TSX-V: KC | OTC: KCCFF
Advancing the High-Grade Kutcho Copper-Zinc Project
in Northern British Columbia, Canada
Click Here to Read Sponsor Disclosure
Copper is entrenched in a widening structural deficit with prices closing in on all-time highs above US$5 per pound with an H1 2024 surge to US$4.50-plus per pound. Select small-cap copper exploration and development firms with large, high-grade copper projects in safe, Tier-1 mining jurisdictions such as Canada, the United States, and Australia are poised to generate outsized returns this year, and in the coming years, as demand for the red metal intensifies in the global energy transition.
The small-cap copper company featured in this Special Report, Kutcho Copper Corp. (“KC”), is advancing the 100%-owned, high-grade Kutcho Copper-Zinc Project located in the Tier-1 mining jurisdiction of northern British Columbia, Canada. Kutcho is a feasibility-stage development project with 22.8 million tonnes in the Measured and Indicated category at 2.26% copper-equivalent (CuEq) representing over 1.1 billion pounds of copper equivalent contained metal.
Kutcho Copper recently completed a Feasibility Study on the Kutcho project and is positioned to advance permitting with the objective of moving forward to a positive construction decision. The open-pittable, low-cost production project additionally benefits from significant upside potential through resource expansion drilling and infill drilling of current Inferred resource. With next-round drilling on the way, Kutcho Copper has quickly emerged as one-to-watch in the copper exploration and development space with plenty of news flow on the near-term horizon with which to potentially move the needle in the 2024 copper bull market.
Copper Deficit in 2024
Copper is “THE” metal of electrification… making it absolutely essential to the global energy transition.
The billion-dollar question is… will there be enough of the red metal available to meet escalating demand in this greener, highly-connected, hyper-electrified world?
The amount of copper needed for the transition, and for the planet to attain net-zero emissions by 2050, would require more copper production, in a relatively short period of time, than the world has ever witnessed.
The problem is… the last major copper investment cycle occurred way back in the 1970s when there were still plenty of large-scale, high-grade copper deposits to be found.
And while the sector is presently entering a period of increased greenfields and brownfields exploration, new copper discoveries of merit are proving extraordinarily difficult to come by and are falling woefully short of compensating for the precipitous decline in ore grades from established mines.
In other words… most of the “easy” copper deposits around the globe have already been found, and the vast majority of the easy-to-reach high-grade ore has already been scooped up.
Another major roadblock for bringing new supply online is the exorbitant amount of time required for bringing a new copper mine from discovery to production.
We’re talking 10-plus years from the time an economically viable copper resource is discovered all the way through the various stages of feasibility, permitting, and mine construction.
And that’s assuming each process goes smoothly, which, as anyone involved in mining knows, is very rarely the case.
That’s why it’s so important to invest only in copper companies with assets in Tier-1 mining jurisdictions — such as Canada, the United States, and Australia — where permitting is typically not an issue and where there’s an established history of governmental support for base metals mining and permitting.
A Global Copper Shortfall
Disruptions in major copper-producing nations have been in the spotlight in recent years, particularly in Peru — the world’s #2 copper producer at 10% of global supply — which has been beset by worker strikes and large-scale community protests since the ouster of former President Pedro Castillo.
Wood Mackenzie’s VP of Metals & Mining, Robin Griffin, states, “We’re already forecasting major deficits in copper to 2030,” attributing that sentiment largely to ongoing unrest in Peru and higher demand for copper in the energy transition industry.
Additionally, Chile — the world’s largest copper producer at 27% of global supply — recorded a year-on-year decline of 7% in November 2022. “Overall we believe Chile will likely produce less copper from 2023 to 2025,” according to Goldman Sachs.
Moreover, much of the world’s copper resources are situated in high-risk mining jurisdictions such as the Congo and Inner Mongolia… not exactly the kinds of places speculators want to be allocating their risk capital, especially considering what’s been transpiring in South America.
All of those factors are combining for what many industry experts predict will be a protracted global copper shortfall that could last for decades.
