Vicuña, a joint venture of Lundin Mining and BHP, has made a landmark discovery at the Filo del Sol project in South America, believed to be the largest copper find in the past three decades.
This development positions the project among the world’s top ten copper resources, according to Lundin’s news release.
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The Vicuña mineral resource, encompassing the Filo del Sol and Josemaria deposits, showcases 13 million tonnes (mt) of copper classified as measured and indicated (M&I), and an additional 25mt inferred.
The gold and silver contents are equally significant, with 32 million ounces (moz) of gold M&I and 49moz Inferred, and 659moz of silver M&I and 808moz inferred.
The high-grade core of the Filo del Sol deposit contains 4.5mt of copper, 9.6moz of gold, and 259moz of silver, with M&I resources amounting to 606mt at 1.14% copper equivalent (CuEq).
The Josemaria deposit’s near-surface high-grade core holds 978,000t of copper, 2.4moz of gold, and 11moz of silver, with M&I resources of 196mt at 0.73% CuEq.
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By GlobalDataThe oxide cap at Filo del Sol, suitable for heap leach processing, consists of 434mt (M&I) with 1.5mt of copper, 3.9moz of gold, and 35moz of silver. The high-grade oxides within this cap contain 911,000t of copper, 2.3moz of gold, and 230moz of silver across 181mt (M&I) at 1.05% CuEq.
The potential for further expansion is evident, as drilling at Filo del Sol has not yet reached the limits of mineralisation, which remains open at depth.
Additionally, drilling 2km to the south at the Flamenco zone has intersected mineralisation beyond the current resource pit shell.
For Lundin Mining, this discovery represents a 29% increase in M&I contained copper mineral resources and a 650% increase in inferred contained copper mineral resources.
The Filo del Sol mineral resource spans a 10km2 area, with a strike length of 6.5km and a width of 1.5km.
Lundin Mining president and CEO Jack Lundin said: “Filo del Sol has been one of the most significant greenfield discoveries in the last 30 years and an amazing journey for all those that have been involved. Congratulations to the Filo team for such a remarkable discovery and advancing the deposit to where it is today.
“The initial Mineral Resource has highlighted the potential for one of the highest grade undeveloped open pit copper projects in the world and one of the largest gold and silver resources globally. Filo del Sol and the Vicuña district are poised to develop into a world class deposit that will support a globally ranked mining complex.
“The mineral resource is a key milestone and will form the basis for the integrated technical report that will outline a combined project, this report is on schedule for completion in the first quarter of 2026.”
In March 2025, Lundin Mining entered into an exclusivity agreement with Talon Metals to negotiate an earn-in agreement for the potential acquisition of up to a 70% interest in the Boulderdash and Roland nickel-copper exploration properties.
