FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE…Vancouver, British Columbia: World Copper Ltd. (“World Copper“) – (TSX.V: WCU) announces that it has appointed Mr. Nolan Peterson as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) as of April 26, 2021.
Mr. Peterson is an engineer and finance executive with an extensive career in the mining industry focusing on project development, corporate finance and accounting, engineering, and project management. Most recently he served in senior management within the finance group at TMAC Resources Inc., working to develop the Hope Bay project; prior to its acquisition by Agnico Eagle Mines. Before TMAC, he worked for New Gold Inc. for seven years, primarily in project development, constructing and commissioning the New Afton mine before moving to advance the Rainy River and Blackwater projects. After successful advancement of these projects, he then took a role with New Gold’s finance group and led financial planning and analysis for the company. Mr. Peterson also has extensive experience working at SNC-Lavalin where he focused on project development for several clients including Barrick Gold Corp., Newmont Corp., Rio Tinto and Quadra FNX amongst others. He is experienced in all stages of project development from conception to operation and the integration with corporate finance. Mr. Peterson grew up in Nunavut in Canada’s arctic, an upbringing that has left him uniquely aware of the needs of local communities and environments surrounding mineral development projects. His perspectives will be invaluable to helping understand key issues that impact and shape the development of modern mining companies. Mr. Peterson brings a strong technical and financial background to the role, he holds a Master of Business Administration from UBC’s Sauder School of Business, a bachelor’s degree in Materials (Metallurgical) Engineering from UBC, he is a CFA® Charterholder, a Project Management Professional and a Professional Engineer in British Columbia and Ontario.
Nolan Peterson stated “I am honoured and excited to be joining World Copper at this early stage of growth and development. We are aiming to become a major player in the copper industry, as our recent announcement to enter negotiations to acquire the Zonia Copper Oxide project demonstrates. (see news release April 20, 2021). In order to capitalize on strong copper prices resulting from the world’s rapid realization that copper is one of the green materials of the future, we will be moving quickly to develop the late-stage Zonia project. Our intent is push forward with permitting, engineering and planning to get Zonia up and running soon and I will work quickly to put us onto this path to production.” Said Mr. Peterson “Our other fantastic assets, Escalones and Cristal remain our long-term prizes that we will continue to explore and develop. Supporting the development of our Chilean assets with internal sources of capital will mitigate future shareholder dilution and maximize our efforts to build and capture long-term value. The World Copper team is excited to continue growing our organization and I am thrilled to get started. I look forward to providing updates and continuing open communication with our valued stakeholders as we push our project pipeline forward.”
Henk van Alphen will resign as CEO of World Copper effective as of April 26th, 2021 and assume the position of Chairman of the Board of World Copper where he will remain active in the leadership of World Copper. “On behalf of the World Copper team I would like to personally thank Henk for his tireless efforts to put us in the position we are in today, primed for growth and success. Henk will remain a director of World Copper and will continue to be a key advisor and mentor to myself and I look forward to continuing to work closely with him.” commented newly appointed CEO, Nolan Peterson.
Please visit our web site www.worldcopperltd.com to see the complete team of management, directors and advisors.
ABOUT WORLD COPPER LTD.
World Copper Ltd., headquartered in Vancouver, BC, is a Canadian resource company focused the exploration and development of its two primary copper porphyry projects, Cristal and Escalones, both located in Chile. World Copper has laid claim to five copper porphyry targets, one with estimated resources and significant soluble copper mineralization.
The Escalones porphyry-skarn copper-gold project has estimated resources of 185 million tonnes of 0.33% copper (0.37% CuEq) Indicated and 254 million tonnes of 0.39% copper (0.43% CuEq) Inferred, based on nearly 25,000m of drill core from 53 holes. In addition, three significant hydrothermal alteration zones, each measuring between 2,000m and 3,000m in diameter, lie 5-10km to the north of the main discovery.
Mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability as there is no certainty that all or any part of the resources will be converted into reserves. Inferred resources are that part of a mineral resource for which quantity and grade or quality are estimated based on limited geological evidence and sampling. It is reasonably expected that the inferred resources could be upgraded to indicated resources with continued exploration.
