Hudbay Minerals Inc.

TSX:HBMLive AI agent

Hudbay is a copper-focused critical minerals mining company with over a century of expertise in the mining cycle.

Investor website: https://hudbayminerals.com/

About

Hudbay is a copper-focused critical minerals mining company with over a century of expertise in the mining cycle. It operates three long-life mines in Canada, Peru, and the United States, producing copper, gold, zinc, silver, and molybdenum. The company is committed to sustainable practices and community relations, aiming to create value for stakeholders while minimizing its environmental footprint.

Verified company data

Cash position: $890.9 million
Mineral resource: The current mineral resource estimates for Mason, based on the revised resource model as of January 1, 2021, are summarized below. | | | | | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | **Mason Project** **Mineral Resource Estimates****1****,2,3** | **Tonnes** | **Cu Grade** **(%)** | **Mo Grade** **(g/t)** | **Au Grade** **(g/t)** | **Ag Grade** **(g/t)** | | Measured | | 1,417,000,000 | 0.29 | 59 | 0.031 | 0.66 | | Indicated | | 801,000,000 | 0.30 | 80 | 0.025 | 0.57 | | **Total Measured and Indicated** | | **2,219,000,000** | **0.29** | **67** | **0.029** | **0.63** | | Inferred | | 237,000,000 | 0.24 | 78 | 0.033 | 0.73 | Note: totals may not add up correctly due to rounding. 1 Mineral resource estimates that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Mineral resource estimates do not include factors for mining recovery or dilution. 2 Metal prices of $3.10 per pound copper, $10.00 per pound molybdenum, $1,500 per ounce gold, and $18.00 per ounce silver were used to estimate mineral resources. 3 Mineral resource estimates are reported as 20 metres by 20 metres by 15 meters blocks above cut-off using a minimum NSR per tonne of $6.25.
Projects: ["Hudbay Announces Positive Preliminary Economic Assessment for its Mason Copper Project\n\nApril 06, 2021\n\n- 27-year mine life with average annual copper production of approximately 140,000 tonnes over the first ten years of full production.\n- Mason has the potential to more than double Hudbay’s current copper production levels, and if brought into production, Mason is expected to become the third largest copper mine in the United States.\n- After-tax net present value (10%) of $519 million and 13.7% internal rate of return at $3.10 per pound copper, which increases to $773 million and 15.4%, respectively, at $3.25 per pound copper.\n- Mine plan assumes the construction of a 120,000 tonnes per day conventional flotation concentrator and an initial capital cost estimate of approximately $2.1 billion.\n- The mine plan includes 1.1 billion tonnes at 0.34% copper-equivalenti, 98% of which is from the measured and indicated categories.\n- Mason’s 2.2 billion tonne measured and indicated resource estimate is one of the largest greenfield copper projects in the Americas.\n- Opportunities to further enhance project economics through exploration for higher-grade satellite deposits on Hudbay’s prospective land package in Nevada.\n- Mason is a viable long-term option for potential future development and a strong component of Hudbay’s pipeline of long-term growth opportunities in mining friendly jurisdictions.\n\nTORONTO, April 06, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- **Hudbay Minerals Inc. (“Hudbay” or the “company”) (** **TSX, NYSE: HBM)** today announced the results of its preliminary economic assessment (“PEA”) of its 100%-owned Mason copper project located in Nevada, United States. All dollar amounts are in US dollars, unless otherwise noted.\n\n“The Mason PEA demonstrates the success of Hudbay’s consistent growth strategy and our team’s ability to create value from accretive acquisitions of high-quality copper projects in mining-friendly jurisdictions,” said Peter Kukielski, Hudbay’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “We added Mason to our development pipeline portfolio in 2018 and have since leveraged our integrated core competencies of exploration, mine planning and project development to demonstrate that Mason is a quality long-term development project in our robust organic growth pipeline.”\n\n**Hudbay’s Mason Development Strategy**\n\nThe Mason project is a large greenfield copper deposit located in the historic Yerington District of Nevada and is one of the largest undeveloped copper porphyry deposits in North America. Mason’s measured and indicated mineral resource estimates are approximately twice the size of Hudbay’s Constancia and Rosemont deposits. Hudbay views the Mason project as a long-term option for future development and a strong component of its pipeline of long-term growth opportunities in mining friendly jurisdictions. Please refer to Figure 1 for a map showing the location of the Mason project.