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The Money Desk · Blog
Re:

Is Argentina’s New Copper, Gold and Silver Discovery Really Worth $337 Billion?

Vicuña spans Argentina and Chile and holds vast reported resources. Lundin's preliminary study estimates $9.5 billion base-case NPV—not a verified $337 billion deposit value.
From TheFinanceBase Team3 min to read
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No company-reported valuation supports the $337 billion claim. Lundin Mining’s disclosures describe enormous mineral resources in the Vicuña district, which includes Filo del Sol and Josemaria across Argentina and Chile. They report resource estimates and preliminary, assumption-dependent project economics—not a $337 billion price tag for the deposits.

What was discovered, and where?

The headline refers to the Vicuña district, which includes the Filo del Sol and Josemaria deposits. The district straddles Argentina and Chile; it is not one newly discovered deposit located entirely within Argentina. Vicuña is a 50:50 joint venture between Lundin Mining and BHP Canada. Lundin’s description of the joint venture identifies the partnership and the cross-border project. The word “new” also needs context: the 2025 disclosure updated the district’s resource estimate rather than announcing that all of its deposits had just been found.

How much metal is in the reported resources?

Lundin Mining’s resource estimate, effective April 15, 2025, reports contained metal on a 100% project basis. Its measured and indicated categories are distinct from its inferred category:

Resource category Copper Gold Silver
Measured and indicated 13 million tonnes 32 million ounces 659 million ounces
Inferred 25 million tonnes 49 million ounces 808 million ounces

These are estimates of metal contained in mineral resources, not quantities that a mine has recovered or can necessarily recover. The figures cover the project at 100%, not Lundin’s 50% ownership share. The 2025 resource release sets out the estimate and its effective date.

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Why $337 billion is not an established deposit value

The October 2025 article matching the headline states $337 billion but gives no calculation or valuation method. The project owner’s disclosures reviewed do not call Vicuña worth that amount. A gross-metal calculation based on contained quantities and assumed market prices would not establish what the project is worth: it would not account for whether the metal can be mined and recovered, the costs and timing of development, or the risks of a project that has not begun operating.

It is also important to distinguish mineral resources from mineral reserves. Resources are estimates classified by confidence; they are not automatically economically mineable. Lundin cautions that resources that are not reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. The company’s assessment is preliminary, includes inferred resources, and does not guarantee that the project will be built or produce as modeled. Lundin’s project disclosure describes those limitations.

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What the project’s economic study actually estimates

In February 2026, Lundin reported an updated resource and a preliminary economic assessment with two modeled after-tax net present value (NPV) scenarios. NPV is a discounted estimate of a project’s potential future cash flows under stated assumptions; it is not the market value of all metal in the ground.

Study scenario After-tax NPV Assumed metal prices
Base case $9.5 billion $4.60 per pound copper; $3,300 per ounce gold; $40 per ounce silver
Company’s spot-price scenario $28.8 billion $6.00 per pound copper; $5,000 per ounce gold; $80 per ounce silver

Both are conditional model outputs, not guaranteed proceeds or a valuation of the contained metal. The second figure is specifically the company’s scenario using its stated spot-price assumptions, not an independent appraisal. Lundin’s 2026 assessment disclosure provides the assumptions and results.

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What could happen next?

The 2026 study proposes staged development, with initial nameplate processing capacity of 175,000 tonnes per day and possible expansion. That is a study concept, not current capacity, actual production, or a construction commitment. Lundin says Vicuña has no current operations. Turning the resource into a producing mine would depend on further study, investment and development, as well as the project’s ability to move from resource estimates to economically viable reserves.

Lundin’s CEO Jack Lundin called Filo del Sol “one of the most significant greenfield discoveries in the last 30 years.” That is the company’s characterization, not an independently established ranking. The scale of the resource is substantial, but it does not make the $337 billion figure a verified project value.

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