Categories: Mining Stocks
Topics: Copper Stocks

Gunnison Copper (TSX: GCU)(OTC: GCUMF) COO Robert Winton on Setting the Stage for a Transformational 2026 as First “Nuton-Powered” Copper Production Gets Underway

 

Gerardo Del Real: This is Gerardo Del Real with Resource Stock Digest. Joining me today is the COO of Gunnison Copper Corp. (TSX: GCU)(OTC: GCUMF) — Mr. Robert Winton. Rob, how are you this morning?

Robert Winton: I'm doing very well, Gerardo. How about yourself?

Gerardo Del Real: I am well. I would say, as busy as you are, but I don’t know if that’s true. You’ve had yourself a heck of a year — corporate-wise and catalyst-wise — with a lot of moving parts. 

We have record-high copper prices, gold at $4,200, and silver hitting brand-new all-time highs. And of those three metals, copper seems to be the one that, structurally speaking, has a lot of runway over the next several years.

Perfect timing for you to be repaying debt and announcing first copper production. I’ll leave it to you where you want to start but congrats on all those milestones. Big deals, perfect timing.

Robert Winton: Perfect timing indeed. We're hitting this market at a wonderful time. And for Gunnison Copper, it’s been a transformative week for us. 

As you mentioned, first copper production using the Nuton technology — so an operational milestone. And then, financially, being able to pay down that US$7.3 million non-convertible debt really deleverages our balance sheet and opens up the possibilities for an exciting 2026. Absolutely exciting and transformative.

A couple of big news releases both on that operational Nuton production and on the financial improvement, which is significant. A lot of behind-the-scenes work certainly goes into making that successful. 

And also this week, we found ourselves in The Wall Street Journal talking about copper, its transformative nature, and the work we're doing at Johnson Camp (JCM). So all in all, it's been a spectacular week here at Gunnison Copper.

Gerardo Del Real: I want to dive a bit more into the Nuton technology because we’re talking about a milestone coming after more than 30 years of research and development. Can you speak to the details of that and the implications moving forward?

Robert Winton: I’ll start with the implications. This really will transform the copper industry as we move forward. The Nuton technology allows us to avoid the older, conventional methods — the concentration of ore, the smelting, the refining — which all create significant challenges for the supply chain in being able to have saleable copper at your gate. 

What Nuton is doing is taking those sulfide minerals — these more complicated chalcopyrite-type mineralizations — and utilizing technology in a heap. They do this by using bacteria. We’re making that bacteria at Johnson Camp here in southeast Arizona, and we utilize it to get incredible recoveries on this sulfide mineralization up to 85%. And we're doing it in an incredibly responsible way, which is another key part of the story that sometimes doesn’t get the fanfare it should.

We’re significantly lowering carbon emissions, and even more importantly, we’re significantly lowering water use, which, in Arizona, is a hot topic at every coffee shop.

Gerardo Del Real: No doubt. I think it’s a path forward that every major and mid-tier producer has to be looking at now. For you to be at this stage and winding down the year with record-high copper prices couldn’t come at a better time.

Let’s talk about the debt repayment because I know that’s something the team has been keen to address and obviously opens doors moving forward.

Robert Winton: Absolutely. The core goal for management, certainly, as we sort of broke the world last year when we brought the Gunnison project into an open pit — that was November of last year — was to really change our market process and announce that the focus of 2025 was bringing this Nuton technology into production. Check mark.

The other big one was getting the balance sheet under control and into much better shape from a junior producer standpoint. That US$7.3 million debt was the only secured facility on the Gunnison operations. So this truly strengthens the balance sheet. And financial flexibility, as you mentioned, is critical as we scale operations through the start of 2026 and as we close out the year. 

Gerardo Del Real: Let’s talk about 2026. You’ve got the copper bull market behind you with definite tailwinds. How are you feeling about where copper is headed? And walk me through what 2026 should look like.

Robert Winton: Yes, there should be no stopping copper in 2026. We’ve finally recognized, as a society, the critical nature of copper and what it means to our growth as a nation and for the broader world.

Being able to supply pure copper cathode direct to market in the US supply chain is something Gunnison is proud of. We're the newest member of that exclusive club, and we're looking to get more members in that club as we move into the coming years.

