copper utah and its 25 owned affiliate pima mining company mine and concentrate ores containing copper and important amounts of molybdenum gold silver and rhenium as by-product minerals copper values in the current year have been char acterized by sharp differences between the price-controlled united states market and the international market where prices have risen substantially over the period strong demand for copper resulting from the vigorous production levels of the industrialized countries rising production and smelting costs and the severe opera ting problems experienced in some of the less developed countries have been largely responsible for this upward pres sure on prices opinion is mixed as to the timing of a return to a lower price structure for copper utah's island copper mine is at the north end of vancouver island in british columbia development of the project began in 1969 consisting of an open-pit mine and mill capable of producing an nually concentrates containing 110 million pounds of copper metal in addition a sizeable housing development in the town of port hardy was required to accom modate the work force contracts were concluded in the same year with japanese companies to sell the entire output of the project for the first five years of opera tions and approximately two-thirds of the production for the next five years pricing under the contracts is based on london metal exchange quotations the first shipload of concentrates departed island copper early in the 1972 fiscal year in 1973 the first full year of operation island copper production rose reflecting additional operating experience and the refinement of mining and con centrating techniques the installation of new equipment and modifications of the grinding circuits had by year end allowed production from island copper to exceed original plans shipments from island copper in 1973 reached 97 million pounds of copper contained in concentrates up from 65 million pounds delivered in 1972 the gold content of the 1973 shipments was 44,000 ounces establishing that metal as the most important by-product given a con tinuation of current production rates 1974 shipments will exceed those of the 1973 period the pima mining company operates an open-pit mine and mill near tucson arizona since its beginning in 1956 the pima operation has been expanded on several occasions rising most recently in 1972 to the present capacity of 160 million pounds of copper per year in concentrate form pima through arrangements with smelters has agreed to sell approximately one-half of its output at ihe u.s pro ducers price which is subject to federal price controls pima sells the balance under arrangements which seem most appropriate at the time which in 1973 included forward sales commitments production at pima in the latest period exceeded that of 1972 reflecting the first full year of operations at the expanded facilities however with differences in year-end copper inventories 1973 re corded sales of 148 million pounds were slightly below the 157 million pounds delivered in the earlier year in spite of these lower shipments higher price realizations in 1973 lifted pima's contri bution to utah's profits island copper and pima ores are finely ground in preparation for treatment in the multitude of flotation circuits from which copper concentrates emerge