Southern Copper and Buenaventura Move Forward with $1 Billion Tantahuatay Gold and Copper Project in Peru

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Lnd, Texas)--Compania Minera Coimolache SA (Lima, Peru), a joint venture formed by Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:PCU) (Phoenix, Arizona), Compania de Minas Buenaventura SA (NYSE:BVN) (Lima) and Espro SA (Lima), is moving forward with the $1 billion Tantahuatay gold and copper project in Peru. The project is located about 50 kilometers northwest of Cajamarca in northern Peru.

The project entails the construction of an open pit mine to produce about 100,000 ounces per year of gold, as well as copper. Southern Copper, which has a 44.2% share in the project, will mine copper in the lower part of the site, and Buenaventura, which has a 40.1% interest in the joint venture, will mine gold in the upper part of the site. Construction will start in the third quarter of 2009 with completion set for the beginning of 2010.The project has resources of about 1 million ounces of gold and an estimated mine life of 10 years.

Southern Copper is the largest copper producer in Peru, and operating the Toquepala and Cuajones mines and the Ilo refinery and smelter. The company has other ongoing greenfield copper projects in Peru, such as the $1.2 billion Los Chancas. Los Chancas is a copper and molybdenum porphyry deposit expected to start operation in 2013 and produce approximately 100,000 tons per year of copper.

Compania de Minas Buenaventura is a mining firm that explores gold, silver and other metals in Peru. The company operates seven mines in the country and has a 43.65% interest in Yanacocha, the largest gold producer in Latin America.

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