And it’s why investing in select small-cap copper stocks in areas with large mineral endowments and strong governmental support for mining makes plenty of good sense as we head toward the second half of 2024.
In viewing the 5-year copper price chart below, we can see that the overall price trend of the red metal has been bullish, albeit a bit choppy, since 2020. Then, in early 2024, the bull market trend really clicked into high gear with copper prices surging to US$4.50-plus per pound and with indicators pointing to even higher copper prices going forward.
Commodities, and base metals such as copper in particular, are typically beset by short-term cyclical price volatility. Yet, the longer-term outlook for copper remains exceedingly bullish as higher prices will be required to incentivize new exploration and project development globally.
Further, the reopening of China’s economy, and the high level of demand growth expected in the country’s EV, 5G, and energy transition sector is only going to stoke further demand for the red metal going forward.
As alluded to, copper demand is set to undergo a generational shift as decarbonization efforts ramp up across the globe in efforts to attain net-zero carbon emissions.
Al Chu, lead portfolio manager at BNY Mellon, says, “Copper is typically used as a construction metal for wiring for building, wiring for machinery and what not, but if we look at the decarbonization net zero energy transition trend — copper is the new oil.”
The bottom line is that, when it comes to electrifying something and transmitting electricity, you need copper — plain and simple. And that means everything from wind and solar power generation and the much needed revamping of electrical grids to EVs, 5G, and consumer electronics.
For example, EVs require up to 175 lbs of copper per vehicle, which is roughly 4X the amount used in a typical combustion engine vehicle.
Plus, the global EV boom really can’t happen without the building out of $Billions in EV charging infrastructure, which is also highly copper intensive.
Turning to renewables, wind energy requires 2,000 tonnes of copper per gigawatt on average. Solar needs even more; about 5,000 tonnes of copper per gigawatt.
The global electricity grid needs to double by 2050 to meet net-zero targets with an estimated cost of roughly US$20 trillion to achieve that.
The Oregon Group recently published a report stating that 427Mt of copper will be needed by 2050. That’s more than 8 times the current demand level for wind turbines, solar panels, and energy storage combined.
That same report highlighted that, in order to meet those targets, annual investment will need to increase from US$274 billion in 2022 to US$1 trillion by 2050. This year, global annual spending is expected to increase to US$300 billion.
McKinsey & Company states that, for the world to meet its net-zero emissions targets, it will be short 50Mt of copper by 2030.
In other words, the global energy transition is highly dependent on an ample supply of copper.
And while recycled material plays an important role in copper stockpiles, there is no current methodology for the economic retrieval of the metal from the billions of tonnes of lower-grade waste rock scattered around the world’s past and present copper mining operations.
It all points to the near and long-term profit potential of well-run, well-structured copper exploration and development firms with high-potential copper projects in ultra-safe mining jurisdictions.
Enter Kutcho Copper Corp. (TSX-V: KC)(OTC: KCCFF).
Kutcho Copper: Flagship Kutcho Copper Project
Kutcho Copper (“KC”) is laser-focused on advancing, and expanding through drilling, the flagship, 100%-owned Kutcho Copper-Zinc Project located in British Columbia, Canada.
KC recently completed a Feasibility Study on the Kutcho project and is positioned to advance permitting with the objective of getting to a positive construction decision on what would primarily be an open-pittable, low-cost production mine project.
As you’re about to discover — and in addition to the 1.1 billion pounds CuEq already confirmed — the Kutcho project is a highly-accessible, vastly-underexplored VMS-target-rich asset with robust expansion potential with greater than 30 km of strike of primary targets.
Keep in mind also that VMS (Volcanic Massive Sulphide) deposits tend to form in clusters, meaning where you find one deposit, there are likely more lurking nearby.
The recently completed Feasibility Study on the Kutcho project contemplates mining the Main and Esso deposits to extract mainly copper and zinc (used primarily in the production of galvanized steel) along with minor quantities of gold and silver.
