TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Project developer Copper Fox Metals on Monday said it has filed a National Instrument 43-101-compliant technical report with Canadian securities administrators for the Schaft Creek deposit, in British Columbia, and had handed a copy of the report to diversified miner Teck Resources to review.

Copper Fox said Teck is currently reviewing the feasibility study and is discussing with the company the earn-back options available to it under the Teck option agreement inked on January 1, 2002.

"The filing of the positive feasibility study and commencement of our discussions with Teck related to its earn-back rights are significant milestones for the Schaft Creek project. We look forward to these discussions regarding Teck's possible future involvement in the Schaft Creek project,” Copper Fox CEO Elmer Stewart said in a statement.

He added that while discussions took place, the company would continue its work on the project toward completion of the environmental assessment application and establishing the work programmes to assess the economic benefit to the Schaft Creek project of additional drilling to upgrade the inferred resources located within the pit shell as well as additional metallurgical testwork to increase metal recoveries.

The company noted that there could be no assurance at this point that the discussions would lead to Teck exercising any of its earn-back options, nor that the company and Teck would enter into a definitive joint venture agreement as contemplated under the Teck option agreement.

The feasibility study, which built on four years of metallurgical and geotechnical work, provides for an openpit mining operation that would process 130 000 t/d over a 21-year mine life, producing an estimated 4.88-billion pounds of copper, 4.21-million ounces of gold, 25.1-million ounces of silver and 214.92-million pounds of molybdenum.

The company’s TSX-V-listed stock closed at 85 Canadian cents apiece.