\n\nIn 2017, Hudbay made a $2 million toe-hold equity investment in Mason Resources Corp., the entity that owned the Mason project at that time. In October 2018, Hudbay entered into an agreement to acquire the remaining 86% of the issued and outstanding common shares of Mason Resources Corp. that it didn’t already own for approximately $15 million. The acquisition of Mason was completed by way of a plan of arrangement in December 2018. Since acquiring Mason, Hudbay has consolidated a prospective package of patented and unpatented mining claims contiguous to the Mason project in two private transactions in 2019 and 2020, including a property called Mason Valley, as shown in Figure 2. In March 2021, Hudbay announced an updated measured and indicated resource estimate of 2.2 billion tonnes at 0.29% copper at Mason, based on a revised resource model and an updated mine plan constructed by Hudbay personnel using the same methods applied at Constancia. The company has also advanced a number of technical studies to support the completion of its 2021 PEA.\n\n**Mason 2021 PEA Summary**\n\nThe 2021 Mason PEA contemplates a 27-year mine life with average annual copper production of approximately 140,000 tonnes over the first ten years of full production. At a copper price of $3.10 per pound, the after-tax net present value using a 10% discount rate is $519 million and the internal rate of return is 13.7%. The valuation metrics are highly sensitive to the copper price and at a price of $3.25 per pound, the after-tax net present value using a 10% discount rate increases to $773 million and the internal rate of return increases to 15.4%.\n\nA summary of key valuation, production and cost details from the 2021 PEA can be found below. For further details, including metrics provided on an annual basis, please refer to the section titled “Detailed Cash Flow Model” at the end of this news release.\n\n| | | |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| **Summary of Key Metrics (at $3.10/lb Cu)** | **Unit** | **Value** |\n| **Valuation Metrics (Unlevered)****1** | | |\n| Net present value @ 8% (after-tax) | $ millions | **$** **945** |\n| Net present value @ 10% (after-tax) | $ millions | **$** **519** |\n| Internal rate of return (after-tax) | % | **13.7** **%** |\n| Payback period | \n# years | **9.0** |\n| EBITDA (annual LOM avg.) | $ millions | **$** **339** |\n| **Project Metrics** | | |\n| Initial capital2 | $ millions | **$** **2,079** |\n| **Operating Metrics** | | |\n| Copper production (annual avg. over first 10 full years) | 000 tonnes | **138.7** |\n| Copper production (annual LOM avg.) | 000 tonnes | **112.3** |\n| Copper recovery | % | **90.0** **%** |\n| Sustaining capital (annual LOM avg.) | $ millions | **$** **21** |\n| Cash cost3 (LOM avg.) | $/lb Cu | **$** **1.61** |\n| Sustaining cash cost3 (LOM avg.) | $/lb Cu | **$** **1.76** |\n| Mining unit cost4 (LOM avg.) | $/t moved | **$** **1.20** |\n| Milling unit cost (LOM avg.) | $/t milled | **$** **4.85** |\n| G&A unit cost (LOM avg.) | $/t milled | **$** **1.15** |\n| Combined unit cost5 (LOM avg.) | $/t milled | **$** **8.66** |\n\nNote: “LOM” refers to life-of-mine total.\n\n1 Calculated assuming the following commodity prices: copper price of $3.10 per pound, gold price of $1,500 per ounce, silver price of $18.00 per ounce and molybdenum price of $10.00 per pound.\n\n2 Initial capital assumes a 20% contingency.\n\n3 Cash cost and sustaining cash cost, net of by-product credits, per pound of copper produced. By-product credits calculated using the following commodity prices: gold price of $1,500 per ounce, silver price of $18.00 per ounce and molybdenum price of $10.00 per pound. Sustaining cash cost includes sustaining capital expenditures and royalties. Cash cost and sustaining cash cost are non-IFRS financial performance measures with no standardized definition under IFRS. For further details on why Hudbay believes cash costs are a useful performance indicator, please refer to the company's most recent Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2020.\n\n4 Before the impact of capitalized stripping.\n\n5 Combined mine, mill and general and administrative costs per tonne of ore milled, after the impact of capitalized stripping.