Marimaca Copper: US$165.6 Million Cash & Conservative Pricing Support 2026 FID Target

• Marimaca Copper is advancing its Marimaca Oxide Deposit toward a final investment decision (FID) by the end of 2026, supported by US$165.6 million in cash and no debt following the C$409 million Global Offering completed earlier this year.
• The company applies a $4.50 per pound long-term copper price across all planning decisions, a figure below the current spot price of approximately $6.00 per pound, with the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) base case producing a post-tax Net Present Value at an 8% discount rate (NPV8%) of US$709 million and an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 31% at $4.30 per pound.
• Credit-approved debt term sheets are targeted by the third quarter of 2026, with shareholder equity deployed before construction debt is drawn.
• The Marimaca Oxide Deposit targets 50,000 tonnes of copper cathode per year at an initial capital cost of US$587 million, translating to a capital intensity of US$11,700 per tonne of copper production capacity, a figure the company has described as industry-leading.
• A 100,000-metre drill program at Pampa Medina in 2026 targets near-term oxide expansion to 70,000 to 75,000 tonnes of combined cathode output per annum, with a longer-term sulphide system that the company has identified as a tier-one discovery opportunity.

Marimaca Enters 2026 Fully Funded & Permitted After Completing C$409 Million Global Offering

Marimaca Copper holds US$165.6 million in cash and carries no debt following the completion of its C$409 million Global Offering, which comprised a $137 million treasury raise at $10.00 per share and a $273 million secondary offering that reduced Greenstone Resources' position in the company to 6.4%. The company has completed a definitive feasibility study (DFS) and received its Resolución de Calificación Ambiental (RCA), Chile's primary environmental approval, in November. Marimaca has also added Josh Watson as Project Director, bringing over 20 years of experience delivering complex, multi-billion-dollar mining projects across Teck, Barrick, Vale, and Rio Tinto.

The company's focus is advancing all project milestones and beginning early works on long lead items in preparation for the Final Investment Decision (FID).

Planning at $4.50/lb While Copper Trades Near $6.00: - What the Numbers Show

Marimaca applies a long-term copper price of $4.50 per pound across all project planning and decision-making, below the current spot price of approximately $6.00 per pound. The DFS base case was prepared at $4.30 per pound, delivering a post-tax Net Present Value at an 8% discount rate (NPV8%) of US$709 million and an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 31%. At $5.05 per pound - the three-month COMEX average used in the DFS sensitivity - the post-tax NPV8% rises to US$1.1 billion with a 39% IRR.

The DFS also confirms a 13-year mine life with a steady-state production target of 50,000 tonnes of copper cathode per year at an initial capital cost of US$587 million, translating to a capital intensity of US$11,700 per tonne of annual production capacity, and the life-of-mine strip ratio is 0.8:1. Steady-state all-in sustaining costs (AISC) are estimated at US$2.09 per pound, with a life-of-mine AISC of US$2.29 per pound.

Director and Chief Executive Officer of Marimaca Copper, Hayden Locke, described the pricing rationale:

"In fact our DFS was done at $430 and our current thinking is we're running all of our decisions at $450. I think we ran a sensitivity to $5 and our IRR was roughly 40%. Our post tax NPV8% on just the reserve was well over a billion US dollars. So I mean at $6 it looks incredible"

Workstreams Underway as Marimaca Advances Toward End-of-2026 FID

Marimaca is advancing detailed design and engineering with the 2025 DFS , with budget quotes obtained for 80% of mechanical equipment. Capital cost estimates are prepared by Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering (AACE) Class 3 guidelines with a contingency of 10% applied on direct and indirect capital costs. Site early works pre-FID have been identified for 2026, and long-lead items with delivery times of more than 50 weeks are to be secured. Debt financing discussions are underway, with expressions of interest submitted to lenders. The objective is to receive credit-approved debt term sheets by the third quarter. 

Locke explained the timing:

"Our objective is to have credit approved term sheets by the third quarter. There's no real rush considering we're looking to kick off our construction in early 2027 and we're going to have to spend our equity first anyway."

The company has indicated a preference for a single source financing solution and a cautious debt-to-equity ratio.  A 100,000-metre drill program at Pampa Medina is underway in 2026, targeting expansion of the oxide resource and establishment of a broad-based inferred resource on the sulphide target. A Marimaca Oxide Deposit (MOD) sulphide target test program is also underway. The board will approve a FID and project sanctioning at the end of 2026, with full construction targeted to commence in early 2027. 

