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NYSE: FCX
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COPPER (CU)
MOLYBDENUM (MO)
  • #morenci_link

     

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    NORTH AMERICA

    MORENCI MINE LOCATED IN ARIZONA

    Description

    Morenci is an open-pit copper mining complex that has been in continuous operation since 1939 and previously was mined through underground workings.

    Did you know?

    The Morenci mill expansion project, which achieved full rates in second-quarter 2015, expanded mill capacity from 50,000 metric tons of ore per day to approximately 115,000 metric tons of ore per day, which results in incremental annual production of approximately 225 million pounds of copper and an improvement in Morenci's cost structure.

    Location

    Greenlee County, Arizona, approximately 50 miles northeast of Safford on U.S. Highway 191. 

    Ores

    The Morenci mine is a porphyry copper deposit that has oxide, secondary sulfide mineralization, and primary sulfide mineralization. The predominant oxide copper mineral is chrysocolla. Chalcocite is the most important secondary copper sulfide mineral and chalcopyrite the dominant primary copper sulfide.

    Processes and facilities

    The Morenci operation consists of two concentrators capable of milling 132,000 metric tons of ore per day (mtd), which produce copper and molybdenum concentrate; a 72,500 mtd, crushed-ore leach pad and stacking system; a low-grade run-of-mine (ROM) leaching system; four SX plants; and three EW tank houses that produce copper cathode. Total EW tank house capacity is approximately 900 million pounds of copper per year. Morenci’s available mining fleet consists of one hundred and forty-one 235-metric ton haul trucks loaded by 13 shovels with bucket sizes ranging from 47 to 57 cubic meters, which are capable of moving an average of 785,000 metric tons of material per day.

    Background

    Phelps Dodge & Company invested $50,000 in the property in 1881, marking the New York mercantile’s first venture into mining. Through acquisition, Phelps Dodge & Company consolidated all mining operations in the district by 1921.

    Initially underground, Morenci transitioned to open-pit mining beginning in 1937. The operation nearly doubled its production capacity during World War II at the urging of the U.S. government to meet wartime needs. Morenci’s first SX/EW plant was commissioned in 1987. Once home to two smelters, the last smelter ceased operation in 1984. Both have been demolished and reclaimed.

    Ownership

    72% - Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (undivided interest); 15% - Sumitomo Metal Mining Arizona Inc. (SMMAz is owned 80% by Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. Ltd. (SMM) and 20% by Sumitomo Corporation); and 13% - SMM Morenci Inc. (fully owned by SMM)

    VIDEO

    Morenci: Deep Roots, Broad Horizons

    Arizona Copper Mining

    Molybdenum Operations

    ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

    Impact of Morenci Operations on the Economy of Greenlee County and Arizona

    Morenci: A Guide To Tailings Storage Facilities - Important safety information for neighbors and community.

    Tailings Dust Management at Morenci

    Technical Report Summary of Mineral Reserves and Mineral Resources – Morenci Mine

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    BAGDAD
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  • #bagdad_link
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    NORTH AMERICA

    BAGDAD MINE LOCATED IN ARIZONA

    Description

    Bagdad is an open-pit copper and molybdenum mining complex.

    Did you know?

    Bagdad is home to the world’s first commercial-scale concentrate leach processing facility (2003) and one of the longest continuously operating solution extraction/electrowinning (SX/EW) plants in the world (1970). An unincorporated community, Bagdad is one of two FCX “company towns;” the other is Morenci, Arizona.

    Location

    About 100 miles northwest of Phoenix, Arizona.

    Ores

    The Bagdad mine is a porphyry copper deposit containing both sulfide and oxide mineralization. Chalcopyrite and molybdenite are the dominant primary sulfides and are the primary economic minerals in the mine. Chalcocite is the most common secondary copper sulfide mineral and the predominant oxide copper minerals are chrysocolla, malachite and azurite.

    Processes and facilities

    The Bagdad operation consists of an 77,100 metric ton-per-day concentrator that produces copper and molybdenum concentrate, an SX/EW plant that will produce approximately 9 million pounds per year of copper cathode from solution generated by low-grade stockpile leaching, and a pressure-leach plant to process molybdenum concentrate.

    Background

    First claims staked in 1882. Property changed ownership numerous times through first half of 20th century. First mill began operation in 1928 to process ore from the underground mine. Transition to open-pit mining began in 1945. A $240 million expansion in 1973 included new haul trucks, shovels, nearly 400 housing units and concentrator.

    Ownership

    100% FCX

    VIDEO

    Arizona Copper Mining

    Molybdenum Operations

    ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

    Impact of Bagdad Operations on the Economy of Yavapai County and Arizona

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    MORENCI
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    SIERRITA
    /operations/north-america#sierrita_link
  • #sierrita_link
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    NORTH AMERICA

    SIERRITA MINE LOCATED IN ARIZONA

    Description

    Sierrita is an open-pit copper and molybdenum mining complex.

