has grown rapidly and last year moved over 63 billion-ton-miles of ocean freight, making it one of the largest operations of its type in the world. Marcona began its life as a direct shipping ore operation, but the quantity of ore of this type that was available for export under its concession agreement was limited. The subsequent development of the Marcona properties has been dictated by the nature of its ore body, which in an overly simplified way can be described as a three-layer cake, the small top layer with the frosting on it being the direct shipping ore, the next small layer a transition zone of mixed hematite and magnetite, and the large bottom layer being an extensive deposit of magnetite, relatively rich in iron -- around 55% Fe -- but requiring beneficiation to remove excess sulfur and upgrade the finished product. From 1953 to 1961 Marcona's shipments were primarily direct shipping ore, and part of the cash flow derived from this highly profitable operation was used to finance the expansion of capacity and the installation of beneficiating facilities necessary to treat ores in the transition and primary zones. Marcona's profits hit their peak in 1960, then fell away when shipments of direct shipping ore declined, and the operation was being converted to beneficiated products. With this transition effected, profit levels were again restored in 1965 to around the 1960 level and are expected to continue upward in 1966. In 1955 Utah acquired a 25% interest in the Pima Mining Company, the balance being held 50% by Cyprus Mines and 25% by Union Oil. Pima operates a copper mine near Tucson, Arizona. Its contributions to - 6 -