Freeport to acquire Yandera copper project in PNG

Star Mountains property. (Image courtesy of Freeport Resources.)

Canada’s Freeport Resources (TSX-V: FRI) is expanding its portfolio in Papua New Guinea, with the planned acquisition of the Yandera copper project.

The company has inked a definitive share purchase agreement to issue 20 million shares to privately-held Carpo Resources for its Era Resources and Yandera project.

The move follows Freeport’s acquisition of the Star Mountains copper-gold project in the Western Province of PNG, 25km from Ok Tedi.

The Vancouver-based junior noted the Yandera transaction did “not constitute a fundamental acquisition”. For that reason, the company does not expect to assume any material liabilities or devote the majority of its working capital or resources to the development of Carpo or Yandera.

Based on a 2017 prefeasibility study on Yandera, the asset has measured and indicated resources of 727 million tonnes at 0.39% copper-equivalent, an inferred 231Mt million tonnes at 0.32% Cu-eq and probable reserves of 541Mt grading 0.39% Cu-eq.

Freeport’s other projects are all in Canada — the Red Rose tungsten-gold-copper project in British Columbia and Hutton garnet sand in Labrador.