All amounts in US$ unless otherwise indicated
VANCOUVER, British Columbia–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Capstone Copper Corp. (Capstone or the Company) (TSX:) (ASX:) today announced consolidated production for 2024 and provided operations and capital expenditure guidance for 2025.
- Record consolidated copper production in 2024 was 184,458 tonnes at C1 cash costs1,2 of approximately $2.75 to $2.80 per payable pound of copper.
- Consolidated copper production increased by 12% compared to 2023 driven by the ramp-up of the Mantoverde Development Project (MVDP).
- During Q4 2024, Capstone produced record consolidated copper production of 53,942 tonnes at C1 cash costs1,2 of approximately $2.55 to $2.60 per payable pound of copper.
- 2025 forecasted production volumes of 220,000 to 255,000 tonnes of copper are expected to increase by approximately 19% to 38%, while 2025 forecasted C1 cash costs1 of $2.20 to $2.50 per payable pound of copper are expected to decrease by approximately 10% to 20% compared to 2024.
John MacKenzie, CEO of Capstone, commented, The fourth quarter was an overall record for Capstone’s consolidated copper production, with our output up 14% and unit costs down approximately 9% quarter-over-quarter. Although total 2024 consolidated copper production of 184,458 tonnes finished slightly below our guidance range, largely attributable to ramp-up delays at Mantos Blancos and Mantoverde, we exited the year close to design production levels. At Mantos Blancos, we averaged above our design mill throughput rate of 20,000 tonnes per day in November and December. Meanwhile at Mantoverde, after producing first copper in June, our ramp up showed sequential improvement over the second half of 2024, with mill throughput averaging just over 27,000 tonnes per day and copper recoveries averaging almost 85% in December.
This year in 2025, we will deliver meaningful copper production growth, with a commensurate decrease in unit costs, that will drive a significant increase in cash flow generation. Meanwhile, we intend to advance our Mantoverde Optimized brownfield expansion project after receipt of a DIA (BME:) permit amendment which is expected around the middle of the year. We also plan to continue progressing financing and partnership discussions at our fully permitted Santo Domingo project, while in parallel advancing opportunities to incorporate the recently acquired Sierra Norte project and Santo Domingo’s oxide material into the mine plan, and advancing studies…
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