Johnson Camp Mine
Our flagship site has initiated copper production using Gunnison Copper Corp. technology
Introducing a new era of copper recovery
Nuton LLC, a Rio Tinto venture, has partnered with Gunnison Copper Corp. to restart operations at Johnson Camp Mine in Arizona. This collaboration marks a major milestone in sustainable copper production, leveraging Nuton technologies to unlock copper from hard-to-leach ores. The project will use both Nuton TM and Gunnison technologies, with Nuton expected to produce 6.9 million pounds of copper per year with its first output coming in late 2025.
Johnson Camp Mine
The mine, located approximately 65 miles east of Tucson, Arizona, is owned and operated by Gunnison Copper.
The once-dormant site was previously operated as a heap leach facility with two open pits.
JCM’s site includes an SX-EW plant with an annual production capacity of 25 million pounds of copper cathode.
Gunnison Copper’s broader mission is to enhance domestic copper production while minimizing environmental impact.
Nuton at JCM:
Proving our technology at scale
The Johnson Camp Mine (JCM) is more than a milestone for Nuton – it is a live test bed for scaling Nuton’s technology across design, delivery, and performance.
JCM operations, now restarted through its partnership with Nuton, include a commercial-scale demonstration which is a platform to enhance Nuton (TM) predictive capabilities and integrate innovative digital platforms. Nuton is leveraging data analytics, advanced process control, and AI to accelerate innovation, enable real-time decision-making, and drive measurable progress on key sustainability metrics.
Our Progress
Our goal is to prove our technologies design, performance and delivery at industrial scale at Johnson Camp Mine. This initiative is a key part of Rio Tinto Copper’s growth strategy, representing a new path for industry innovation in technology and science.
Cleaner, smarter copper
Compared to conventional copper recovery methods, Nuton brings superior sustainability performance.
These metrics are based on JCM’s Life Cycle Assessment, which reflects the current mine plan incorporating both Nuton and run-of-mine leaching, and accounts for direct environmental impacts from mine to cathode.
LCA of JCM (Minviro, 2025. ISO 14040 certified). Report commissioned by Nuton compares conventional ROM leaching with an integrated scenario using ROM for oxides and Nuton technologies for sulfides.
“This is a significant moment for all of us at Nuton. At Johnson Camp Mine, we’re not just talking about the future of copper production – we’re making it happen. We’re seeing our technology truly come to life at an industrial scale, and it’s incredibly exciting to be part of a team that’s changing the future of copper innovation”
Antonio, Nuton Chief Operating Officer