Gunnison Copper Corp (TSX:GCU, OTCQB:GCUMF) senior vice president of operations Robert Winton joined Proactive to discuss the company’s milestone first production at the Johnson Camp mine.
Winton explained that mining at Johnson Camp began in January, followed by the plant start-up in July.
He noted that Gunnison Copper is focused on delivering grade one copper into the U.S. supply chain, working alongside partners such as Newton and Rio Tinto.
He added that support from the Department of Energy has been key, with the company receiving a grant earlier this year to help strengthen domestic supply of critical minerals.
Proactive: Welcome back inside our newsroom. Joining me now is Robert Winton, Senior Vice President of Operations for Gunnison Copper Corp. Robert, it’s great to see you again. How are you?
Robert Winton: I’m doing very well. Great to see you again, and welcome to this fine September morning.
We’ve got some big news from the company. You’ve achieved first production at Johnson Camp mine. We hinted before that this was approaching, and now it’s happened. Take us through what’s going on.
Absolutely. We began mining in January. In July, we turned on our solvent extraction electrowinning plant, which is key to producing copper. Last time we spoke, I promised I’d have some copper cathode in my background, and behind me is one of our sheets pulled last week. We’ve got pure copper being produced in southeast Arizona at Gunnison Copper. Exciting times.
What does this mean for the company, and also for the “Made in America” story?
Gunnison Copper is a made in America story. We are mining ore in southeast Arizona and producing grade one finished copper for the U.S. supply chain, with support from our partners Newton and Rio Tinto. This is critical for the Department of Energy and Department of Defense.
You mentioned partnerships. Is this a good example of the supply chain in action?
Yes. The key to American copper is partnerships. We need new technologies and ore from states like Arizona, Michigan, and Nevada. Those partnerships allow us to deliver copper, and with that comes made in America copper for the supply chain.
And government support has been important too?
Yes. The Department of Energy gave us a grant earlier this year to support U.S. copper production. We look to monetize that as we move into Q4. Partnerships with government are critical, and they understand the importance of copper.
How about safety?
Safety is paramount. We want employees to go home better than when they arrived. We’ve gone over 11 years without a lost time injury, and first aids are significantly lower. Our team and partners have worked hard to ensure safety remains central to production.
What’s next for the coming months?
We produced over 200,000 pounds of copper last week. We’ll deliver that to the domestic market in the next couple of weeks. From there it’s a ramp-up story. Oxide production will increase, and by late September we’ll bring new time copper production into play, with both fully operating by Q4.
And the flagship Gunnison project?
The value of the company is in that billion-pound copper producer. We’re finishing high-value programs started earlier this year, and we’ve added a preliminary assessment. That will be released early in 2026 to highlight economic improvements and demonstrate the project’s viability.
Congratulations on this milestone.
Huge milestone for our partners and stakeholders, and a proud moment for our entire team. Thank you, for letting us share this.
Quotes have been lightly edited for clarity and style