Announcement • 6h
Pecoy Copper Announces Results of Phase 1 Independent Metallurgical Review for Pecoy Copper-Gold-Molybdenum-Silver Project
Pecoy Copper announced the results of a Phase 1 independent metallurgical review completed by Global Resource Engineering Ltd. on the Pecoy copper-gold-molybdenum-silver project in Peru. Historical metallurgical work at Pecoy was designed to optimize copper recovery and concentrate quality. GRE’s Phase 1 review re-examined the historical test work, metal deportment and flotation performance through a broader payable-metals lens, reflecting the potential contribution of gold, silver and molybdenum in the current commodity price environment. The review identified opportunities to improve gold recovery while maintaining a marketable copper concentrate grade and commercially acceptable concentrate quality. The Phase 1 review outlines: A potential to significantly improve gold recovery; Continued strong copper recoveries and marketable concentrate grades; and Molybdenum optionality, including the potential of a separate molybdenum concentrate, which could introduce a second payable product stream. Existing metallurgical test work was primarily designed to optimize copper concentrate grade and copper recovery, rather than optimize the value of the overall concentrate stream. Historical gold recoveries to copper concentrate were materially lower than copper recoveries in the final concentrate while rougher recoveries were high for both metals, indicating potential gold losses during cleaner flotation. GRE’s simulations suggest that gold recovery from South Breccia material may be increased to approximately 73% through a modified flotation approach. Flash flotation, cleaner-stage mass pull optimization, reagent selection, and pH control were identified as key areas for follow-up testing. Test work review allowed for updated flowsheet simulations providing recovery improvements while maintaining potentially saleable copper concentrate grades. Additional variability testing is required to confirm recovery assumptions across domains, grades, alteration types, depths, and elevations. GRE’s review indicates that the existing metallurgical work, while limited, supports a potential pathway to enhanced gold recovery through modifications to the flotation flowsheet and operating conditions. In particular, GRE identified the potential benefit of incorporating a flash flotation stage and adjusting cleaner flotation parameters to reduce gold losses during concentrate cleaning. Based on simulations using available laboratory data, GRE estimates that gold recoveries from South Breccia material could range from approximately 60% to 76%, with recoveries of approximately 73% considered the most likely outcome under the simulated conditions. This compares with historical locked-cycle flotation test gold recoveries of approximately 40% to 43% in certain prior tests. These improvements are subject to confirmatory metallurgical test work. The South Breccia domain is of particular metallurgical and economic interest, as it contains the highest proportion of gold within the primary mineralized system. GRE notes that prior mineralogical work indicates that a significant portion of the gold in the breccia material is free or exposed, suggesting that a portion of the gold previously reporting to flotation tailings or cleaner-stage rejects may be recoverable through optimized flotation conditions. GRE’s simulations indicate that improved gold recoveries may be achievable while maintaining potentially saleable copper concentrate grades, subject to confirmatory test work. The Phase 1 review also identified molybdenum as an area of potential process optionality. GRE’s review supports further assessment of a separate molybdenum flotation circuit, which could potentially produce a molybdenum concentrate in addition to a copper concentrate containing payable gold and silver by-products. Indicative molybdenum recoveries of approximately 72% to 74% were identified; however, this option requires further trade-off evaluation, including potential copper losses, silver deportment, flowsheet complexity, and incremental capital and operating requirements. These factors are expected to be assessed in the planned Phase 2 metallurgical program. The Company intends to initiate a Phase 2 metallurgical test program using new material from drill holes that form part of the Company’s current drilling campaign. The program is expected to include confirmatory flotation testing, rougher kinetic work, cleaner flotation optimization, locked-cycle testing where appropriate, and additional mineralogical and deportment studies. The Phase 2 program will focus on: Confirming improved recoveries for copper, gold, silver and molybdenum; Testing and optimizing the proposed flotation flowsheet modifications; Evaluating the performance and economics of a molybdenum flotation circuit; Quantifying trade-offs between recovery, concentrate grade and mass pull; Generate metallurgical parameters suitable for future engineering and economic studies. The Company expects that this next phase of work will provide a more robust basis for evaluating metal recoveries and concentrate quality across the Pecoy system. Historical metallurgical studies completed between 2014 and 2017 by C.H. Plenge & Cía S.A., Lima, Peru, included flotation, mineralogical, comminution and column leach testing on composite samples representing primary, breccia-hosted and supergene mineralization. GRE concluded that additional metallurgical work is required to validate the potential benefits of flash flotation, assess cleaner flotation conditions, and evaluate variability across the main mineralized domains. The Phase 1 review does not constitute an updated mineral resource estimate, preliminary economic assessment, pre-feasibility study or feasibility study, and the updated recovery estimates should not be interpreted as final design criteria.
