Johnson Camp Mine Construction Commences In SE Arizona

PHOENIX, AZ - Excelsior Mining Corp. reported that construction has commenced at the Johnson Camp Mine (JCM), in southeast Arizona, with first copper production anticipated in H1 of 2025.

Following the decision by Nuton LLC, a Rio Tinto venture to proceed to Stage 2 of a process to restart the JCM mine using Nuton™ copper heap leaching technologies (see Excelsior press release dated May 15th, 2024), Excelsior has completed the bulk of the planning & engineering and has mobilized crews to start construction. M3 Engineering based in Tucson has been awarded the EPCM contract. Earthworks related to the construction of the new leach pad has commenced, including crushing of the over-liner material. Rango Inc. from Mesa was awarded the leach pad construction and overliner crushing contract and is ramping up efforts to achieve the Excelsior milestones. To facilitate the start of these activities and Stage 2, Nuton recently provided funding of $7.9 million through August 2024. Additional funding and activities will be announced as they progress.

"The commencement of leach pad construction marks a key milestone in Excelsior's partnership with Nuton. The M3 and Rango team we have assembled is world class and committed to delivering a safe and timely project. The opportunity to build and operate Nuton's first demonstration of their state-of-the-art copper leaching technology is a privilege Excelsior and our team is proud to deliver," said Robert Winton, SVP Operations and General Manager.