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McEwen Copper will seek $600 million for infrastructure

spending

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Feasibility study near completion

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Argentina has pipeline of eight major copper projects

By Lucila Sigal

SAN JUAN, Argentina, Aug 4 (Reuters) - McEwen Mining

expects to complete a feasibility study for its Los

Azules copper mine in Argentina in two months, paving the way

for the Canadian miner to seek $600 million in financing needed

to build infrastructure next year, a top executive said in an

interview.

McEwen's copper division has spent $300 million on the

project in the Andes mountains that will ultimately require

about $3 billion, Michael Meding, vice president of McEwen

Copper, told Reuters.

The company is aiming to secure 20% of the total investment,

the equivalent of $600 million, as soon as possible next year,

he said.

Los Azules expects to produce between 180,000 and 200,000 metric

tons of copper annually by 2030, one of the eight major copper

projects hoping to benefit from projections of soaring demand

for the red metal in the coming years.

Argentina's substantial copper deposits are largely untapped,

and the country has not produced any copper since the Bajo de la

Alumbrera mine, then operated by Glencore ( GLCNF ), closed in

2018.

In the coming year, Los Azules plans to expand the on-site

encampment, build roads and erect electricity lines. Mine

construction is slated to begin in 2027, with production

starting in late 2029 or early 2030.

"Our main challenge isn't engineering ... it's mobilizing

the necessary funding so we can move at the pace we'd like,"

Meding said.

The project also hopes that $277 million of the investment will

qualify for an incentive program launched under President Javier

Milei known as the Incentive Regime for Large Investments, or

RIGI, meant to light a fuse under major investments.

McEwen Mining is the biggest owner of Los Azules with a 46.4%

share, followed by automotive company Stellantis ( STLA ) and

global miner Rio Tinto's leaching technology unit Nuton.

McEwen recently announced it has produced laboratory-scale

cathodes, which Meding called an "important test" for the mine's

plans to exclusively produce cathodes.

The mine will use a heap leach production method that will allow

it to use five-sixths less water than the traditional flotation

and concentrate process, along with other techniques that will

reduce its environmental impact, Meding said.

Los Azules has also committed to becoming carbon neutral by

2038, and plans to use renewable energy, mostly solar, from

Argentina's state-owned YPF Luz.

Meding noted that McEwen was competing with other

industries, not just mining, to secure funding.

"We need to convince big capital now," he said.