FireFly Metals Ltd has completed a Preliminary Economic Assessment for the Green Bay Copper-Gold Project in Canada, delivering an after-tax net present value of approximately A$2.2 billion and an internal rate of return of 42% for its 1.8 million tonnes per annum base case.

The base case study outlines an initial 32-year mine life requiring A$513 million in initial capital, net of refundable Canadian tax credits. The scenario targets average annual production of 50,000 tonnes of copper equivalent over a 14-year steady-state period, peaking at 60,000 tonnes annually, with post-tax free cash flow estimated at approximately A$290 million per year.

A larger alternative assessing a 4.6 million tonnes per annum operation delivered an after-tax net present value of approximately A$3.0 billion and a 40% internal rate of return over an initial 22-year mine life. That upscaled option requires A$476 million in expansion capital, which the company expects to fund primarily from base case cash flows, and projects average annual production of approximately 90,000 tonnes of copper equivalent.

The economic assessment is underpinned by a revised independent mineral resource update. Total measured and indicated resources increased to 60.2 million tonnes at 2.4% copper equivalent, compared with 50.4 million tonnes at 2.0% copper equivalent in the previous estimate. Within that total, the high-grade core zone expanded to 18.1 million tonnes at 4.3% copper equivalent in the measured and indicated category, up from the previous 8.8 million tonnes. Measured and indicated material now accounts for 77% of the Ming deposit resource.

“The findings of the economic study prove that Green Bay is one of the best undeveloped copper projects in the world based on a range of key metrics, ranging from scale and production profile through to financial returns and growth.”

“The base case of 50,000t a year generates strong returns and we have a clear pathway to double that. And that is before allowing for the growth we aim to unlock through our ongoing drilling programs in the high-grade areas of the mine and the highly prospective regional exploration program now cranking up.”
— Steve Parsons, Managing Director

FireFly acquired the project in October 2023 and has since completed 197,714 metres of underground diamond drilling at the Ming Mine. Backed by existing cash and liquid investments of A$183 million alongside a concurrent A$180 million equity raising, the company has commenced work on a feasibility study.

The feasibility study is scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2027, with a final investment decision and construction targeted for the first half of 2027. Regulatory approvals are already in place to begin early works ahead of the final investment decision, keeping the project on track for first concentrate production in mid-2029.

Read the full announcement: Green Bay PEA confirms Scale, Long Life and Strong Returns