VANCOUVER - Two of Canada's largest mining companies, Goldcorp and Teck Resources, say they're going to form a new joint venture to produce gold, copper and molybdenum from two mega projects in Chile.
Goldcorp (TSX:G) will contribute its El Morro project and Teck (TSX:TCK.B) will add its Relincho project to the new Project Corridor joint venture, which will be owned 50-50 by the two Vancouver-based companies.
They estimate the combined mine with have a 32-year lifespan and produce an average of 190,000 tonnes of copper and 315,000 ounces of gold annually over the first full decade.
The mines also have significant reserves of molybdenum, a base metal used in steel production.
The companies estimate the cost of bringing Project Corridor into production at US$3.5 billion, with the operation providing much of the additional funding required to construct future phases.
Previous estimates from several years ago had pegged the combined cost of the two standalone projects at US$8.4 billion.
