Hudbay Minerals says it has received the approved Mine Plan of Operations (MPO) for the Rosemont copper project from the US Forest Service.

This completes the required permitting process for the project given Hudbay received the Section 404 Water Permit earlier this month.

Alan Hair, Hudbay’s President and CEO, said: “With the receipt of the Section 404 Water Permit, an agreement to consolidate 100% ownership and receipt of the approved MPO, Hudbay continues to move the project forward.

“Rosemont is now a fully-permitted, shovel-ready copper project and we look forward to developing this world-class asset.”

Rosemont, some 48 km southeast of Tucson, Arizona, is one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper projects. A 2017 feasibility study showed Rosemont could produce 112,000 tons (101,605 t) of copper over its life of mine and, based on a $3/Ib copper price, deliver a 15.5% after-tax unlevered internal rate of return.