Cyprium Metals (ASX: CYM) says commissioning at Pad 6 of the Nifty Copper Complex has reached target injection rates and volumes, with copper recovery per tonne of acid consumed in line with expected leach chemistry. The company has established 212 production and monitoring wells with associated piping and placed about 1.7 million tonnes of material into its near-term leachable inventory. Grade-control drilling from 24 wells reconciled within 5 percent of the copper grades in the existing resource block model, supporting its use for production planning. High-voltage power is now connected to the solvent extraction and electrowinning plant’s electrical infrastructure and controls, with wet commissioning under way.
The company is using direct-injection leaching, delivering acid solution under controlled pressure into selected zones within the existing heaps rather than relying on surface irrigation and gravity flow, aimed at improving contact with copper-bearing material including higher-grade zones deeper in the heaps. The established production area is expected to provide six to eight months of leaching activity, with additional blocks to be drilled and commissioned in sequence. Phase 1 is aimed at roughly 6,000 tonnes a year of cathode capacity, with a possible expansion toward 20,000 tonnes a year described as a capacity target rather than a production target.
The restart is backed by A$121 million in equity raisings, a refinanced US$27.3 million loan facility and A$68.5 million in cash at year end, per recent reporting on the company’s FY2026 annual report. The milestone is still commissioning, not production: the SXEW plant is substantially mechanically complete with dry commissioning and water testing under way, but wet commissioning, final energisation and operational readiness remain before saleable cathode can flow. Restarting leach on 17-year-idle heaps carries the known hydrogeological risks of brownfield revivals: liner integrity, perched water and variable residual copper grades. If the December-quarter target holds, Nifty would return to cathode production for the first time since 2009.