The Main deposit is designed to be mined primarily as a conventional shovel and truck open pit operation with a deeper remnant mined by underground longitudinal longhole open stoping (LLHOS) with cemented rock fill (CRF).
The underground Esso deposit is also designed to be mined using LLHOS with CRF. A total of 17.3 million tonnes (Mt) is planned to be mined over an 11-year mine life with 14.5 Mt coming from the open pit and 2.8 Mt from underground excavation.
Earlier, we mentioned the importance of jurisdiction, particularly against a highly disconcerting backdrop of increased geopolitical instability in key copper-producing nations — and worldwide for that matter.
The specific region of northern British Columbia where KC is advancing its wholly-owned Kutcho project is regarded as one of the safest Tier-1 mining jurisdictions globally with numerous large producing mines in the region, including Newcrest Mining’s Brucejack Mine and Newcrest/Imperial Minerals’ Red Chris Mine — as well as several advanced projects.
Infrastructure in place at Kutcho is top-notch and includes:
- A fully-functional field camp and airstrip
- 120 km of year-round ground access to be upgraded to a haul road for concentrate transport
- Existing concentrate port facilities within 400 km of paved highway access
The infrastructure is also laid out in a very efficient manner within a compact site footprint — a highly favorable layout that should prove invaluable to the company’s low-cost production mining model and robust ESG initiatives.
The Kutcho project is located within the traditional territories of the Tahltan Nation and Kaska Dena Nation. Kutcho has a positive working relationship with these First Nations and has started discussions with both to develop Economic Participation Agreements designed to safeguard First Nations’ interests whilst providing employment opportunities and long-term economic benefits to the local populace.
2021 Feasibility Study
As noted, KC has completed a Feasibility Study on the Kutcho project and is positioned to advance permitting with the objective reaching a positive construction decision.
Highlights from the Feasibility Study include:
- An NI 43-101-compliant high-grade resource of 22.8 millions tonnes in the Measured and Indicated category at 2.26% copper-equivalent (CuEq) representing over 1.1 billion pounds of CuEq contained metal.
- An after-tax Net Present Value (NPV 7%) of C$536 million and an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 30.5% at U$$4.00/lb Cu.
- A mine plan for a predominantly simplified open pit mining operation and a technically robust and capital-efficient project with a minimized footprint.
- A projected 11-year mine life at 45,000 tonnes per day; metal production of 533 Mlbs Cu, 841 Mlbs Zn, 10.6 Moz Ag, 129.7 koz Au.
- An additional 12.9 million tonnes grading 1.62% CuEq containing 460 Mlbs CuEq in the Inferred category (312 Mlbs Cu, 449 Mlbs Zn).
- All-in sustaining costs (AISC) of US$1.80/lb of CuEq.
Kutcho Copper CEO Vince Sorace — whom you’ll be hearing from directly in our exclusive interview coming right up — commented on the results of the Feasibility Study via press release:
“The Feasibility Study represents a major milestone for Kutcho Copper as we continue to advance the high-grade Kutcho copper-zinc project towards a development decision. The significant redesign and engineering of the Project delivers a mine plan that is a predominantly open pit mining operation with the concurrent development of two underground mines. The mine plan has resulted in a technically robust and capital efficient Project with a minimized footprint. The results of the Feasibility Study highlight the attractive economics of the Kutcho project which are resilient at lower metal prices, very attractive at base case prices and exhibit significant leverage to rising prices as reflected in spot metal prices with a C$931 million after-tax NPV7% and a 41% IRR. We believe that the results of the Feasibility Study mean that Kutcho Copper is now one of the most undervalued copper investment opportunities in North America.”
In addition to the current NI 43-101-compliant resource of 1.1 billion pounds CuEq, the Kutcho project offers exceptional potential for converting existing Inferred mineral resources to the Indicated category.
That includes infill drilling and the potential expansion of the known Kutcho deposit beyond the limits of the current mineral resource along with an opportunity for blue-sky greenfields/regional exploration within the broader land package where there exists robust potential for additional discoveries.