    Did you know?

    In addition to copper and molybdenum, the mine produces rhenium, a rare and highly valued metal.

    Location

    20 miles southwest of Tucson, Arizona.

    Ores

    The Sierrita mine is a porphyry copper deposit that has oxide and secondary sulfide mineralization, and primary sulfide mineralization. The predominant oxide copper minerals are malachite, azurite and chrysocolla. Chalcocite is the most important secondary copper sulfide mineral, and chalcopyrite and molybdenite are the dominant primary sulfides.

    Processes and facilities

    The Sierrita operation includes a 100,000 metric ton-per-day concentrator that produces copper and molybdenum concentrate. Sierrita also produces copper from a ROM oxide-leaching system. Cathode copper is plated at the Twin Buttes EW facility, which has a design capacity of approximately 50 million pounds of copper per year. The Sierrita operation also has molybdenum facilities consisting of a leaching circuit, two molybdenum roasters and a packaging facility. The molybdenum facilities process molybdenum concentrate produced by Sierrita, from our other mines and from third-party sources.

    Background

    First claims recorded in 1895. First worked as an underground mine beginning in 1907; open-pit development began in 1957. In 2009, FCX purchased the Twin Buttes copper mine, which ceased operations in 1994 and is adjacent to the Sierrita mine. The purchase provides significant synergies in the Sierrita minerals district, including the potential for expanded mining activities and access to material that can be used for Sierrita tailings and stockpile reclamation purposes.

    Ownership

    100% FCX 

    VIDEO

    Arizona Copper Mining

    Molybdenum Operations

    ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

    Impact of Sierrita Operations on the Economy of Pima County and Arizona

    Tailings Dust Management at Sierrita

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    BAGDAD
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    MIAMI
    /operations/north-america#miami_link
  • #miami_link

     

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    NORTH AMERICA

    MIAMI MINE LOCATED IN ARIZONA

    Description

    Miami includes an open-pit copper mine, a smelter and a rod mill.

    Location

    90 miles east of Phoenix, in the heart of Arizona’s historic Globe-Miami mining district.

    Did you know?

    The Miami mine historically had been the major copper producer in the Globe-Miami mining area, one of America’s premier copper mining districts.

    Ores

    The Miami mine is a porphyry copper deposit that has leachable oxide and secondary sulfide mineralization. The predominant oxide copper minerals are chrysocolla, copper-bearing clays, malachite and azurite. Chalcocite and covellite are the most important secondary copper sulfide minerals.

    Processes and facilities

    Since about 1915, the Miami mining operation had processed copper ore using both flotation and leaching technologies. The design capacity of the SX/EW plant is 200 million pounds of copper per year. Miami is no longer mining ore, but currently produces copper through leaching material already placed on stockpiles, which is expected to continue through at least 2025.

    Background

    The first prospecting expeditions visited the area in the 1860s. Copper was mined underground until after World War II, when the first open-pit mining began. Miami was among the first to employ “vat leaching” (1926) and precipitation plants to recover oxide minerals. It did this in conjunction with its flotation concentrator, which processed sulfide minerals. The plant’s smelter was modernized in 1974 to meet Clean Air Act standards and further modernized and expanded in 1992. The success of an SX/EW plant commissioned in 1979 led to the demise of vat leaching by the mid-1980s and ultimately the concentrator in 1986. The rod mill was commissioned in 1966 and the refinery in 1993 (the refinery was permanently closed in 2005).

    Ownership

    100%

    Smelter
    Type

    IsaSmelt™ technology (primary furnace) and ELKEM electric furnace (secondary); four Hoboken style converters, two oxygen plants; and an acid plant treating all process gases.

    Did you know?

    The Miami smelter processes copper concentrate primarily from FCX’s Arizona copper mines. In addition, because sulphuric acid is a by-product of smelting concentrates, the Miami smelter is also the most significant source of sulphuric acid for FCX’s North America leaching operations. In addition to copper concentrates, the smelter also recycles inorganic metal-bearing waste typically produced by high technology industries, extending the useful life of valuable metals and reducing disposal of metal-bearing waste in landfills. Copper and other precious metals are extracted during this process.

    Ownership

    100%

    Rod Mill
    Product

    Continuous-cast copper rod.

    Did you know?

    Completed in 1969 and the first of its kind to be located at a mine site. The plant uses the Southwire design casting system with Morgan mills to produce 7,500-pound and 15,000-pound copper rod coils.

    Production

    The Miami rod mill treats cathodes from the Miami mine and our other North America copper mines.

