Washington, D.C., Nov. 03, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- America’s next big copper mine just got the green light. The way it got there says a lot about why there aren’t more of them.
Hudbay Minerals and Japan’s Mitsubishi have approved construction of Copper World, a $2.1 billion copper mine southeast of Tucson, Arizona. First production is targeted for the second half of 2029. The project is expected to create more than 1,000 construction jobs and about 500 permanent ones.
Here’s the catch. Hudbay redesigned the mine to sit on private land and its own mining claims, so it could avoid federal permits. It went through Arizona instead, winning key state approvals for air quality and groundwater protection.
The plan worked. But it comes with a limit. The approved plan runs about 15 years. Hudbay says an expanded version could run 37 years. That one would need Washington’s sign-off.
In a recently released free presentation, former White House and Federal Reserve advisor Jim Rickards says Copper World shows exactly what has been holding American mining back.
A Mine Built Around Washington
Rickards doesn’t mince words about federal red tape. For decades, he argues, Washington made it “next to impossible to tap into our vast resources, here in the U.S.”
“It’s beyond crazy,” he says. “It’s criminal. They have deprived us of OUR Birthright.”
Copper World found a way out. By staying off federal land, Hudbay turned a stalled idea into a construction plan. Hudbay CEO Peter Kukielski calls it “one of the most attractive copper growth projects in the Americas.”
But most of America’s best deposits don’t have a private-land workaround. They sit on federal land. And that’s where Rickards believes the real story is.
Why Copper, and Why Now
Copper is everywhere in modern life. Power lines. Motors. Data centers. Electronics.
Rickards sees it as part of a much bigger group of critical resources. “These seemingly obscure minerals… from gold to copper and silver to lithium,” he says. He calls them “the building blocks of life.”
A $2.1 billion commitment from two global companies shows how much those building blocks are worth.
What’s a Locked-Up Deposit Really Worth?
Rickards explains his thinking with a simple example. “Let’s pretend you own the rights to a huge copper deposit,” he says. Now imagine development is buried under roadblocks and red tape. What are those rights worth?
“Much less,” Rickards says. “Pennies on the dollar.”
Copper World shows what happens when a project finds a path forward. Rickards believes many more could follow as Washington changes course. His projection is bold: “I project we will see 50 years of trapped mineral wealth unleashed in a single presidential term.”
That’s his view, not a guarantee. But if he’s even partly right, the next decade of American mining could look nothing like the last.
About This Presentation
Some American mines get built by working around Washington. Jim Rickards believes many more are about to be built with its blessing. In The American Birthright, his free presentation, he explains what’s changing in Washington, which deposits it could unlock, and why the rights tied to them could matter more than most investors realize. Watch here.
About Jim Rickards
For five decades, Jim Rickards has worked inside the innermost circles of U.S. government and banking. He has advised the White House and the Federal Reserve. In 1998, Alan Greenspan called on him to help contain a $1.9 trillion banking crisis. And in 2008, he warned of a looming stock market crash before stocks fell more than 50%. He’s known for seeing major shifts coming before Washington or Wall Street does.
