The project is also set to maintain Constancia’s current operational timeline, with mining activities expected to continue through 2030.  Credit: BETO SANTILLAN/Shutterstock.

Canadian miner Hudbay Minerals is seeking a permit for a $210m (C$302.43m) expansion of its Constancia copper mine in Peru’s Cusco region.

This project will include upgrades at the Pampacancha satellite pit and is aimed at increasing the mine’s output capacity while enhancing processing efficiency, as detailed in a report submitted to Peru’s environmental certifier, Senace, said a report by the Northern Miner.

The Constancia copper mine’s total proven and probable copper reserves are estimated at 527.2 million tonnes (mt), with a grade of 0.254%.

Data from Peru’s Ministry of Energy and Mines indicates that the mine produced 74,617 tonnes (t) of copper between January and October 2024, reflecting a 5.3% decline compared with the same period in 2023.

While complete results for 2024 are pending, the company expects to produce between 98,000t and 120,000t of copper concentrates.

The expansion strategy aims to broaden the Constancia pit, active since 2014, incorporate additional processing equipment and elevate the tailings dam wall. Hudbay expects construction to commence in the fourth quarter of this year.

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The specifics of the project are outlined in the fourth technical support report (ITS) associated with Constancia’s environmental impact study. Five key upgrades are highlighted in the report, designed to optimise operations.

These upgrades include the installation of a third ball mill, two crushers and advanced ore-sorting machinery to process the harder ore currently being mined.

The implementation of these enhancements will not exceed the mine’s daily processing capacity of 85,000t.

The project is also set to maintain Constancia’s current operational timeline, with mining activities expected to continue through 2030.

In addition to the Peru project, Hudbay Minerals recently secured an air quality permit from the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality for the development and operation of its Copper World project in Arizona, US.

Located in Pima County, approximately 50km south-east of Tucson, the Copper World project is expected to produce 85,000t of copper annually during its initial mine life of 20 years.

This project includes seven deposits discovered in 2021, along with the East deposit, previously known as the Rosemont deposit.