Name of the Project
Kennecott copper project.

Location
Salt Lake City, Utah, in the US.

Project Owner/s
Rio Tinto.

Project Description
Kennecott holds the potential for significant and attractive underground development.

The Lower Commercial Skarn (LCS) is the first step towards this, with a mineral resource of 7.5-million tonnes at 1.9% copper, 0.84 g/t gold, 11.26 g/t silver and 0.015% molybdenum identified, based on drilling and a probable ore reserve of 1.7-million tonnes at 1.9% copper, 0.71 g/t gold, 10.07 g/t silver and 0.044% molybdenum.

Underground mining will initially focus on the LCS, which will deliver 30 000 t of additional high-quality mined copper until 2027 alongside opencut operations.

It will be processed through the existing facilities at Kennecott, one of only two operating copper smelters in the United States.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.

Capital Expenditure
Rio Tinto approved a $55 million investment in development capital in September 2022 to start underground mining and expand production at its Kennecott copper operations.

Planned Start/End Date
First ore is expected to be produced in early 2023, with full production in the second half of the year.

Latest Developments
Existing underground infrastructure is being extended to allow for early access to the next underground resource and undertake characterisation studies.

A feasibility study to inform decisions on the next phase of underground production is expected to be completed in 2023. This will be one of several potential stages being investigated.

Feasibility studies are also being progressed to extend openpit mining at Kennecott beyond 2032.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
None stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Rio Tinto media relations (US), Matthew Klar, tel +1 514 608 4429.