On water supply, the project has secured recycled seawater from the Bay of Mejillones, sourced from several large thermoelectric plants that discharge water at 10 to 12 degrees Celsius above ambient ocean temperature - an approach that requires no use of continental or fresh water and is relevant to lenders applying environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria.

Pampa Medina Drilling Targets Production Growth Beyond the MOD Base Case

Pampa Medina sits approximately 25 kilometres from the planned Marimaca Oxide Deposit processing plant. Marimaca's internal assessment of the shallow oxide resource indicates it could deliver an additional 20,000 to 25,000 tonnes of cathode production per year for at least 10 years, increasing combined output from the 50,000-tonne MOD base case to between 70,000 and 75,000 tonnes per annum. The proximity between the two deposits has been identified as a factor that supports potential shared infrastructure, noting the possibility of heap leech and ship the pregnant leech solution to MOD for converting into cathodes.

The area of interest defined by drilling now extends 3 kilometres by 2 kilometres. The most recent step-out drilling has returned high-grade copper and silver intersections more than 600 metres from previous drilling, with one hole intersecting 74 metres of 1.21% copper and 7.9 grams per tonne silver, including 12 metres of 2.07% copper and 17.2 grams per tonne silver. A second hole intersected 38 metres of 1.43% copper and 11.8 grams per tonne silver. Elevated silver grades have been identified across both oxide and sulphide zones and are correlated with copper grade. Silver by-products are common in Chilean manto-type deposits, including the nearby Mantos Blancos and Cachorro deposits.

The deeper sulphide target remains at an earlier stage of investigation. Drilling has intersected chalcopyrite and bornite mineralization. A 100,000-metre drill program is underway at Pampa Medina in 2026, and Marimaca has described the exploration team's thesis as intact.

Pre-FID Considerations: Financing, Cost Estimates & Permitting

The terms of any construction financing package - including the mix of debt instruments and the debt-to-equity ratio - have not yet been finalised. The company intends to be cautious with its debt levels given that it is a single-asset, pre-production company undertaking its first build. The initial pre-production capital estimate of US$587 with a contingency of 10% applied on direct and indirect capital costs, carrying an accuracy range of -20% to +25% at this stage of engineering.

The RCA has been secured and the company advances in its next phase of permitting activities, known as the sectorial permits - auxiliary permits required for various stages of construction and operation.

The Investment Thesis for Marimaca Copper

• Marimaca Copper has completed the definitive feasibility study, secured environmental approval, and holds US$165.6 million in cash with no debt on the balance sheet, with debt financing terms, sectorial permits, and engineering maturity the remaining requirements before a final investment decision.
• The definitive feasibility study confirms 50,000 tonnes of copper cathode per year at a pre-production capital cost of US$587 million, capital intensity of US$11,700 per tonne, post-tax net present value at an 8% discount rate of US$709 million and internal rate of return of 31% at $4.30 per pound, rising to US$1.1 billion and 39% at $5.05 per pound, against a planning price of $4.50 per pound and a current spot of approximately $6.00 per pound.
• Steady-state all-in sustaining costs of US$2.09 per pound, life-of-mine all-in sustaining costs of US$2.29 per pound, and a 0.8:1 strip ratio across a 13-year mine life.
• Environmental approval removes the primary permitting gate, with sectorial permits the remaining requirement being progressed in line with the master schedule.
• Pampa Medina oxide expansion targets 20,000 to 25,000 additional tonnes of cathode per year for at least 10 years, with step-out drilling returning 74 metres of 1.21% copper with silver credits more than 600 metres from previous drilling, a 100,000-metre drill program underway in 2026, and recycled seawater already secured from the Bay of Mejillones.

With US$165.6 million in cash, no debt, secured environmental approval, and a conservative copper price applied across all planning decisions, Marimaca has outlined a defined set of milestones for investors to track through to the end-of-2026 final investment decision. The third quarter of 2026 debt term sheet target is the most concrete near-term milestone.

TL;DR

Marimaca Copper holds US$165.6 million in cash with no debt, has a completed DFS, and secured environmental approval, with an FID targeted by the end of 2026. The company applies a $4.50 per pound long-term copper price across all planning decisions despite copper trading just under $6 per pound, with the DFS base case producing a post-tax NPV8% of US$709 million and an IRR of 31% at $4.30 per pound. The third quarter of 2026 debt term sheet is the critical near-term milestone. A 100,000-metre drill program is underway at Pampa Medina in 2026, targeting near-term oxide expansion to 70,000 to 75,000 tonnes of combined cathode output per annum, with a longer-term sulphide tier-one thesis subject to ongoing drilling.

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