True North Copper is continuing to ramp up its Cloncurry operations as it tracks towards 24/7 mining at its Wallace North pit early next year.

Since announcing the start of mining activities at Wallace North in July, the company has mined 223,000 BCM of overburden, including 22,000t of oxide ore.

True North started hauling the stockpiled ore to its Great Australia Mine crushing facility last month and is now irrigating ore on the leach pad to add to production at its solvent extraction plant.

Image at top of page: Recovery of crushed stockpiles for transport to the leach pad.

Wallace North is one of four open-pit deposits making up the company’s Cloncurry Copper Project, which is estimated to generate free cash flow of about $200 million at current copper spot prices over its initial 4.6-year mine life.

“TNC continues to make positive progress towards its goal of becoming an Australian copper producer and critical minerals supplier at the CCP,” managing director Bevan Jones said.

“Since our previous update in September, operations including our mining activities at Wallace North to the initial crushing and stacking activities at our Cloncurry Operations Hub (COH) have transitioned seamlessly.

“Our team at CCP should be commended for this progress, but the hard work is set to continue in the coming weeks as the crushing and stacking activities accelerate further.

“TNC’s upcoming milestones at CCP include increased PLS (pregnant leach solution) grade and volume reporting through to the SX plant in conjunction with the commencement of 24/7 mining operations at the Wallace North mine in Q4 2025.”

Related: True North beefing up workforce at Cloncurry

Mr Jones said True North had been buoyed by the response to its recent recruitment campaign to build the CCP team.

“We will see 28 new employees joining the TNC team by mid-November, a great result for the company, which will help ensure operations continue to advance on schedule at CCP,” he said.

“Our recruitment drive is continuing as we aim to establish a workforce of 100 people at CCP by December.”