BINGHAM CANYON COPPER MINE, UT, USA

Located near Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, Bingham Canyon celebrated its 100th anniversary in June 2003. The Bingham Canyon mine, Copperton concentrator and Garfield smelter comprise one of the largest and most up-to-date integrated copper operations in the world: major investments during the past 15 years have ensured economically and environmentally sound operation. Cumulative copper output is now about 15Mt, more than any other mine.

For much of its life, Bingham Canyon was owned by Kennecott Copper Corp. However, during the post-1973 oil crisis shake-out, the company was acquired by British Petroleum, then sold on to Rio Tinto, which operates Bingham Canyon through its 100% subsidiary, Kennecott Utah Copper Corp. The facilities employ about 1,400 people.

In early 2005, Rio Tinto committed $170 million to the East 1 pushback project, which will extend the life of the open pit at Bingham Canyon until 2017. Various open-pit and underground alternatives will also be considered in relation to development of the mine after that.

(Source: mining-technology.com)

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