The processes involved are all part of an ongoing derisking process with a focus on uncovering additional high-grade copper-dominant zones with which to add ounces to the known resource and, thereby, add to the positive economics of the project.
And as you’re about to further discover, Kutcho Copper, led by CEO Vince Sorace, has a team of highly-experienced and serially-successful geologists and mine-builders in place to get the job done for stakeholders.
KC additionally benefits from strong financial support from the likes of Wheaton Precious Metals (US$23B market cap) at an 11.4% interest and Capstone Copper (formerly Capstone Mining; US$5B market cap) at a 5.8% interest.
In fact, Wheaton Precious Metals — one of the world's largest precious metals streaming companies — has converted an aggregate of over $38.4 million into various streaming arrangements and considerations, including $7.5 million into common shares of Kutcho Copper at ~C$0.91 per share.
The KC team is also committed to a high standard of ESG compliance with environmental protection at the forefront, including ensuring that no infrastructure is located within fish-bearing streams and that, at closure, all buildings are to be removed with any disturbed lands rehabilitated and the property returned to functional use.
In other words… leave it better than you found it.
That high level of commitment to ESG is something that’s been sorely lacking in the mining space for decades. And henceforth, the strong ESG commitment being fostered by the Kutcho Copper team is a breath of fresh air that stakeholders and shareholders alike can take inventory of and be proud of.
Kutcho Copper-Zinc Project: High-Priority Drill Targets
Already with 1.1 billion pounds of copper equivalent (CuEq) on the books, the KC team is not resting on its laurels as it moves toward a positive construction decision on the Kutcho project.
With a focus on building ounces to add to the existing resource through the discovery process, the company recently completed a series of airborne geophysical surveys (VTEM and ZTEM) over the broader Kutcho property.
The objective of the recently completed airborne geophysical programs was to test for:
- Potential extensions to the three known massive sulphide deposits at Kutcho: Main, Sumac, and Esso.
- Potential new massive sulphide deposits within the vicinity of the known deposits, particularly immediately west of the highest-grade Esso deposit.
- Potential for new deposits in areas where the prospective stratigraphy is repeated to the south of the main trend by folding and faulting.
Kutcho Copper president & CEO Vince Sorace added:
“We are pleased to have completed this phase of our target generation at Kutcho. The collection of new ZTEM, VTEM, magnetic and seismic data has given our technical team the tools to unlock the full value of the generations of exploration data collected on the project. This work defined a land package that encompasses over 60 strike km of fold-repeated favorable stratigraphy that we have distilled down to three compelling high priority targets and two additional favorable trends. We are looking forward to drill testing the Esso West and Mother targets, as well as advancing field evaluation of the Cairn, Far East and Sumac Ridge trends, in 2024.”
The aforementioned high-priority targets are being systematically prioritized based on their similarity to known mineralization, strength of geophysical signatures, and strength of supporting information (drilling, mapping, soil sampling, chip sampling, stream sampling, etc.).
The highest-priority targets all lie within the Kutcho upper formation where known high-grade copper-dominant mineralization occurs, including within the Main, Sumac, and Esso deposits.
These priority targets include Esso West, Mother, and Far East.
The other newly-delineated, lesser-explored targets are situated within interpreted fold-repetitions of the same productive time horizon with similar volcanic stratigraphy to the south of the main mineralized Kutcho trend.
Esso West Target
The Esso West target covers an area of 1,900 meters strike by 500 meters down dip and is defined by a coincident ZTEM, VTEM, magnetic, and seismic anomaly that lies along strike and to the west of the high-grade Esso deposit.
The Esso West target is bracketed by a total of five historical drill holes consisting of a combination of moderately to strongly sericite — pyrite altered quartz — crystals tuffs correlating to the immediate hanging wall rocks to the Main, Sumac, and Esso deposits and sericite — pyrite altered lapilli tuffs — which are indicative of the foot wall sequence below the three known deposits.
