Stavely Minerals (ASX:SVY) has completed a Scoping Study on potential production from the Thursday's Gossan and Cayley Lode copper-gold-silver deposits, which form part of the company's 100%-owned Stavely Project in western Victoria. The Stavely Project sits within the Stavely Arc, a volcanic belt considered prospective for porphyry-style copper-gold mineralisation, an exploration play that has drawn renewed attention as copper remains a critical input for electrification and renewable energy infrastructure globally.

A Scoping Study represents an early-stage order-of-magnitude economic assessment and is typically the first in a sequence of studies—followed by pre-feasibility and definitive feasibility studies—before a final investment decision is made.

The study is based on a mineral resource estimate (MRE) of 59 million tonnes (Mt) at 0.58% copper equivalent (CuEq). The proposed project development envisions a standalone, conventional on-site processing plant featuring a front-end crushing and grinding circuit, back-end sulphide flotation cells, and concentrate thickening and drying facilities. The plant would have an annual throughput capacity of 4.0 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa).

Concentrate transport would be carried out in shipping containers by road over a distance of 150km to the deep-water port of Portland for export.

The Scoping Study delivered the following financial outcomes:

• Estimated pre-tax NPV7 of $818 million
• Estimated pre-tax IRR of 40%
• Projected capital payback within 2.5 years of production
• Average annual free cashflow from first production estimated at $110 million
• Net cashflow from operations estimated at $1.4 billion
• Life-of-mine estimated AISC of US$3.76/lb copper equivalent, with first three-year AISC of US$2.75/lb copper equivalent

Estimated capital costs include $333 million for the process plant and mine-site infrastructure post-FID, which incorporates a 30% contingency. An additional $139 million is estimated for pre-production operations, including open pit pre-stripping.

The substantial gap between the project's estimated NPV and the company's current market capitalisation reflects the early-stage nature of the study and the additional technical, permitting, and funding milestones required before potential development. Advancing to the next study phase will likely require further resource drilling, metallurgical testwork, and environmental approvals.

SVY shares were down 3.13% to 1.6 cents, with a market capitalisation of $16.52 million.