper” or the “Company”) is pleased to provide a progress report on the feasibility study for its high-grade copper-zinc Project (“Project”) that is being led by CSA Global Consultants Canada Ltd. (“CSA Global”, an ERM Group Company).
Following a series of trade-off studies, including advanced engineering and optimization work and initial consultations with our key Project partners and stakeholders, Kutcho Copper has elected to make several enhancements to the design and engineering of the Project that the Company believes will unlock significant accretive economic value. Highlights of project optimizations to be incorporated in the upcoming feasibility study (the “Feasibility Study” or “FS”) include:
- Open pit mining the majority of the Main deposit, allowing the Company to capitalise on the high-grade, near-surface mineralization, resulting in lower operating costs than underground mining. The remainder of the Main deposit and all of the Esso deposit will continue to be evaluated assuming underground extraction by longitudinal longhole open stoping;
- Re-estimated mineral resource, based on the open pit mining scenario for the Main deposit has resulted in a 21% increase in tonnes in the Measured and Indicated categories compared to the previous estimate of mineral resources at the Main deposit, providing Kutcho Copper shareholders with enhanced leverage to copper. This increase in tonnage is mainly due to a lower cut-off grade resulting from the change from underground to primarily open pit extraction methods in the Main deposit area.
- The updated mineral resource in the Measured and Indicated category totals 22.8 million tonnes averaging 1.52% copper and 2.18% zinc (2.26% CuEq) representing over 1.1 billion pounds of copper equivalent contained metal (“CuEq”)¹, comprising 765 million pounds of contained copper, 1.1 billion pounds of contained zinc, 288 koz of contained gold, and 20.6 Moz of contained silver.
- Improved project scale, with ore feed to the crusher increasing from 2,500 to 4,500 tonnes per day (“tpd”) as a result of the switch to open pit mining of the Main deposit as compared to the 2017 pre-feasibility study (the “2017 PFS”)²;
- Introduction of ore sorting, based on positive bulk sample test results and project optimisation studies, which should result in higher grade feed and reduced flotation plant size, thereby reducing capital and operating costs;
- Improved metallurgical recoveries compared to prior studies, based on completed test work; and
- Enhancements to the project to reduce the environmental effects, including:
- A compact project footprint that avoids sensitive fish habitat;
- An open pit design and scheduling focussed on minimising the potential for acid rock drainage and metal leaching;
- Backfilled open pit and underground workings to reduce the surface footprint; and
- A tailings management facility (“TMF”) accommodating the reduced tailings from the flotation plant as a result of the introduction of ore sorting.
- Refer to Table 1: Estimate of Mineral Resources for the Kutcho Project note 2
- {refeasibility Technical Report on the Kutcho Project, British Columbia” effective date June 15, 2017, revised report date August 2, 2018, filed on the Company’s SEDAR profile on August 10, 2018.
These initiatives are anticipated to result in a mining operation with lower operating costs that the Company believes has the potential to benefit the project economics.
SOURCE: Kutcho Copper Corp
DATE: September 28, 2021