Mother Target
The Mother target is a 7.5-km-long, partially coincident ZTEM and VTEM target. A total of four historical drill holes have tested portions of the target and define a prospective geological environment for a potential VMS deposit.
Two historical holes anchored on the western extent of the target intersected an interpreted felsic flow dome consisting of a combination of sericite altered quartz — feldspar and lapilli felsic tuffs — similar to the setting of the Main, Sumac, and Esso deposits. Silica exhalates with jasperoid development and bands of magnetite and semi-massive / massive sulphides occur between felsic units.
Far East Target
The Far East target is a 3.5-km-long partially coincident ZTEM and VTEM and magnetic target.
A total of four historical drill holes have tested 400 meters, or approximately 11%, of the strike length of the Far East target and define a prospective geological environment for a potential VMS deposit where anomalous copper and zinc values in syngenetic pyritic mudstones occur between a combination of felsic crystal and lapilli volcanic tuffs.
Secondary Targets
The VTEM and ZTEM surveys also produced a number of secondary targets, which present slightly different geologic environments to the known deposits.
These “Priority-2” targets are located within the Kutcho mid and lower formations, and, based on the strength of ZTEM/VTEM targets, are deemed compelling and requisite of additional fieldwork for further drill target delineation.
These target areas include Sumac Ridge and Cairn.
Sumac Ridge lies within felsic volcanic rocks in the footwall of the known mineralization in an area of tight folding. The area has significant pyrite in outcrop with two historical drill holes located over 1,600 meters apart testing this multi-kilometer target.
Cairn is a multi-kilometer target that has seen only cursory mapping and reconnaissance rock sampling to date. A comprehensive ground exploration program is planned for 2024 to evaluate both the Sumac Ridge and Cairn targets.
In such a target-rich environment, the Kutcho Copper team is moving forward with plans to drill-test its highest-priority targets with the aim of building ounces via the drill-bit for inclusion in the next Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) update.
We just covered quite a bit of geological jargon for those ‘non-geologists’ among us… but what it clearly points to is this:
- The prospective mineralized horizons hosting the three existing deposits (Main, Sumac, and Esso) repeat three times across the Kutcho property.
- VMS deposits typically occur in clusters along favorable horizons.
- With three deposits already identified along the Main-Sumac-Esso horizon, and with multiple underexplored targets available for drill-testing, the Kutcho Copper-Zinc Project has the makings of a classic VMS district with significant resource expansion potential through the discovery process.
Those factors combined are setting the stage for a catalyst-rich second half of 2024 for Kutcho Copper with Mr. Vince Sorace providing direct insight into the plans and process for advancing the project toward a highly-anticipated positive construction decision.
Exclusive Interview with Kutcho Copper
President & CEO Vince Sorace
There are few copper companies in the junior space that can match the copper exploration, discovery, and mine-building acumen — and capital markets expertise — of the Kutcho Copper team.
Led by president & CEO Vince Sorace, who brings more than 30 years of experience in the capital markets having raised over C$300M in equity and debt financings, the team also includes COO Andrew Sharp, P.Eng.
Andrew boasts 35-plus years of experience in mine design, construction, operational mine planning, mine management, and leadership in the precious and base metals industries, including having led several successful mine start-ups.
His expertise should prove invaluable as the company makes its way through permitting toward a positive construction decision on the Kutcho Copper-Zinc Project.
You can learn more about the full Kutcho Copper team here.
As promised, and for a deeper dive into the company, the team, and the flagship Kutcho Copper-Zinc Project, our own Gerardo Del Real of Resource Stock Digest and Junior Resource Monthly sat down for an exclusive interview with Kutcho Copper president & CEO Mr. Vince Sorace.
Please enjoy the candid conversation.
Gerardo Del Real: This is Gerardo Del Real with Resource Stock Digest. Joining me today is the president & CEO of Kutcho Copper — Mr. Vince Sorace. Vince, how are you today?
Vince Sorace: I'm doing great, Gerardo. Thanks for having me back.
Gerardo Del Real: Thank you for coming on. Let's get right into it. It's been a very, very tough junior market for 97% — and I'm being generous — of junior companies here in the last couple of years.