ABOUT ZONIA
The Zonia Copper Oxide Project is a near-surface copper-oxide resource and a brownfields site having already been mined in the late 1960s and ’70s. The Project has been significantly de-risked with almost 700 drill holes completed to date. A preliminary economic assessment dated April 17, 2018 (effective date March 22, 2018; “PEA“) was prepared by Global Resource Engineering Ltd. and suggests that the project can be advanced utilizing low-cost open pit mining and heap leach with SX-EW processing to produce pure copper cathode (a copy of the PEA technical report is available on Cardero’s SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.). The project has been pre-stripped during the mining in the late 1960’s and 1970’s to that has produced the strip ration used in the PEA of 1:1. Furthermore, Global Resource Engineering Ltd. outlines a mine plan and development strategy contained on private land which significantly reduces the timeline for permitting. At a copper price of $3.00/lb, the project shows an after-tax NPV@6% of $225 million, and an IRR of 29.0%. Those numbers are significantly improved at today’s copper prices.
In addition to the established resource, the Zonia land position contains a robust copper-molybdenum geochemical anomaly (associated with depressed manganese values) that is similar in intensity and scale to the main resource and is situated in the same prospective geology. This anomaly is located 2 kilometers northeast of the resource and represents a high priority copper-oxide porphyry exploration drill target. The new anomaly measures 1500 by 2000 metres and appears to be a sister deposit.
ABOUT CRISTAL
Cristal is in a prospective porphyry copper belt and with high potential for additional large porphyry discoveries, and the World Copper team has long been involved in the Chilean lithium space and as such has a unique skill in navigating the mining sector within the country.
Detailed information is available at the Company’s website at www.worldcopperltd.com, and for general Company updates please follow us on our social media pages via Facebook, Twitter & LinkedIn.
For further details on the Company readers are referred to the Company’s website. To view the Company’s Canadian regulatory filings, please visit SEDAR.
Qualified Person
John Drobe, P.Geo., a qualified person as defined by NI 43-101, has reviewed the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for this news release and has approved the disclosure herein. Mr. Drobe is not independent of the Company as he is a consultant of World Copper.
On Behalf of the Board of Directors of
WORLD COPPER LTD.
“Nolan Peterson”
Nolan Peterson
Chief Executive Officer
For further information, please contact:
Nolan Peterson or Michael Pound
Phone: 604-638-3665
E-mail: info@worldcopperltd.com
Neither TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, “forward-looking statements”) within the meaning of applicable Canadian and U.S. securities legislation, including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, statements with respect to anticipated exploration program results from exploration activities, the discovery and delineation of mineral deposits/resources/reserves and the anticipated business plans and timing of future activities of World Copper are forward-looking statements. Although World Copper believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as: “believes”, “expects”, “anticipates”, “intends”, “estimates”, “plans”, “may”, “should”, “would”, “will”, “potential”, “scheduled” or variations of such words and phrases and similar expressions, which, by their nature, refer to future events or results that may, could, would, might or will occur or be taken or achieved. In making the forward-looking statements in this news release, World Copper has applied several material assumptions, including without limitation,, market fundamentals will result in sustained copper demand and prices, the receipt of any necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals in connection with the future development of World Copper’s Chilean projects in a timely manner, including the Escalones Project and the Cristal Project, the availability of financing on suitable terms for the development, construction and continued operation of World Copper’s projects and its ability to comply with environmental, health and safety laws.
Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of World Copper to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such risks and other factors include, among others, operating and technical difficulties in connection with mineral exploration and development activities, actual results of exploration activities, including on the Escalones Project and the Cristal Project, the estimation or realization of mineral reserves and mineral resources, the fact that World Copper’s interests in the Cristal Project and the Escalones exploitation concessions are options only and there is no guarantee that such interests, if earned, will be certain, the timing and amount of estimated future production, the costs of production, capital expenditures, the costs and timing of the development of new deposits, requirements for additional capital, future prices of copper, changes in general economic conditions, changes in the financial markets and in the demand and market price for commodities, lack of investor interest in future financings, accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry, delays in obtaining governmental approvals, permits or financing or in the completion of development or construction activities, risks relating to epidemics or pandemics such as COVID–19, including the impact of COVID–19 on World Copper’s business, financial condition and results of operations, changes in laws, regulations and policies affecting mining operations, title disputes, the inability of World Copper to obtain any necessary permits, consents, approvals or authorizations, the timing and possible outcome of any pending litigation, environmental issues and liabilities, and risks related to joint venture operations, and other risks and uncertainties disclosed in World Copper’s continuous disclosure documents. All of World Copper’s Canadian public disclosure filings may be accessed via www.sedar.com and readers are urged to review these materials, including the Escalones Technical Report and the technical report on the Cristal Project, when filed.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. World Copper does not undertake any obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements in this news release or incorporated by reference herein, except as otherwise required by law.