    Ownership

    100%

    VIDEO

    Arizona Copper Mining

    ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

    Impact of Miami Operations on the Economy of Gila County and Arizona

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    SIERRITA
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    SAFFORD/LONE STAR
    /operations/north-america#safford_link
  • #safford_link

     

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    NORTH AMERICA

    SAFFORD/LONE STAR MINE LOCATED IN ARIZONA

    Description

    Safford is an open-pit copper mining complex.  

    Did you know?

    The Safford mine is a zero-discharge facility and one of the most environmentally advanced copper mines ever built.

    Location

    Southeast Arizona, 170 miles east of Phoenix.

    Ores

    The Safford mine includes three copper deposits that have oxide mineralization overlaying primary copper sulfide mineralization. The predominant oxide copper minerals are chrysocolla and copper-bearing iron oxides with the predominant copper sulfide material being chalcopyrite.

    Processes and facilities

    The property is a mine-for-leach project and produces copper cathode. The operation consists of three open pits feeding a crushing facility with a capacity of 103,500 metric tons per day. The crushed ore is delivered to leach pads by a series of overland and portable conveyors. Leach solutions feed a SX/EW facility with a capacity of 305 million pounds of copper per year. A sulfur burner plant is also in operation at Safford, providing a cost-effective source of sulphuric acid used in SX/EW operations.

    Background

    The Safford mine has been in operation since 2007, with full production beginning in 2008.

    Ownership

    100% FCX

    VIDEO

    Highlighting our new Lone Star mine in Southeastern Arizona

    Arizona Copper Mining

    ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

    Impact of Safford Operations on the Economy of Graham County and Arizona

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    MIAMI
    /operations/north-america#miami_link
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    CHINO
    /operations/north-america#chino_link
  • #chino_link

     

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    NORTH AMERICA

    CHINO MINE LOCATED IN NEW MEXICO

    Description

    Chino is an open-pit copper mining complex.

    Location

    Grant County, New Mexico, 15 miles east of the historic mining community of Silver City.

    Ores

    The Chino mine is a porphyry copper deposit with adjacent copper skarn deposits. There is leachable oxide, secondary sulfide and millable primary sulfide mineralization. The predominant oxide copper mineral is chrysocolla. Chalcocite is the most important secondary copper sulfide mineral, and chalcopyrite and molybdenite the dominant primary sulfides.

    Did you know?

    The historic Chino mine was among the first low-grade, open-pit copper mines in the world. During 2011, mining and milling activities were restarted at the Chino mine. In April 2020, operations at Chino were suspended to address COVID-19 concerns. A review of options for restarting Chino operations was completed in the second half of 2020 and in January 2021, FCX restarted mining activities at the Chino mine at a reduced rate. Since then, Chino has been operating at approximately 50% capacity.

    Processes and facilities

    The Chino operation consists of a 36,000 metric ton-per-day concentrator that produces copper, and a 150 million pound-per-year SX/EW plant that produces copper cathode from solution generated by ROM leaching. The available mining fleet consists of nineteen 240-metric ton haul trucks loaded by three shovels with bucket sizes ranging from 31 to 48 cubic meters, which are capable of moving an average of 180,000 metric tons of material per day.

    Background

    Originally mined by Native Americans and later by Spaniards. The open-pit mine began production in 1910. The original concentrator went into operation in 1911, but was replaced by a new facility in 1982. A smelter was commissioned in 1939 and was modernized in 1985 to increase capacity and achieve compliance with the Clean Air Act. In 2005, the smelter was permanently closed.

    Ownership

    100% FCX

    VIDEO

    New Mexico Copper Mining

    ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

    Impact of Freeport-McMoRan on the Economy of Grant County and New Mexico

    Mining Reclamation in North America

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    SAFFORD
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    TYRONE
    /operations/north-america#tyrone_link
  • #tyrone_link

     

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    NORTH AMERICA

    TYRONE MINE LOCATED IN NEW MEXICO

    Description

    Tyrone is an open-pit copper mining complex.

    Did you know?

    The Tyrone mine has been in operation since 1967.

    Location

    Grant County New Mexico, 10 miles south of the historic mining community of Silver City.

    Ores

    The Tyrone mine is a porphyry copper deposit. Mineralization is predominantly secondary sulfide consisting of chalcocite with leachable oxide mineralization consisting of chrysocola.

    Processes and facilities

    Tyrone’s copper processing facilities consist of a solution extraction/electrowinning (SX/EW) operation with a maximum capacity of approximately 100 million pounds of copper per year.

    Background

    Prior to 1860, Native Americans mined turquoise at the site. Freeport-McMoRan Corporation (formerly Phelps Dodge Corporation) acquired mining claims in the area from 1909 to 1916, and began concentrating ore produced from large-scale underground mining in 1916. Operations ended in 1921. The property returned to operation as an open pit in 1967, with copper production from a concentrator. The SX/EW facility was commissioned in 1984. Tyrone’s concentrator suspended operations in 1992 when the property made the transition to SX/EW production.

