On June 30, 2021, Reuters published an article about Florence Copper that incorrectly stated the project is “akin to fracking.” Florence Copper is not using hydraulic fracturing (aka “fracking”) and there are no similarities between “fracking” and in-situ copper recovery.

In-situ copper recovery requires unique hydrogeological conditions that happen exist in Florence. Unlike orebodies that are made up of solid rock, the Florence deposit is naturally porous and shattered, allowing the extraction solution to easily flow through it. Whereas fracking requires injection pressures of up to 15,000 PSI (Pounds per Square Inch), our permit at Florence specifies a maximum pressure allowed on injection wells of 0.65 psi/ft. The test facility wells typically operated using only gravity at zero PSI and never exceeded 113 PSI during the 18 months we operated the facility. At less than 1% (maximum) of a conventional fracking operation, our process is not ‘akin to fracking’, and any implication that they are similar processes is false.