Why miners are moving 'twice as much material' to produce copper

Copper prices are heading up due to increased demand from energy transition and declining grades at existing mines, said Nolan Peterson, CEO of World Copper. On Friday Peterson recorded Kitco Roundtable with Kitco correspondent Paul Harris and Mining Audiences Manager Michael McCrae. World Copper is a copper-focused exploration company operating within Chile. "The average head grade of copper mines worldwide has dropped from about 1.6% to below 1% now," said Peterson. "That's been a steady decline over the last 30 years. [It] doesn't seem like a lot when you think about it, but you're basically moving twice as much material now."