Schaft Creek PEA: $842M NPV, 12.9% IRR
Copper Fox Metals Inc.'s Schaft Creek in British Columbia, Canada has a Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) outlining an after-tax NPV of $842M, an after-tax IRR of 12.9%, and initial capital of $2.65B. The proposed mine plan runs 21 years.
Copper Fox Metals Inc.'s Schaft Creek has reported Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) results for the copper project in British Columbia, Canada. The study headlines an after-tax net present value of $842M at a 8% discount rate. It reflects Copper Fox Metals Inc.'s (CUU.V) latest disclosed economics for the asset.
Economics. The after-tax NPV is $842M using a 8% discount rate. After-tax IRR is 12.9%. Initial capital expenditure is estimated at $2.65B, with life-of-mine sustaining capital of $849M. The study models a payback period of 4.8 years. All-in sustaining costs are pegged at 1.18 USD/lb. Economics are based on PEA Metal Prices: $3.25/lb Cu, $1,500/oz Au, $10.00/lb Mo, $20.00/oz Ag.
Production and mine plan. The project envisions an open-pit operation. Life of mine is 21 years. The open-pit strip ratio is 1:1.
Resources and ownership. Mineral resources: Measured & Indicated comprise 80% of total mineral resources. The company holds a 25% interest in the project.
These figures are extracted from Copper Fox Metals Inc.'s technical disclosures and reflect the most recent PEA on file. Compare this project against other developers and producers in our project economics database, and always verify the numbers against the original technical report before making any investment decision.
Our Analysis
- IRR after-tax
- 12.9%
higher than 12% of 33 projects we track
- NPV after-tax
- $842M
higher than 50% of 42 projects we track
- Initial capex
- $2.65B
315% of NPV
costlier than 78% of 45 projects we track
- Payback
- 4.8yrs
slower than 84% of 32 projects we track
- Mine life
- 21yrs
- Discount rate
- 8%
- Study price assumption
- PEA Metal Prices: $3.25/lb Cu, $1,500/oz Au, $10.00/lb Mo, $20.00/oz Ag
- Spot copper today
- $6.58/lb
A US$302M company is proposing to spend US$2.65B. That ratio, roughly 8.8x the entire market capitalisation, is the fact that decides this project, and it is not a financing problem that a good story can paper over. The after-tax IRR of 12.9% sits below the roughly 15% developers typically need to attract project finance, and it ranks higher than only 12% of the 33 copper projects we track. Payback of 4.8 years is longer than all but 16% of the 32 peers we measure. On the numbers as published, this does not clear the practical hurdle.
The study itself is a PEA, a scoping-level exercise that may lean on inferred material and whose capital estimate carries a plus or minus 50% band. So the US$2.65B build cost, already 315% of the US$842M after-tax NPV, is a preliminary figure that could move materially in either direction, and the confidence we can place in any of it is limited until a feasibility study lands. British Columbia is a settled, mining-friendly jurisdiction, which helps on permitting and execution risk, but it does not touch the funding arithmetic.
What would change the answer? A higher copper price is the obvious lever: the study assumed US$3.25/lb against a live spot of US$6.58/lb, so the economics as modelled may understate the current market. A smaller initial scope, or a partner to carry the bulk of the build, would address the equity gap directly. The company's five-project portfolio gives it more optionality than a single-asset developer, but optionality is not capital. The question that settles this: can a US$302M company fund a US$2.65B build without diluting its shareholders into irrelevance?
Our take, benchmarked against the project economics in the Mining Stocks database. Figures are estimates drawn from company technical reports — not investment advice; always verify against the source filing.
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