But yes, 2026 is really about operational execution excellence. Get that financial discipline in place and become a meaningful contributor to the US domestic critical-mineral supply chain. That’s the story for next year and the milestones we’ll deliver. We'll be making production, delivering copper into the world, ramping up our process.

And critically, we’ll be taking the flagship Gunnison Copper Project to its next level. We’ll be doing significant drilling and metallurgical studies we’ve planned for 2026. This will really set up the organization to be transformational again.

This year has been transformational — and we have no designs on changing that for 2026.

Gerardo Del Real: Exciting times. Thank you so much, Rob. I want to wish you and the team all the best as we close out the year. Could not be more excited about 2026. Thank you very, very much.

Robert Winton: Thank you, Gerardo. And safe holidays to you as we close out this exciting year.

Gerardo Del Real: All right. Chat soon.

Robert Winton: Cheers.

Click here to see more from Gunnison Copper
 

The PEA is preliminary in nature and includes Inferred Mineral Resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves. There is no certainty that the conclusions reached in the PEA will be realized. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. For additional information on the Gunnison Project, including the PEA and mineral resource estimate, please refer to the Company's technical report entitled "Gunnison Project NI 43-101 Technical Report Preliminary Economic Assessment" dated effective November 1, 2024 and available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.

Dr. Stephen Twyerould, Fellow of AUSIMM, President and CEO of the Company is a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101. Dr. Twyerould has reviewed and is responsible for the technical information contained in this report.

Certain statements contained in this release constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Such forward-looking statements relate the completion of the Offering or any tranche thereof; the number of securities to be issued under the Offering and the gross proceeds received; the timing of the closing of the Offering; the payment of any finders fees and the form thereof; the use of net proceeds from the Offering; the intention to deploy the Nuton® technology at the Johnson Camp mine and future production therefrom; the continued funding of the stage 2 work program by Nuton; the details and expected results of the stage two work program; future production and production capacity from the Company's mineral projects; the results of the preliminary economic assessment on the Gunnison Project; and the exploration and development of the Company's mineral projects.

In certain cases, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might", "occur" or "be achieved" suggesting future outcomes, or other expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions, intentions or statements about future events or performance. Forward-looking information contained in this report is based on certain factors and assumptions regarding, among other things, the TSX approves the Offering, the timing of closing the Offering, Nuton will continue to fund the stage 2 work program, the availability of financing to continue as a going concern and implement the Company's operational plans, the estimation of mineral resources, the realization of resource and reserve estimates, copper and other metal prices, the timing and amount of future development expenditures, the estimation of initial and sustaining capital requirements, the estimation of labour and operating costs (including the price of acid), the availability of labour, material and acid supply, receipt of and compliance with necessary regulatory approvals and permits, the estimation of insurance coverage, and assumptions with respect to currency fluctuations, environmental risks, title disputes or claims, and other similar matters. While the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect.

Forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors include risks related to the Company not obtaining adequate financing to continue operations, Nuton failing to continue to fund the stage 2 work program, the breach of debt covenants, risks inherent in the construction and operation of mineral deposits, including risks relating to changes in project parameters as plans continue to be redefined including the possibility that mining operations may not be sustained at the Gunnison Copper Project, risks related to the delay in approval of work plans, variations in mineral resources and reserves, grade or recovery rates, risks relating to the ability to access infrastructure, risks relating to changes in copper and other commodity prices and the worldwide demand for and supply of copper and related products, risks related to increased competition in the market for copper and related products, risks related to current global financial conditions, risks related to current global financial conditions on the Company's business, uncertainties inherent in the estimation of mineral resources, access and supply risks, risks related to the ability to access acid supply on commercially reasonable terms, reliance on key personnel, operational risks inherent in the conduct of mining activities, including the risk of accidents, labour disputes, increases in capital and operating costs and the risk of delays or increased costs that might be encountered during the construction or mining process, regulatory risks including the risk that permits may not be obtained in a timely fashion or at all, financing, capitalization and liquidity risks, risks related to disputes concerning property titles and interests, environmental risks and the additional risks identified in the "Risk Factors" section of the Company's reports and filings with applicable Canadian securities regulators.

Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The forward-looking information is made as of the date of this report. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information.

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