Hudbay’s Copper Mountain mine expansion: design, strip ratio and life-of-mine notes
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell
First reported on MINING.com
30 Second Briefing
Hudbay Minerals has broken ground on the New Ingerbelle expansion at the Copper Mountain mine in British Columbia, a pushback of the historic Ingerbelle pit walls designed to access higher-grade ore with a stripping ratio about three times lower than current mining areas. Using existing Copper Mountain mill and fleet infrastructure, the project is forecast to produce about 750,000 tonnes of copper, 900,000 oz of gold and 5.5 million oz of silver, extending mine life beyond 2040. New Ingerbelle, now a B.C. priority resource project, preserves over 800 direct jobs and has refreshed participation agreements with the Upper and Lower Similkameen Indian Bands.
Technical Brief
- New Ingerbelle involves a pushback of the historic Ingerbelle pit walls rather than a greenfield cut.
- The pit was previously mined in two phases, 1972–1980 and 1995–1996, informing geotechnical understanding.
- Existing Copper Mountain mill and mining fleet are being reused, avoiding major new process plant capex.
- Hudbay engaged the B.C. Major Mines Office, local communities and two Similkameen Bands throughout permitting.
- Refreshed participation agreements with Upper and Lower Similkameen Indian Bands were concluded in February 2026.
- Economic projections include over C$11.5 billion in provincial GDP and more than C$2.2 billion in labour income.
- More than 800 direct jobs at Copper Mountain are expected to be preserved through the expansion phase.
Our Take
The amended environmental permits for New Ingerbelle noted in our 24 February 2026 coverage mean this ground-breaking at Copper Mountain comes after a relatively rapid provincial review cycle, which is notable in British Columbia where several copper projects have faced protracted timelines.
With Copper Mountain’s life now pushed beyond 2040 and Osisko Metals’ Gaspé copper project also advancing with Hudbay involvement, our database suggests Hudbay is steadily building a longer-dated copper pipeline in Canada rather than relying on shorter-life assets in riskier jurisdictions.
The lower stripping ratio at New Ingerbelle, combined with projected C$11.5 billion in provincial GDP and preservation of more than 800 jobs, signals that this brownfield expansion is likely to sit in the lower half of the regional cost curve compared with greenfield B.C. copper projects like Surge Copper’s Berg, which carry much higher upfront capex exposure.
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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