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EXIM ups potential loan for Ivanhoe’s Santa Cruz copper project to $1.1B

The U.S. Export-Import Bank increased its potential debt financing after completing preliminary due diligence, and Santa Cruz is expected to produce 72,000 tonnes of copper annually for its first 15 years.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Mining

Ivanhoe Electric is drawing closer to U.S. debt financing for its Santa Cruz copper project in Arizona, after the U.S. Export-Import Bank increased its potential loan to $1.1 billion, the company said. Mining.com reported that EXIM boosted the potential loan by about a third versus a letter of interest issued in April, a step Ivanhoe described as the completion of preliminary due diligence on the project, located roughly 65 km southeast of Phoenix.

Ivanhoe said Santa Cruz is designed to produce 99.9% pure copper without a smelting process, targeting demand growth for copper used across electricity generation and transmission as well as advanced manufacturing and artificial intelligence. The project could become one of the first major new U.S. copper mines in nearly 20 years, with an estimated initial cost of $1.24 billion based on a prior preliminary feasibility study.

According to the same preliminary feasibility study, Santa Cruz could produce 72,000 tonnes of copper annually during the first 15 years of a 23-year mine life. The company also said it expects to complete an updated preliminary feasibility study next month, incorporating underground mine access plans that include a tunnel boring machine, and shares rose 1% to $16.03 in Toronto trading on Monday morning.

Latest closeCopper $6.606 ▲0.2%

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