\n\n| | | | | | | | |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| **Cu Price Sensitivity** | **Unit** | **$3.00/lb** | **$3.10/lb** | **$3.25/lb** | **$3.50/lb** | **$3.75/lb** | **$4.00/lb** |\n| **Valuation Metrics** | | | | | | | |\n| Net present value**1** @ 8% | $ millions | $739 | **$** **945** | $1,253 | $1,761 | $2,264 | $2,766 |\n| Net present value**1** @ 10% | $ millions | $350 | **$** **519** | $773 | $1,191 | $1,606 | $2,019 |\n| Internal rate of return**1** | % | 12.5% | **13.7** **%** | 15.4% | 18.1% | 20.7% | 23.1% |\n| Payback period | \n# years | 9.5 | **9.0** | 8.4 | 7.7 | 7.1 | 6.7 |\n| EBITDA (annual LOM avg.) | $ millions | 315 | **$** **339** | 374 | 434 | 493 | 553 |\n\n1 Net present value and internal rate of return are shown on an after-tax basis.\n\n**Overview of Proposed Operation**\n\nThe Mason deposit is a large tonnage, copper-molybdenum deposit and is planned to be a traditional open pit shovel/truck operation with a copper sulphide mineral processing plant producing commercial grade copper and molybdenum concentrate. The plant is designed to operate at a throughput rate of 120,000 tonnes per day. Please refer to Figure 3 for a map of the proposed site layout.\n\nMining operations in the pit are designed to be performed from 15 and 30-metre-high benches using large-scale mining equipment including 10 5/8-inch diameter rotary blast hole drills, 74 cubic-yard electric mining shovels, a 55 cubic-yard hydraulic shovel, a 37 cubic-yard front-end loader and 290-tonne capacity haul trucks. During the 27-year operation, the mine plan achieves peak mining rates until year 13, then reduces by about half of the original mining rate from year 14 to 20 as the strip ratio drops. The remaining seven years assumes the processing of rehandled ore from stockpiles.\n\nThe concentrator design consists of conventional crushing and milling, followed by rougher and cleaner froth flotation, and is a similar flowsheet to that used at Hudbay’s Constancia mine in Peru. The proposed site layout assumes the plant will be located to the northwest of the open pit, northeast of the waste rock facility and east of the tailings management facility. Haul trucks will dump ore at the primary crusher, which will feed the concentrator via overland conveyor.\n\nOperating costs were developed by Hudbay based on a bottom-up approach utilizing price quotes from suppliers and local costs for labour. Mine operating costs were validated against actual costs at Constancia and other similar projects and operations.\n\n**Mineral Resource Estimate**\n\nThe PEA and mine plan were based on a revised resource model which was used to publish Hudbay’s first compiled updated resource estimate for Mason. The resource model was constructed using the same methods Hudbay applied at Constancia. Based on this new model, including resource classification criteria calibrated on historical performance at Constancia, control of grade over-smoothing in the central zone of the deposit and the use of a lower cut-off grade, the measured and indicated resources increased to 2.2 billion tonnes at 0.29% copper, from 1.4 billion tonnes at 0.32% copper previously.\n\nThe current mineral resource estimates for Mason, based on the revised resource model as of January 1, 2021, are summarized below.\n\n| | | | | | | |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| **Mason Project** **Mineral Resource Estimates****1****,2,3** | **Tonnes** | **Cu Grade** **(%)** | **Mo Grade** **(g/t)** | **Au Grade** **(g/t)** | **Ag Grade** **(g/t)** |\n| Measured | | 1,417,000,000 | 0.29 | 59 | 0.031 | 0.66 |\n| Indicated | | 801,000,000 | 0.30 | 80 | 0.025 | 0.57 |\n| **Total Measured and Indicated** | | **2,219,000,000** | **0.29** | **67** | **0.029** | **0.63** |\n| Inferred | | 237,000,000 | 0.24 | 78 | 0.033 | 0.73 |\n\nNote: totals may not add up correctly due to rounding.\n\n1 Mineral resource estimates that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Mineral resource estimates do not include factors for mining recovery or dilution.\n\n2 Metal prices of $3.10 per pound copper, $10.00 per pound molybdenum, $1,500 per ounce gold, and $18.00 per ounce silver were used to estimate mineral resources.\n\n3 Mineral resource estimates are reported as 20 metres by 20 metres by 15 meters blocks above cut-off using a minimum NSR per tonne of $6.25.