The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-10-21
PLACE IN
COPPER WORLD
Utah Copper and Boston Con.
to Be First in Making Them
selves Felt in New Era.

Within the last two years the plans of
several great corporations for the large
increase in their copper production have
been rapidly executed. The results are
Just beginning to be felt by the CONNER
cial world, says the October issue of Mines
and Minerals The price of copper has
ceased its soaring to heights above Zoe,
has settled slowly and now hovers IN un-
certainty near the 16-cent mark. NOT untll
the new ratio OF the increased production
to the urgent demand is approximately
determined can the price of copper be sat
isfactorily Northumberland accepted by
the consumer.
While the consumer is holding back his
orders in the expectation of lower prices,
the approaching completion of several
great plants and number of smaller ones
does much to justify his suspicion that
decline in price is inevitable
The order in which the great plants will
begin the new era of production is first
| the Utah Copper company, next the Bos-
ton Consolidated, and then the Balaklaia,
closely followed by the Nevada Consoli-
dated. In addition the production of the
| Copper River district, of Alaska. must
be counted in for some time within the
next year.
While most of the copper mining states
will show an increased production, Utah
will take the lead in the increase. From
a production of 50,O000G0 pounds in 1906 to
lSO, 100000 pounds in 1905, new seems the
probability.
The Utah Copper company's big 6,OOO-ton
plant at Garfield, installed its fourth 800
ton unit early in July. while at this writ
| ing the fifth is about to go into COM
mission.
| e These five units treating $500 tons per
day of porphyry ore varying from Is to
2 per cent copper, already assure the pro-
ductiOn of about p, 900 900 pounds of re-
fined copper annually, and when the en-
tire plant of u units is producing, to-
tai of more than 5000o,000 pounds annual
| lyN is assured. The Boston Consolidated
company's 3,OO0-tOn Garfield plant now
installing the machinery of its first unit
can likewise be depended on to produce
at least 25,0O0,0O0 pounds annually.
These two plants alone, treating the low
grade Bingham porphyry ores, never be-
| fore exploited on a profitable scale, will
| probably add a total of 75.000.000 pounds
annually to Utah's production.
factor to be reckoned with at an early
| date is the 2O00-ton concentration of the
| Ohio Copper company, now building south
of Bingham, likewise intended to treat the
| pOrphyry ore.
Turning now to the Utah smelters as in
dices of the production. we find the pres
| ent capacity to be about 100000 pounds
monthly, or S4.000.000 pounds annually-a
figure which the Utah production for 1907
viii probably not quite apDrOximat e
These figures exclude the custom ores
smelted. which are imported from out
SIDE sources. Contemplated Improvements
ana engagements, if carried out will pro-
vide a capacity of from i 900 GOO to Is, 900. =
GOO pounds monthly, or total of from
100000 to COO pounds annually.
The Garfield smelter of the American
smelling and Refining company for in
stance, within the year is to practically
double its present output of about 800 =
900 pounds monthly. For this purpose
machinery originally Intended for the
plant at San Bruno now abandoned, is
! being installed at Garfield
just recently comes the announcement
OF plans for the construction by the
| HelnZe interests, of another 1,000-ton smell
ter on the shore of Salt Lake. above Gar
Held With the above data in view a
production of. roughly, 1500O0OO0 pounds
IN 1903 seems a conservative estimate
II is thus seen that i'm the near future
Utah. by showing the greatest gain in
copper production. both in amount and in
proportion to its former production. is to
nave vital influence on the price of
copper
The attention of those who would fur
ther explore the possibilities of declining
copper market is directed to the Balaklala
and Nevada Consolidated smelters, pre-
NlOuSly mentioned.
1t is here worthy of note that all of the
great plants now under construction will
produce copper at a comparatively low
cost Mr.. Samuel Newhouse president of
the Boston Consolidated company, is the
authority for the cost estimate of three
and one-third cents per pound reckoning
IN all costs, from mining milling and
Smeltng. to freight, selling, interest ana
depreciation.
The figure given for the Nevada Con-
solidated cost is cents per pound. as the
cost OF producing and selling in New York
City. Vi
These figures suffice to indicate the NOS
Slblhties of profit at copper prices far
below the present quotations.