I think that's starting to turn… and I always say that it's going to be producers and, then, companies with robust assets that, frankly, have market caps that are just so disproportionate to the underlying asset. Kutcho Copper absolutely checks that box.
You have an asset that has an NPV of roughly C$600 million or C$700 million, yet you sit here with a market cap that’s sub-C$20 million. And so I wanted to have you on because I'm a huge copper bull. I believe that copper is headed much, much higher.
And Kutcho, unlike a lot of the exploration companies out there looking to find something, already has a great asset in place. So for those not familiar with the Kutcho Copper story, can you give us a brief overview of the company and the asset? And then, I want to talk exploration upside because that's pretty significant as well.
Vince Sorace: Yes, as you mentioned, Kutcho has an asset that has been derisked to a Feasibility Study that we completed a few years ago. And that Feasibility Study, at US$4 per pound copper, produced economics of C$536 million Net Present Value (NPV) at a 30% IRR. It's located in British Columbia here in Canada… so a very, very safe mining jurisdiction.
We have financial partners such as Wheaton Precious Metals in the deal. We are situated in an area where there's lots of existing infrastructure. We have very favorable First Nations support in the area. And again, this isn't something that we're looking for; it's something that we have.
And there has been a lot of money spent on this asset already to get to where we have probably north of C$70 million. So we've got a well-defined asset that we believe is one that will get put into production one day. We've been steadily making progress down that path post-feasibility study.
And at today's copper prices, to reiterate what you said, we've seen a fantastic run in copper. The industry, and myself, believes that that's going to continue as we sit around US$4.50 per pound copper. The NPV of the company has increased substantially from there; obviously, very sensitive to copper prices and now sits at about C$688 million NPV.
So yes, we've got an asset that the money has been spent, it's been found, it's there. We're trading below a C$20 million market cap. And that deserves some attention. We're starting to see it ourselves from other industry participants we've been talking to. So yes, I believe we are ready, when this junior market picks up a bit, to capitalize on this.
Gerardo Del Real: The one criticism I've had for Kutcho Copper — and listen, you were right the last couple of years, by the way, Vince, so that criticism had a good reason for it — but the one criticism I've had is that I am really attracted to exploration plays. And the upside with VMS-type deposits tends to be significant when you only have one that you've discovered because of the fact that VMS-type deposits tend to happen in clusters.
And so the criticism from me has always been, ‘Hey, Vince, why aren't you drilling?’ The answer, of course, was valid. You were not drilling because the market wasn't there and raising capital was extremely dilutive.
However, we have a better copper market now. And I really want to highlight the exploration upside because, as great as the current asset is and then the value that underpins that market cap, the exploration upside is pretty attractive. Can you speak to that a bit?
Vince Sorace: Yes, and when we acquired this asset years ago, the objective and strategy at that time was to go for the quickest path to a Feasibility Study and permitting. And that is where a lot of our capital went.
The market slowed down a bit in the last couple of years, as you said. But we did raise some money last year, and we did a very extensive geophysical program with some other exploration techniques. And we’ve generated a number of, what we believe are, very significant targets on the exploration side.
We would classify them as brownfields targets, and probably the most pertinent one at this point would be the Esso target. We have always known that the Kutcho deposit comprises three lenses; Esso being the smallest in footprint but the highest grade. It sits deeper than the others, and it has had some historical drill holes; 300 meters to the west of it that were clipping mineralization.
Now, we didn't go out and further test that because they were pretty deep drill holes. And so we took last year and spent a couple million dollars on a big geophysical and ground-truthing program. And we lit up a pretty significant number of targets.
One in particular that's really exciting us is what we're calling Esso West, a significant anomaly sitting to the west of our Esso deposit. There are some existing drill holes that we interpret as clipping something that's there that is resembling in mineralogy and grade to the Esso deposit.