\n\n**Regional Upside Potential**\n\nThere is opportunity to further enhance the project economics through exploration for higher grade satellite deposits on Hudbay’s prospective land package in Nevada, including Mason Valley. The Mason Valley property hosts several historical underground copper mines that were in production in the early 1900s. Much of the Mason Valley property is located on Hudbay’s wholly owned private lands and contains highly prospective skarn mineralization. Mason Valley presents a similar opportunity to Hudbay’s Copper World property in Arizona, where the company has recently announced the discovery of four mineral deposits in a historical mining district. Historical drilling and production records from the past producing mines at Mason Valley indicate the mineralization is high grade and starts at or near surface (please refer to Figure 4). In 2015, Metal Bank Limited optioned the Mason Valley property and conducted a limited campaign of nine reverse circulation drillholes at the Bluestone prospect with the objective to define the extent of the high-grade copper mineralization. Two notable holes intersected 42 metres of 1.51% copper and 34 metres of 0.61% copper, both starting from surface.\n\nThe company also owns the Blue Hill copper oxide deposit located 1.5 kilometres northwest of the Mason deposit, which was not included in the 2021 PEA and may present an opportunity to add an oxide component to the Mason project design in the future.\n\n**Next Steps**\n\nHudbay continues to compile and interpret historical data relating to its land package near Mason. Once this is done, the company expects to complete a geophysical survey to refine the exploration targets in preparation for a potential initial drilling campaign later this year. The company will also continue to advance its local stakeholder engagement program while advancing trade-off studies to support future pre-feasibility work on the project."]
Leadership: Peter Kukielski (President and Chief Executive Officer, Over 30 years of global experience in base metals, precious metals, and bulk materials sectors. Previously CEO of Nevsun Resources Ltd.), Eugene Lei (Chief Financial Officer, Responsible for strategic financial leadership with over 25 years of mining finance experience. Joined Hudbay in 2012.), Andre Lauzon (Chief Operating Officer, Leads international operating teams with over 25 years of experience in mining. Previously Vice President, Arizona Business Unit.), Candace Brule (Senior Vice President, Capital Markets & Corporate Affairs, Leads investor and external communication activities with 18 years of experience in the mining sector. Joined Hudbay in 2010.), Robert Carter (Senior Vice President, Canada, Responsible for strategic oversight of Canadian operations with over 25 years of mining experience. Joined Hudbay in various roles since 2018.), Javier Del Rio (Senior Vice President, US Business Unit, Multicultural mining executive with over 30 years of experience in corporate and business unit roles. Joined Hudbay in 2010.), Patrick Donnelly (Senior Vice President, Legal and Organizational Effectiveness, Provides leadership on legal and HR matters with a law degree from the University of Victoria. Joined Hudbay in 2008.), Mark Gupta (Senior Vice President, Corporate Development and Strategy, Responsible for optimizing asset portfolio with over 15 years of mining industry experience. Joined Hudbay in 2014.), Olivier Tavchandjian (Senior Vice President, Exploration and Technical Services, Leads exploration strategy with 25 years of experience in mineral resource estimation. Joined Hudbay in 2023.), Jon Douglas (Vice President and Treasurer, Oversees corporate treasury and risk planning with 25 years of experience in mining. Joined Hudbay in 2023.), Warren Flannery (Vice President, Copper World, Responsible for operational readiness of Copper World with nearly 30 years of mining experience. Joined Hudbay in 2023.), Mark Haber (Vice President, Legal and Corporate Secretary, Advises on corporate governance and regulatory matters with a law degree from the University of Toronto. Joined Hudbay in 2011.), Thomas Karanikolas (Vice President, Finance, Oversees financial reporting and taxation with over 20 years of experience. Joined Hudbay in 2012.), John O'Shaughnessy (Vice President, Manitoba Business Unit, Responsible for strategic performance in Manitoba with 25 years of mining leadership expertise. Joined Hudbay in 2025.), Audra Walsh (Vice President, South America Business Unit, Responsible for operational performance in South America with over 30 years of international mining experience. Joined Hudbay in 2025.)

Verified data last updated: 2026-08-14

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