Cuprum Metals secured $19.4 million in Series A funding, led by the Lundin Family Office, to accelerate commercialization of its patented room temperature leaching technology for efficient copper extraction from challenging sulfide ores.
Cuprum Metals Inc., a Delaware-based technology company headquartered in Winter Park, Florida, closed a $19.4 million Series A funding round. The round was led by the Lundin Family Office, with participation from Woodline Partners and BHP Ventures. This brings the company’s total known funding to approximately $22.1 million, following a prior seed round of about $2.75 million in early 2025.
The funding aims to scale Cuprum’s patented leaching technology for copper extraction, advance commercialization, expand operational footprint, enhance technical capabilities, hire staff, and grow its customer base. It targets integration into existing mining operations, particularly for challenging primary copper sulfide ores like chalcopyrite, which make up a large portion of global deposits.
What is Cuprum Metals?
Cuprum’s core innovation is a novel, water based chemical leaching process that circumvents the passivation layer on sulfide ores. This enables rapid direct oxidation of copper in preference to sulfur, achieving high yields without relying on microbes (lithotrophs or ferroxidants) or high heat/pressure. Key claimed performance metrics from pilot tests include:
- 93% Cu recovery in 30 minutes at room temperature and atmospheric pressure (agitation, on primary copper sulfide material).
- 98% Cu recovery at 55°C under agitation.
- Recoveries typically exceeding 75% from predominantly chalcopyrite ore within 100 days in longer tests (e.g., heap/vat systems).
- Applicability to primary, secondary, and oxide ores; heap leach, vat, or agitation processes; and feedstocks like tailings or smelter slags.
- Low water and energy use (recyclable lixiviant, minimal losses from evaporation/adsorption; compatible with seawater).
- No toxic chemicals; residual matter is toxin free and potentially repurposable (e.g., for bricks or mine fill).
- Lower acid consumption for oxides compared to standard processes.
Test work has been conducted on materials from various global mines (South Africa, US, Chile, Australia) with positive results. The technology is fully patented and positioned as ore-agnostic, faster, cleaner, and more cost effective than traditional methods, addressing key industry challenges in copper supply amid rising demand for electrification and renewables.
Who founded Cuprum Metals?
Roger Pettman, PhD, DSc, serves as Founder, Chairman, and CEO (noted variably as Executive Chairman). He brings experience from prior ventures, including founding Cycladex (related leaching tech), co-founding Revolymer (raised £40M with AIM IPO), and Chirex (NASDAQ IPO raising $147M). Other key team members include Dale Arnold (VP Process Development, ex DuPont chemical engineer) and Rodrigo Hernandez (CBO, commodities trading background with focus on copper).
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Investor Rationale and Strategic Fit
- Lundin Family Office (lead): Emphasizes the technology’s potential to unlock value from existing resources and improve efficiency in a growing copper market.
- BHP Ventures: Highlights expansion of recovery pathways and flexible development options for different ore bodies.
- Woodline Partners: Praises flexibility across sulfides, slags, and tailings; rapid recovery without heat or biology.
These investors reflect strong alignment with major mining interests and copper supply needs. Oberon Capital acted as Joint Broker.
Copper demand is surging due to EVs, renewables, and infrastructure, but supply faces constraints from declining grades, complex ores, and slow traditional processing (e.g., chalcopyrite leaching challenges). Cuprum’s approach could extend mine life, improve economics for low grade or refractory ores, reduce environmental footprint (water, energy, toxins), and enable faster project timelines. Successful scaling could position it as a licensor or partner to major miners, or support own deployments. The $19.4M provides runway for pilot to demo progression and initial commercial engagements, though larger future capital will likely be needed for broad rollout.
As an early stage company (generating revenue stage per some profiles), execution risks include scaling from pilots to full commercial integration, regulatory approvals, ore variability, IP protection, and competition from established hydrometallurgical or bioleaching methods. Capital intensity for mining tech deployments remains high, and broader adoption depends on proven OPEX/CAPEX advantages at scale. No public detailed financials or independent third party audits are widely available beyond company claims and investor statements.
This Series A validates Cuprum’s technology in a capital intensive sector and equips it to pursue broader commercialization amid favorable copper market tailwinds. The involvement of sophisticated mining focused investors signals confidence in its disruptive potential for sustainable copper production.
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