Florence Copper was not selected for the final award, but we are proud of the nomination by Arizona Forward and the recognition. The Florence Copper PTF has demonstrated that in-situ copper recovery is an environmentally sound and sustainable method to produce copper an essential metal for the global energy transition,” Taseko CEO Stuart McDonald said in a press release.
We believe Florence Copper represents a new era for American mining. It has a small environmental footprint, an unparalleled greenhouse gas intensity, low energy and water needs, and minimal land disturbance.
Florence Copper is an in situ copper extraction project, located between Phoenix & Tucson. It is a two phase development. The PTF is the first phase, followed closely by the commercial phase.
The Phase 1 facility, which included 24 injection, recovery and monitoring wells and an solvent extraction-electrowinning (SX/EW) plant, commenced operation in December 2018. The PTF was able to produce copper cathode of high quality within the strict environmental guidelines set by the permits.
Taseko is working to amend the permit to transition the project into a commercial production facility. This will include an expanded wellfield as an SX/EW unit that will produce an annual average of 85 million pounds. of copper per year over a 20-year life.
A permit for underground injection control (UIC), is required for the company to build the copper facility. The draft decision was issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency late last year.
