The Pebble Project is an initiative of Anchorage-based Pebble Limited Partnership to develop a modern, long-life mine in southwest Alaska. The Pebble Project and the Pebble Partnership are co-owned by Northern Dynasty and Anglo American plc in a 50:50 partnership.
The Pebble deposit is located 200 miles southwest of Anchorage and 19 miles northwest of the villages of Iliamna and Newhalen. It is among the most extensive undeveloped copper-gold porphyry systems in the world, and one of the greatest stores of mineral wealth ever discovered.
Current estimates indicate a total resource of 5.94 billion tonnes measured and indicated containing 55 billion lb copper, 66.9 million oz gold and 3.3 billion lb molybdenum; and 4.84 billion tonnes inferred, containing 25.6 billion lb copper, 40.4 million oz gold and 2.3 billion lb molybdenum. Quantities of silver, palladium and rhenium are also contained in the deposit. (click here to see resource estimate).
A range of options for project planning are currently being examined including a conventional open pit, high-volume underground mining (block caving) or a combination of both. The Pebble study team is looking at a range of tailings storage options, as well as milling and process alternatives, although it is expected that industry standard froth flotation will be the principal processing method selected.
Current concepts for proposed infrastructure requirements include 86 miles of new road to connect to a port site on Cook Inlet, a parallel concentrate pipeline, and transmission lines to carry power from a natural gas-fired generating plant on the Kenai Peninsula.
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 Alaska Map |
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 Regional Map |
 Proposed Power Generation and Transmission Corridor |
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 Proposed Road, Pipeline and Port Site |