Faraday drilling boosts Arizona copper cathode case: design and staging notes for mine planners
Reviewed by Tom Sullivan
First reported on MINING.com
30 Second Briefing
Faraday Copper’s latest 22,510-metre drilling phase at Copper Creek, Arizona, has expanded shallow oxide and sulphide mineralisation, with hole FCD-26-190 cutting 100.8 metres at 0.22% copper from surface at Copper Giant East and FCD-26-192 returning 19 metres at 0.55% copper from 42 metres near American Eagle. Near-surface mineralisation was reported in 14 of 23 new holes, supporting a staged development starting with oxide feed and copper cathode production ahead of larger sulphide open-pit and underground phases. Faraday is closing its acquisition of BHP’s former San Manuel mine, which processed ~800 million tonnes at 0.66% copper, and plans at least 23,000 metres of drilling there this autumn toward a combined Copper Creek–San Manuel resource by mid-2027.
Technical Brief
- Resource-definition drilling at Copper Creek totals 22,510 m, with assays reported for 19,496 m in 76 holes.
- Four Copper Giant East holes define an oxide zone exposed at surface over ~50–100 m thickness.
- Additional oxide intercepts include 56 m at 0.2% Cu (incl. 28 m at 0.28%) and 74 m at 0.16% Cu from surface.
- Near the Pole breccia, FCD-26-185 returned 14.3 m at 0.56% Cu from surface, supporting local high-grade pods.
- North of Childs Aldwinkle, FCD-26-163 cut 40 m at 0.32% Cu from 20 m, including 21.4 m at 0.46% Cu.
- At American Eagle, deeper sulphides include 20 m at 0.52% Cu from 149 m and 31 m at 0.25% Cu from 28 m.
- Copper Creek’s May 2023 PEA resource stands at 421.9 Mt M&I at 0.45% Cu plus 83.6 Mt inferred at 0.34% Cu.
- San Manuel historically processed ~800 Mt at 0.66% Cu, yielding >4.5 Mt copper before closure in 1999.
- The San Manuel deal adds ~109 km² of private land plus road, rail, power, gas and water rights adjacent to Copper Creek.
- Faraday’s market capitalisation is about C$1.48 billion, with shares at C$5.04 amid sector-wide junior volatility.
Our Take
The planned consolidation of Copper Creek with BHP’s former San Manuel mine, highlighted in our 14 August 2026 coverage, underpins Faraday Copper’s 18 billion lb district potential and makes this one of the larger copper growth stories in the US Southwest within our mining database.
Faraday Copper’s C$100 million private placement earlier in 2026, fully backed by the Lundin Family Trusts and BHP Group, suggests that the current drilling at Copper Creek and San Manuel is being advanced with a funding base and strategic shareholder register more typical of mid-tier rather than junior developers.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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