Teck Resources announced on May 12 the launch of its Zinc Satellite initiative aimed at deriving more value from its portfolio of zinc assets in the Americas and Australia by exploring and assessing nearby deposits. The company deems the five targeted deposits as substantial, the majority of which are near some of its own existing facilities.  

Teck views zinc as a strategic option for the current market, with president and CEO Don Lindsay saying that “the market outlook for zinc is strong, due to declining production from existing primary zinc mines, underinvestment in global exploration for zinc and long-term demand driven by decarbonization, which is galvanized steel-intensive.”

The initiative follows Teck’s Project Satellite, launched in 2017, which the company says successfully grew the value of its base metals assets targeted by the program. Project Satellite came to life originally as part of the company’s copper growth strategy, and, according to Teck, the expertise it has yielded will be used to leverage the new project.

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The five deposits targeted by the new initiative are Aktigiruq, Anarraaq and Su-Lik in Alaska, all of which are within 20 kilometres of Teck’s existing Red Dog Operation; Cirque in British Columbia, of which Teck owns 50 per cent in a shared venture with Korea Zinc and has ready access to Teck’s smelting and refining infrastructure; and Teena in Australia’s Northern Territory, located near Glencore’s McArthur River operation.  

According to Teck, these five sites are among the world’s 25 largest undeveloped zinc deposits. The company already holds the crown for largest zinc miner globally thanks to its Red Dog operation in Alaska and its Antamina mine in Peru. With Red Dog expected to remain in operation until 2031, new deposits around the site could feed its mill with ore well past the current life-of-mine expectation.

According to Lindsay, Zinc Satellite is Teck’s approach to “making prudent investments to advance each asset by identifying pragmatic development options and paths to value. Value could ultimately be realized through a standalone investment, a partnership or other transaction.” The company declined to comment on when first results and insights are expected from the initiative.