All the copper mined from British Columbian operations is shipped to Asia.

While there has been talk of building a refinery in BC for decades, so far the political will hasn’t been there. The smelter’s ore feed could not only be derived from the gant Kerr-Sulphurets-Mitchell (KSM) deposit being developed by Seabridge Mining, but all of the neighboring deposits, including Red Chris, Schaft Creek, Galore Creek, Newmont’s Tatogga, and no doubt from the many deposits waiting to be discovered. Elsewhere in BC, Teck’s partially owned Highland Valley, Gibralter and Copper Mountain could potentially supply feedstock for a BC copper smelter/hydromet. And the Yukon has a lot of copper, Carmacks and Casino for example.

The key to this plan, wild as it may seem, is the smelter must have the ability to process copper and gold. Well it just so happens that Teck Resources, part-owner of Highland Valley, Galore Creek and Schaft Creek, has the technology to do it.

https://www.mining.com/parties-mining-and-energy-policies-scrutinized-ahead-of-british-columbia-election/