Best Junior Copper Stocks of 2020 on the TSXV

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After a tough first six months of the year, the second half of 2020 saw the copper price more than rebound from the lows it hit in March. 

The red metal started the year trading for US$6,165 per tonne, but in late March it plummeted to US$4,617.50 as the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world. The third quarter saw a rebound in the copper market, with the price of the red metal reaching as high as US$7,727.77 as of December 9.

In 2020, some TSXV-listed junior copper-mining companies also made gains. Read on to see which junior copper stocks have increased the most so far this year.

This copper stocks list was generated on December 9, 2020, using TradingView’s stock screener. Only junior copper stocks with market capitalizations greater than C$10 million at that time are included.

1. Surge Copper (TSXV:SURG)

Year-to-date gain: 1,122.22 percent; current share price: C$0.55

Surge Copper owns a 100 percent interest in the Ootsa property, an advanced-stage exploration project containing the East Seel, West Seel and Ox porphyry deposits located adjacent to the open-pit Huckleberry copper mine. The asset contains a NI 43-101 compliant resource of 224 million tonnes in the measured and indicated categories, with contained metal of 1.1 billion pounds of copper, 1 million ounces of gold and 20 million ounces of silver.

After closing a private placement earlier this year, the company announced in June the start of exploration at British Columbia-based Ootsa. In September, Surge identified a large and previously unidentified geophysical anomaly on the east side of the Seel trend.

Shares of Surge Copper hit a year high of C$0.75 on December 4.

2. Altiplano Metals (TSXV:APN)

Year-to-date gain: 438.46 percent; current share price: C$0.35

Altiplano Metals, part of the Metals Group portfolio of companies, is developing copper and gold projects in Chile, including two past-producing gold and copper mines: Farellon and Maria Luisa.

In July, Altiplano announced its Q2 results, reporting an improved copper grade of 2.09 percent and a 78 percent increase in tonnes extracted for Maria Luisa; it also achieved seven straight quarters of positive cash flow from operations. In August, the company purchased a mill and flotation plant for Farellon.

In October, Altiplano completed a private placement for gross proceeds of C$1.675 million. In November, the company reported its Q3 results, processing a record 10,760 tonnes at an average grade of about 2 percent copper. It marked its eight straight quarter of positive cash flow as well. Also in November, Altiplano announced plans to acquire the San Pedro gold project in Nicaragua.

All this positive news flow alongside robust copper and gold prices have helped to drive up Altiplano’s share price; it started the year at C$0.07 and hit a year high of C$0.37 on December 7.

3. Condor Resources (TSXV:CN)

Year-to-date gain: 377.78 percent; current share price: C$0.215

Condor Resources is an active explorer focused exclusively on Peru; it is also a project generator and royalty company with the goal of discovering major new precious metals or base metals deposits in Peru. The company has nearly a dozen assets in the country.

Although it did not release any news in the first quarter of 2020, Condor Resources closed a $990,000 private placement in June. The company kicked off the second quarter with updates related to COVID-19, as the government of Peru lifted restrictions. Further updates were released in September and November, with details on the company’s various projects located in different regions of the country.

Shares of Condor hit a year high of C$0.44 on July 13.

4. Consolidated Woodjam Copper (TSXV:WCC)

Year-to-date gain: 350 percent; current share price: C$0.18

Consolidated Woodjam Copper is advancing its wholly owned namesake Woodjam copper-gold porphyry project, which covers 64,000 hectares in South-Central British Columbia. The project hosts a NI 43-101 resource totaling 1.757 million pounds of copper and 1.154 million ounces of gold.

Over the summer, the company initiated a drill program at Woodjam’s Deerhorn zone. With the help of a $1.298 million private placement, Consolidated Woodjam was able to expand the program in the fall. Results of 110 meters at 2.57 grams per tonne gold and 0.44 percent copper, as well as 26 meters at 5.89 grams per tonne gold and 0.92 percent copper, were highlighted in a November 10 release.

Shares of Consolidated Woodjam started 2020 at C$0.04, with positive news flow and robust metals prices pushing the company’s share price to a year high of C$0.31 on November 10.

5. Oroco Resource (TSXV:OCO)

Year-to-date gain: 326.77 percent; current share price: C$1.93

Founded in 2006, Oroco Resource is a Canadian exploration company with two significant assets to its name: the Xochipala gold project and the Santo Tomás porphyry copper project, both of which are in Mexico. Its focus is on the mineral concessions that make up Santo Tomás.

In March, the company closed the total acquisition of Altamura Copper, giving Oroco outright control of the Santo Tomás project. In June, the company announced it would start trading on the OTCQB market and closed a private placement for $1.65 million. That was followed by another $7.26 million in September. In November, the company released positive early results from an ongoing 3D induced polarization geophysical survey at Santo Tomás.

Shares of Oroco have soared in the second half of this year, rising from a low of C$0.21 in late April to a year high of C$2.10 on December 8.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.