Mr. Stephen Dunn reports
US COPPER RELEASES STUDY ON ECONOMIC BENEFITS FOR PLUMAS COUNTY OF THE MOONLIGHT-SUPERIOR COPPER PROJECT
U.S. Copper Corp. has released the findings of a comprehensive study of the potential economic benefits of building and operating a mine at its Moonlight-Superior mining property, located in Plumas county, California.
The study was prepared by Pinyon Environmental Inc., based in Lakewood, Colo., a provider of environmental consulting services to private and public clients since 1993. Pinyon used the capital and operating expenses described and summarized in the preliminary economic assessment prepared by Global Resource Engineering in 2025 for U.S. Copper, along with the Implan data and software system, to estimate the economic impacts in terms of economic output, employment and gross regional product in Plumas county for the mine construction and mining of the Moonlight-Superior copper deposits owned by U.S. Copper. Gross regional product is a measure of economic value added through the production of goods and services in the local economy.
The economic benefits of the initial construction phase were first considered and then followed by the continuing economic benefits of operating the mine and processing facilities. The entire project would develop the copper resources within the Moonlight, Superior and Engles deposits located within the historic Lights Creek district. The project will include the mine, as well as two recovery methods (heap leach and conventional flotation), as well as other supporting infrastructure (for example, access roads, buildings and facilities, labs, fuel and water storage, power supply, and distribution).
Economic benefits of capital investments
Capital investments would primarily occur during the construction phase but would also occur over the 15-year life of the project. In total, capital investments are anticipated to be $1.3-billion in 2024 dollars. Peak economic benefits from capital expenses would occur during the second year of construction before operations commence. In this year, there would be a total of 1,661 annual jobs and $172.7-million in GRP created, supported from construction and development activities, including mine equipment purchases, process facility construction, infrastructure construction, and general and administrative expenses.
Economic benefits from operations of the mine and process facilities
Once the mine and process facilities are operational, mine revenues of $568-million would support 465 direct annual jobs and $207.8-million in GRP annually in mining and processing industries in Plumas county over the first 10 years of operations. There would be an additional 224 secondary jobs and $27.1-million in secondary GRP generated, for a total economic benefit of 689 annual jobs and $234.9-million in annual GRP in the first 10 years when the project is operational. These 689 annual jobs and $234.9-million in annual GRP during the operations period would result in a 7-per-cent increase in jobs in Plumas county and a 21-per-cent increase in GRP compared with 2023 levels (9,797 jobs and $1,101.6-million in GRP).
Tax receipts from operations of the mine and process facilities
The development and operation of the Moonlight mine project will result in various tax receipts for federal, state and local government entities. These include but are not limited to property taxes, sales and uses taxes, and income and payroll taxes. On average, tax revenues to the State of California are estimated to exceed $9.8-million on an annual basis.
In addition to the taxes paid to the State of California, several county and subcounty entities would also assess taxes on the operation of the project. On average, the operation of the project is expected to generate $15.3-million per year in additional tax revenue to local jurisdictions. Most of these revenues are associated with property taxes. In 2023, taxes on production and imports were $103.9-million in Plumas county, and annual tax receipts from the project of $15.3-million represent an increase of 15 per cent over 2023 levels.
Stephen Dunn, chief executive officer of U.S. Copper, commented: "The Moonlight-Superior mining project would become a cornerstone of economic growth, prosperity and community development in the Plumas county region for more than two decades, providing career opportunities and family-supporting employment for years to come. It would transform the economy of the region by establishing a stable source of economic activity that would support further development in areas such as power generation, education, home development, the food industry, and a myriad of other industries and professions. Mining jobs in the United States are well paid. The average annual salary for the Moonlight project is estimated to be in excess of $75,000. Incomes like this strengthen the economy of Plumas county and lead to decades of prosperity. By employing new developments in mining utilizing robotics and artificial intelligence, the area could also become a springboard for research into new technologies.
"Copper is a key element in a wide range of energy technologies and is designated as a critical mineral by the government the United States. Moonlight would become an integral supplier of copper metal to the U.S. domestic market with average annual production of 60 million pounds of copper and 1.7 billion pounds over the life of mine. For example, that would be enough copper to supply 12 million electric vehicles. Copper is a critical material for an extensive range of important applications ranging from renewable power generation to electric vehicles. As such, it is vital that the U.S. has a strong and viable domestic source of copper supply.
"Moonlight Superior will be an important direct contributor and catalyst for government revenues at the local, provincial and national levels, supporting vital programs and services that benefit all Americans. Total government revenues generated by the mine for all three levels of government are forecasted to exceed $45-million annually and $570-million over the life of mine."
The full report will be on the U.S. Copper website.
About U.S. Copper Corp.
U.S. Copper controls approximately 10 square miles of patented and unpatented federal mining claims in the Light's Creek copper district in Plumas county, northeastern California, essentially, the entire district. The district contains substantial copper (silver) sulphide and copper oxide resources in three deposits: Moonlight, Superior and Engels, as well as several partially tested and untested exploration targets.
The Superior and Engels mines operated from about 1915 to 1930 producing over 161 million pounds of copper from over four million tons of rock containing 2.2 per cent copper with silver and gold credits.
The Moonlight deposit was discovered by Placer Amex during the 1960s, and a resource was calculated after the drilling of over 400 holes. A development decision was made but then put on hold in 1972 when copper prices were weak. U.S. Copper has owned the project since 2013, and has advanced the project with three different drill programs and a number of engineering studies.
U.S. Copper recently reported an after-tax net present value of $1,075-million (U.S.) in a preliminary economic assessment prepared by Global Resource Engineering Ltd. dated Dec. 16, 2024, with a life-of-mine production of 1.8 billion pounds of copper (see news release dated Jan. 6, 2025).
GRE calculated a new mineral resource for the purposes of this PEA that included all recent drill programs on the property.
Further details of this resource and the preliminary economic assessment National Instrument 43-101 technical report on the Moonlight-Superior project, Plumas county, California, United States, with an effective date of Dec. 16, 2024, can be found on SEDAR+ or at the company's website.
The PEA is preliminary in nature and includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves under Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy, and Petroleum definition standards. Readers are advised that there is no certainty that the results projected in this preliminary economic assessment will be realized.
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