And it’s quite extensive in size, which could lend to the theory that, yes, VMS districts tend to form in clusters, meaning there’s typically more there. Adding to that, nothing like what we did last year has ever been done in the past; we've conducted the most extensive, call it, exploration-type program on this property that's ever been done.
So no one has done this before; we've lit up these targets. The Esso deposit itself, being the smallest footprint with these three lenses, contributes to about half of the value of the project for our company on an NPV basis. So with the new Esso West target, that could be a very significant change to the value of the asset should we be tapping into similar mineralization that Esso has.
So that's high on the objective list. Outside of that, again, we've generated a number of exciting drill targets that we intend to pursue.
Gerardo Del Real: What comes next? When do you intend to pursue them, Vince?
Vince Sorace: We're working on that now. We've been in talks with contractors and lining up plans to proceed with this… so there'll be more to come about that.
Gerardo Del Real: Looking forward to it. I absolutely love buying low and selling high. The stock is near a 52-week low. Copper is right around a 52-week high. The contrast couldn't be any more apparent to me. I’m absolutely looking forward to seeing what Kutcho does in this market. Anything to add to that, Vince?
Vince Sorace: I think we've covered it. And as you said, we’re starting to see the producers respond to this favorable move in copper… but a lot of that hasn't yet translated down to the juniors. But I believe it's coming. And when it does, it should be a pretty robust move within the junior space.
Gerardo Del Real: I absolutely agree. Vince, thank you so much. I appreciate the time.
Vince Sorace: Thank you.
Gerardo Del Real: Alright, cheers.
The Kutcho Copper Opportunity
With copper being an essential component for wind and solar energy, EVs, and numerous other forms of next-generation infrastructure, usage of the red metal should continue to climb over the coming years and, perhaps, decades.
Robust projected demand growth from the global energy transition — coupled with a dearth of tier-one-hosted discoveries and the long lead times required for mine development — should boost not only the price of copper to all-time highs above US$5 per pound in short order but also the share prices of select small-cap copper explorers and developers such as Kutcho Copper Corp. (TSX-V: KC)(OTC: KCCFF).
We’re already seeing a strong upward move in the copper price as we make our way toward the second half of 2024 in anticipation of a protracted demand surge for the red metal in the face of continued supply disruptions.
After trading at the mid-US$3 per pound range the last few quarters, copper spot prices are now at year-plus highs above US$4.50 per pound.
As discussed in detail in this Special Report, numerous tailwinds are forming in the broader copper space, driven by increased copper demand in the global energy transition with well-positioned copper explorers/developers with advanced projects in favorable mining jurisdictions, such as Kutcho Copper, standing to benefit.
Buoyed by the current strong copper price environment, and led by an experienced team of mining professionals and mine-builders, Kutcho Copper (“KC”) is advancing its flagship, 100%-owned Kutcho Copper-Zinc Project in the ultra-safe, Tier-1 mining jurisdiction of northern British Columbia, Canada.
Importantly, the Kutcho project is a brownfields feasibility-stage project, meaning the main mineralized zones have already been delineated through extensive mapping, sampling, surveying, and drilling.
With an NI 43-101-compliant resource of 1.1 billion pounds CuEq already in place, the main focus going forward will be the further derisking of the Kutcho project through exploration and infill drilling across multiple high-priority and secondary targets as the company builds toward a positive construction decision.
You heard directly from Kutcho Copper president & CEO Vince Sorace. He says,
“We have financial partners such as Wheaton Precious Metals in the deal. We are situated in an area where there's lots of existing infrastructure. We have very favorable First Nations support in the area … we've got a well-defined asset that we believe is one that will get put into production one day. We've been steadily making progress down that path post-feasibility study.”
To that end, the company has mapped out an extensive exploration program (see below) for 2H 2024 with the aim of building additional ounces to add to the current 1.1B lb CuEq resource and to further derisk and prove the scalability of the project.
Kutcho Copper has funding in place to commence its near-term exploration plans having recently closed an oversubscribed financing for gross proceeds of C$1.44 million as it continues to advance the flagship Kutcho Copper-Zinc Project.
