The PEA reduced the price tag for the copper-molybdenum-gold-silver project in British Columbia from US$3.26 billion to $2.65 billion on a 100% basis, Copper Fox said.
The study improved the internal rate of return compared with a 2013 feasibility study but the figure came in relatively low at 12.9% after-tax.
It put the after-tax NPV8 at $842.1 million.
Copper Fox has a 25% carried interest in Schaft Creek as Teck opted back in to the project in 2013, after Copper Fox delivered a feasibility study which had outlined an after-tax NPV8 of $67 million and 8.3% IRR.
The 2013 study had used metal prices of $3.25/lb copper, $1,445/oz gold, $27.45/oz silver and $14.64/lb molybdenum.
The new study also looked at a circa 133,000 tonne per day operation and outlined a 21-year minelife producing about 5 billion pounds or 2.3 million tonnes of copper, 3.7 million ounces of gold, 226Mlb molybdenum and 16.4Moz of silver in concentrate.
It assumed metal prices of $3.25/lb copper, $1,500/oz gold, $10/lb molybdenum and $20/oz silver.
Key changes in the 2021 study included a reduced strip ratio, relocating the milling facility closer to the pit and a lower LOM average operating cost per tonne processed from $13.25/t to $8.66/t.
"The significantly higher investment returns, resulting in part from project enhancements developed over the past two years, and remaining resources in the deposit on completion of the first 21 years of mining, provides a compelling view of the Schaft Creek project's financial potential," Stewart said.
The study recommended a C$23 million work programme to advance Schaft Creek to prefeasibility.
Copper Fox also has the Van Dyke copper project in Arizona, where it's started a desktop study to follow on from a PEA announced in January.
It had C$1.2 million in cash at April 30 then received more than $1.9 million through the exercise of warrants.
Copper Fox shares (TSXV: CUU) closed unchanged at 32.5c yesterday, near the middle of a one-year range, capitalising it at $170 million (US$133 million).
