Highland Copper has redesigned the Copperwood process flowsheet in conjunction with Glencore Technology, achieving higher recoveries, lower costs, and a leaner, more efficient flowsheet.
In Q1 2025, working with Base Metallurgical Laboratories Ltd. and DRA Americas Inc., Highland Copper launched a comprehensive metallurgical test program that included pilot trials of the Jameson Cell and IsaMill™ to optimise the plant design.
The redesigned process configuration, incorporating Jameson Cell ultrafine flotation technology, is expected to lift copper recovery to 87.6% while maintaining a 25% copper final concentrate grade.
These gains are supported by reduced operating costs, lower power consumption, and a simplified plant design that lowers capital intensity, footprint, and environmental impact.
Reflecting on the Copperwood test work, Glencore Technology Metallurgist Chad Rogers pointed to the Jameson Cell’s standout performance:
“With Copperwood, metallurgical success hinged on a sufficiently fine grind to fully liberate the valuable minerals. Testwork showed the Jameson Cell is a great fit for recovering these liberated ultrafines. The flowsheet includes a rougher-scalper Jameson Cell, which can bank a portion of the valuable minerals to final concentrate directly after primary milling. A smart flowsheet choice with a big payoff.”
The IsaMill™ pilot tests achieved the ultrafine grind targets required in the MF2 circuit for liberation. The Jameson Cell complemented this with faster flotation kinetics and higher selectivity, lowering rougher tailings grade to 0.30% copper and lifting rougher concentrate grades to 5.4% copper.
This combination has enabled Highland Copper to de-risk the flowsheet, improve project economics, and advance toward construction with greater confidence—backed by Glencore Technology’s performance guarantee on recovery and grade.
Dr Wynand van Dyk, Project Director for the Copperwood project, commented:
“Through the integration of Glencore Technology such as the Jameson Cell and IsaMill™, we have enhanced copper recovery while also streamlining the overall plant design. Partnering with Glencore Technology, whose equipment has a proven record of successful installations worldwide, provides us with the confidence that the redesigned flowsheet will deliver on both performance and reliability as we advance toward construction and long-term success.”
Glencore Technology provides world-leading mineral processing equipment and engineering services to improve leaching, smelting, refining, and concentrator operations worldwide. Our solutions span grinding, flotation, leaching, smelting, and refining, supporting commodities including copper, gold, nickel, silver, iron ore, and PGMs. We deliver sustainable technologies that reduce costs, boost efficiency, and extend plant life, backed by global technical support, engineering, and aftermarket services to ensure reliable production.