Kutcho is also well-structured with approximately 155 million shares outstanding on a non-fully-diluted basis with a large percentage of shares currently held by insiders, institutions, and major mining firms, including Wheaton Precious Metals and Capstone Copper.
With copper presently trading at year-plus highs above US$4.50 per pound and poised to head even higher over the coming quarters, now is an excellent time to begin conducting your own due diligence on Kutcho Copper Corporation — symbol KC on the Toronto Venture Exchange and symbol KCCFF on the US-OTCQX Bulletin Board Exchange.
A great place to start is the Kutcho Copper corporate website.
There, you can sign up to receive updates directly from the company, view the most recent Corporate Presentation and much more.
Be sure to also follow our exclusive interviews with upper management here.
— Resource Stock Digest Research
IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER & DISCLOSURES
Resource Stock Digest, as a publisher, is not a broker, investment advisor, or financial advisor in any jurisdiction.
Please do not rely on the information presented by Resource Stock Digest as personal investment advice.
If you need personal investment advice, kindly reach out to a qualified and registered broker, investment advisor, or financial advisor.
The communications from Resource Stock Digest should not form the basis of your investment decisions. Examples we provide regarding share price increases related to specific companies are based on randomly selected time periods and should not be taken as an indicator or predictor of future stock prices for those companies.
Kutcho Copper Corp has sponsored this report.
The information in this newsletter does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities of a corporation or entity, including U.S. Traded Securities or U.S. Quoted Securities, in the United States or to U.S. Persons. Securities may not be offered or sold in the United States except in compliance with the registration requirements of the Securities Act and applicable U.S. state securities laws or pursuant to an exemption therefrom.
Any public offering of securities in the United States may only be made by means of a prospectus containing detailed information about the corporation or entity and its management as well as financial statements. No securities regulatory authority in the United States has either approved or disapproved of the contents of any newsletter. Resource Stock Digest nor any employee of Resource Stock Digest is not registered with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”): as a “broker-dealer” under the Exchange Act, as an “investment adviser” under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, or in any other capacity. Resource Stock Digest, its owners, directors, and employees are also not registered with any state securities commission or authority as a broker-dealer or investment advisor or in any other capacity.
HIGHLY BIASED:
In our role, we aim to highlight specific companies for your further investigation; however, these are not stock recommendations, nor do they constitute an offer or sale of the referenced securities. Resource Stock Digest has received cash compensation from Kutcho Copper Corp and is thus extremely biased. It is crucial that you conduct your own research prior to investing. This includes reading the companies' SEDAR and SEC filings, press releases, and risk disclosures. The information contained in our profiles is based on data provided by the companies, extracted from SEDAR and SEC filings, company websites, and other publicly available sources.
Resource Stock Digest, and its owners, directors, employees, and members of their households may own shares of Kutcho Copper Corp. Therefore, Resource Stock Digest is extremely biased. Measures are in place such that no shares will be sold during the active awareness campaign.
HIGH RISK:
The securities issued by the companies we feature should be seen as high risk; if you choose to invest, despite these warnings, you may lose your entire investment. You must be aware of the risks and be willing to accept them in order to invest in financial instruments, including stocks, options, and futures.
NOT PROFESSIONAL ADVICE:
By reading this, you agree to all of the following: You understand this to be an expression of opinions and NOT professional advice. You are solely responsible for the use of any content and hold Resource Stock Digest, and all partners, members, and affiliates harmless in any event or claim. While Resource Stock Digest strives to provide accurate and reliable information sourced from believed-to-be trustworthy sources, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or reliability of the information. The information provided reflects conditions as they are at the moment of writing and not at any future date. Resource Stock Digest is not obligated to update, correct, or revise the information post-publication.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:
Certain information presented may contain or be considered forward-looking statements. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in these statements. There can be no assurance that any such statements will prove to be accurate, and readers should not place undue reliance on such information. Resource Stock Digest does not undertake any obligations to update the information presented or to ensure that such information remains current and accurate.