CLAYTON WALKER, OPERATION OFFICE OF THE COPPER PRODUCT GROUP OF RIO TINTO, on the need for more copper and production mines in the United States
Herriman, Utah – Copper demand in the United States should double over the next 10 years – but the nation does not have production to meet this demand, unless measures are taken to facilitate restrictions on new mines.
President Donald Trump hopes to change this after having signed a decree on Thursday to increase American mineral production.
“The United States has vast mineral resources that can create jobs, feed prosperity and considerably reduce our dependence on foreign nations,” said order. “The United States was once the world’s largest producer of lucrative minerals, but the dominant federal regulations have eroded mineral production in our country.”
The bingham canyon mine, also known as Kennecott Copper Mine, in Utah. (Rio Tinto / Fox News)
The order will focus on priority projects for minerals such as copper, uranium, potash and gold, among others. This is good news for the country’s copper industry, which has trouble competing with the most relaxed mining regulations in other countries.
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“We have to create more mines. Open some of these resources that we have here in the United States and bring them online,” said Clayton Walker, copper coop at Rio Tinto, the second largest mining company in the world. “It then nourishes manufacturing, people who actually take this raw material and transform it into something use that consumers can appreciate. So I have the impression that it is just a critical path to make the manufacturing here in the United States again, it all starts in mines with this raw material.”
Rio Tinto has been trying to open a new copper mine in Arizona for 17 years, nicknamed the resolution copper mine. Officials say that the mine could provide up to 20% of demand. But it faces road dams over the years, including land rights and environmental concerns.
“The challenge we have right now in the United States, it takes about 29 years to get an authorized mine. And therefore I am everything to do the right thing. And I think we have some of the best standards and standards in the world, and I am absolutely for that,” said Walker. “But we have to find a way to bring these mines online a little faster than, say, 29 years old.”
The bingham canyon mine, also known as Kennecott Copper Mine, in Utah. (Rio Tinto / Fox News)
A way in which the license process could be accelerated: the addition of copper to the list of critical minerals.
A critical mineral is defined by the Ministry of Energy as “any mineral, element, substance or material not combustible that the Energy Secretary determines: (i) presents a high risk of disruption of the supply chain; And (ii) serves an essential function in one or more energy technologies, including technologies that produce, transmit, store and keep energy. ”
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The addition of copper to the list would facilitate restrictions on copper production, which means that Rio Tinto and other companies could open new copper mines more quickly in the United States
Copper cable packaging is monitored by a factory employee. ((Photo of Denis Charlet / AFP via Getty Images) / Getty Images)
“I think we have to copper like a critical mineral. Not having it on the list hurts us and preventing this precious metal from obtaining the necessary resources,” added Walker. “I think we have obtained good standards. We can do it better here than everywhere. We just have to do it a little faster.”
The Kennecott mine of Rio Tinto, just west of Salt Lake City, is the largest open mine in the world, extending to 2.5 miles in diameter and about 4,000 feet deep. At over 120, the mine has produced more copper than any other on the planet.
Bingham Canyon mine, also known as Kennecott Copper Mine, in Utah. (Photo of Deagostini / Getty Images / Getty Images)
“Kennecott’s story is what keeps me here. I am absolutely in love with this. Twenty-five percent of the metal that the Allies used during the Second World War came from here,” said Nate Foster, Managing Director of Kennecott. “The Allies do not win the Second World War without Kennecott.”
Kennecott also has the distinction of being one of the only two places in the country that can exploit, feel and refine their own copper. In comparison, China has more than 50 copper foundries. This means that a large part of the copper that is extracted in the United States is dispatched to other countries to be refined.
“We are currently [the U.S.] In fact exports more than 400,000 tonnes of concentrate per year, which goes to other countries to be treated and then returned to us in another form, “explains Walker.
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The Kennecott foundry is an engineering marvel – at 1,215 feet, it is the fourth largest fireplace in the world.
“The fact that we have one of the cleanest foundries in the world makes it really unique,” added Foster. “And where we really think that we are well positioned with a very strategic asset with our foundry and the refinery to be able to continue to … invest in America.”
Kennecott is an operation of 365 days and 24 hours a day. Ninety-seven oversized carriers, capable of transporting 360 tonnes in a single load, day and night work to extract around 120,000 tonnes of copper ore per year, which represents 20% of copper produced in the country.
The Kennecott Copper mine outside of Salt Lake City, Utah. (Planet One / Universal Image Image Group via Getty Images / Getty Images)
The operation is done internally. After being extracted and crushed, the ore made its way via a treadmill 5 miles long at the concentrator. It is then transformed into sludge and killed towards the foundry. From the foundry, it becomes a copper slab of 700 pounds. After spending time in an electrolyte bath, it becomes two copper plates of 300 pounds – 99.99% pure copper.
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“It is the highest quality that you will find anywhere in the United States,” said Foster. “And When you watch the amount of emissions that we do not have here in the United States, because we produce some of the highest environmental standards, other foundries around the world do not have to comply with these same standards. So we are proud of that. “”
Trump threatened to add a 25% price on imported copper, which represents 47% of the copper used in the United States when it could be a boon for copper mines based in the United States, it is a complicated problem for companies like Rio Tinto, which exploits mines all over the world.
“”We work hard with the administration to be part of this solution. And if you look at the functioning of the prices, everything is in the way you install and structure them, “said Walker.” And if we can get those that are structured in the right way, I think it will benefit the domestic supply. “”