    Ownership

    100% FCX

    VIDEO

    New Mexico Copper Mining

    ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

    Impact of Freeport-McMoRan on the Economy of Grant County and New Mexico

    Mining Reclamation in North America

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    CHINO
    /operations/north-america#chino_link
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    HENDERSON
    /operations/north-america#henderson_link
  • #henderson_link

     

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    NORTH AMERICA

    HENDERSON

    Description

    Henderson is an underground molybdenum mining operation.

    Did you know?

    The Henderson mill site is located 15 miles west of the mine. The mine and the mill are connected by the world's largest conveyor of its kind: a 10-mile conveyor tunnel under the Continental Divide and an additional five-mile surface conveyor.

    Location

    Approximately 42 miles west of Denver, Colorado.

    Ores

    The Henderson mine is a porphyry molybdenum deposit with molybdenite as the primary sulfide mineral.

    Processes and facilities

    The Henderson operation consists of a large block-cave underground mining complex feeding a concentrator with a current capacity of approximately 32,000 metric tons per day. Henderson has the capacity to produce approximately 15 million pounds of molybdenum per year. In response to market conditions, the Henderson molybdenum mine has operated at reduced rates since 2015.

    Background

    The Henderson mine has been in operation since 1976.

    Ownership

    100% FCX

    For more information on molybdenum, click here:
    ClimaxMolybdenum.com
    ClimaxMoInCo.com

    VIDEO

    Strengthening the World Connecting the Future® Climax Molybdenum

    Molybdenum Operations

    ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

    Impact of Freeport-McMoRan on the Economy of Colorado

    Leading The World in Moly Brochure

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    TYRONE
    /operations/north-america#tyrone_link
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    CLIMAX
    /operations/north-america#climax_link
  • #climax_link

     

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    NORTH AMERICA

    CLIMAX

    Description

    Climax is an open-pit molybdenum mining operation.

    Did you know?

    The Climax mine began commercial operations in May 2012. FCX operates the Climax and Henderson molybdenum mines in a flexible manner to meet market requirements.

    Location

    Approximately 13 miles northeast of Leadville, Colorado.

    Ores

    The Climax mine is a porphyry molybdenum deposit with molybdenite as the primary sulfide mineral.

    Processes and facilities

    The Climax mine was commissioned in mid-2012, and includes a 25,000 metric ton-per-day mill facility. Climax has the capacity to produce approximately 30 million pounds of molybdenum per year.

    Background

    In 1995, the Climax mine was placed on care-and-maintenance status by its previous owner.

    Ownership

    100% FCX

    For more information on molybdenum, click here:
    ClimaxMolybdenum.com
    ClimaxMoInCo.com

    VIDEO

    Strengthening the World Connecting the Future® Climax Molybdenum

    Molybdenum Operations

    ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

    Impact of Freeport-McMoRan on the Economy of Colorado

    A Case History: Reconstruction of the East Fork of the Arkansas River at the Climax Mine

    Leading The World in Moly Brochure

    Mining Reclamation in North America

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    HENDERSON
    /operations/north-america#henderson_link

NORTH AMERICA

In North America, FCX operates seven open-pit copper mines — Morenci, Bagdad, Safford (including Lone Star), Sierrita and Miami in Arizona, and Chino and Tyrone in New Mexico; and two molybdenum mines — Henderson and Climax in Colorado. Molybdenum concentrate, gold and silver are also produced by certain of FCX’s North America copper mines.

FCX’s Lone Star project located near its Safford operation in Arizona was substantially completed in 2020. FCX continues to advance opportunities to increase Lone Star operating rates and is advancing plans to increase volumes to achieve 300 million pounds of copper per year from oxide ores.

FCX has significant undeveloped reserves and resources in North America and a portfolio of potential long-term development projects. Future investments are dependent on market conditions and will be undertaken based on the results of economic and technical feasibility studies, including the incorporation of innovation initiatives to reduce capital intensity.

Highlighting our new Lone Star mine in Southeastern Arizona13:20

Highlighting our new Lone Star mine in Southeastern Arizona

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Highlighting our new Lone Star mine
in Southeastern Arizona
Arizona Copper Mining02:11

Arizona Copper Mining

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Arizona Copper Mining
New Mexico Copper Mining02:23

New Mexico Copper Mining

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New Mexico Copper Mining
Molybdenum Operations02:11

Molybdenum Operations

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Molybdenum Operations
Morenci: Deep Roots, Broad Horizons21:46

Morenci: Deep Roots, Broad Horizons

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Morenci: Deep Roots, Broad Horizons
Strengthening the World Connecting the Future - Climax Molybdenum14:18

Strengthening the World Connecting the Future® -
Climax Molybdenum

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Strengthening the World Connecting the Future® - Climax Molybdenum
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