The plan adds new facilities, including a concentrator with 115,000 tonnes per day of extra processing capacity.

Freeport-McMoRan has announced plans to invest $4.5bn in expanding and modernising its Bagdad copper and molybdenum mine in Arizona’s north-west region, US.

The company’s board of directors granted approval to a programme intended to more than double Bagdad’s mining and milling rates, with completion targeted for mid-2030.

Under the plan, annual copper output at Bagdad is expected to exceed 400 million pounds, increasing by approximately 225 million pounds per year.

Long-term molybdenum production is forecast to rise to over 20 million pounds annually, which is about 12 million pounds above current rates.

When the project is complete, Bagdad would become the second-largest copper mine in the US, following Freeport’s Morenci operation, as well as a major producer of molybdenum.

The project includes the addition of new facilities, among them a concentrator providing about 115,000 tonnes per day of incremental processing capacity.

Other upgrades comprise a new primary crusher, overland conveyor, water pipeline, power line, and mining equipment.

The site will feature a fully autonomous haulage fleet, which was established after Bagdad completed a fleet conversion in 2025.

According to Freeport, the investment aims to improve operating costs through modern technology, automation, and economies of scale.

The company estimates a long-term reduction to unit net cash costs by around 20%, partly supported by by-product credits from molybdenum and larger production volumes.

Construction is expected to take around three and a half years, generating more than 4,000 direct and indirect jobs during the build phase and supporting thousands of long-term roles in the region.

Freeport president and CEO Kathleen Quirk said: “Freeport’s significant resource base provides an attractive portfolio of value-enhancing, organic growth options as we work to meet growing demand for our products.

“We are pleased to proceed with the Bagdad expansion, an important step in advancing Freeport’s US copper growth strategy.”

The Bagdad mine has been in operation since 1945 and currently has a reserve life extending more than 80 years, not including additional mineral resources.

In March 2026, Freeport applied for environmental approval for a $7.5bn project aimed at significantly increasing copper production at its El Abra mine in Chile.