The headline refers to the Vicuña district in the Andes, a major copper-gold-silver mineral resource project centered on Filo del Sol and Josemaria—not a producing mine. The “largest” or “most significant in 30 years” description is a company-framed comparison, and the widely repeated May 2025 resource figures have since been superseded by an update announced in February 2026.
What is the Vicuña discovery?
Vicuña is a mineral district made up of the Filo del Sol and Josemaria projects. Lundin Mining and BHP formed a 50/50 arrangement in January 2025 through Vicuña Corp. Josemaria is in Argentina; Filo del Sol spans Argentina and Chile. The district is in San Juan, Argentina, and the adjoining Argentina–Chile border region, according to Lundin Mining’s announcement of the arrangement and its May 2025 presentation.
The company describes the deposit as a high-sulphidation epithermal copper-gold-silver deposit associated with a large porphyry system. In practical terms, the headline concerns a large mineral resource being evaluated for development, not metal already extracted or ready for sale.
How solid is the “largest in 30 years” claim?
Lundin Mining’s May 2025 presentation called Vicuña the most significant greenfield mineral discovery in the last 30 years, saying the comparison was based on resource information from S&P Capital IQ. That is the company’s stated comparison, not an independently established universal ranking in the materials available. Sprott repeated the “more than 30 years” characterization in an April 23, 2026 item, but repeating the claim does not make it a regulator-issued or independently verified ranking.
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The wording also varies: coverage has described Vicuña as the largest greenfield copper discovery, while the headline groups copper, gold and silver. Readers should treat “largest” as shorthand for a company-highlighted discovery comparison, not proof that it is the largest deposit under every possible measure.
What the May 2025 resource estimate reported
Buenos Aires Herald reported the following Vicuña district estimates in May 2025. They are historical resource figures, not current totals: Lundin Mining’s 2025 year-end filing says a February 16, 2026 integrated technical study included an updated mineral resource and superseded the 2025 technical report/resource estimate. The filing passages cited here confirm the update but do not provide the revised quantities.
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| Metal | Measured and indicated resource (May 2025) | Inferred resource (May 2025) |
|---|---|---|
| Copper | 13 million tonnes | 25 million tonnes |
| Gold | 32 million ounces | 49 million ounces |
| Silver | 659 million ounces | 808 million ounces |
These figures were reported by Buenos Aires Herald on May 6, 2025. The same report gave average grades for the May 2025 estimate: measured and indicated resources averaged 0.35% copper, 0.27 grams of gold per tonne and 5.6 grams of silver per tonne; inferred resources averaged 0.32% copper, 0.19 grams of gold per tonne and 3.2 grams of silver per tonne. Those grades are also historical and superseded.
Resources are not reserves
Measured, indicated and inferred are mineral-resource categories; they describe confidence in geological estimates. They do not establish that all the metal can be mined profitably. A resource estimate is not the same thing as a reserve, a final investment decision, a built mine or actual production. Economic recoverability depends on additional technical, financial, regulatory and operating considerations.
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Where development stands—and what remains uncertain
A May 2025 report described Josemaria as pre-construction and outlined a proposed conventional open-pit operation above 4,000 metres in elevation, with crushing, grinding, flotation and filtration to produce copper concentrate. At that time, the reported company estimates included a 19-year operating life and a three-year construction period. These were historical estimates, not a verified current schedule.
Lundin Mining’s February 2026 filing says an integrated technical study and updated resource were announced on February 16, 2026. It describes the project’s potential to rank among the world’s five largest copper, gold and silver mines. “Potential” matters: the statement is about a possible future operation, not a claim that Vicuña has been built or is producing. The sources cited here do not establish current permitting status, a construction sanction or a production date.
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Why the discovery matters to investors and readers
A large resource can make a project strategically important, but it does not by itself determine future output, costs, profitability or the value of either company’s shares. Vicuña remains a development proposition whose scale, economics and timing depend on later project decisions and updated technical information. The 2025 numbers should therefore be read as a dated snapshot, not as current production or a forecast of recoverable metal.
In a May 2025 report, Vicuña Corp. general manager Dave Dicaire called the resource estimate “a key milestone” toward developing an integrated project. Lundin Mining president and CEO Jack Lundin described Filo del Sol as one of the most significant deposit discoveries of the last 30 years. Both comments are company executives’ views, not independent assessments.
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