Paris – September 16, 2026 -- Cuprum Metals has won the Grand Prix Scale-Up Award at the World Materials Forum, recognizing technology designed to unlock copper from chalcopyrite ores that have historically constrained global supply.
Cuprum's technology targets copper locked in hard-to-process sulfide ores
The award, presented September 4 in Paris, singles out Cuprum's approach to copper recovery from primary and secondary sulfides, including chalcopyrite, a mineral form that has long limited extraction efficiency across the mining industry.
Investors including BHP Ventures back push toward commercial deployment
Cuprum Metals counts Lundin Family Office, BHP Ventures, and Woodline Partners among its backers as it moves the technology toward full-scale commercial rollout. The company is prioritizing two applications: boosting copper recovery through heap leaching and converting copper slag, a metallurgical waste stream, into usable copper metal.
CEO Roger Pettman frames the win as validation for scaling efforts
Founder and CEO Roger Pettman said the recognition supports the company's mission to secure a more sustainable and reliable copper supply, calling it an opportunity to accelerate market scale-up alongside other innovators in the materials sector.
Slag conversion could turn mining waste into new copper output
By addressing both underexploited ore bodies and metallurgical waste, Cuprum aims to expand copper availability without new mining while cutting the environmental footprint tied to conventional extraction methods. The company is now working with industry partners to transition from technology development to broader market adoption.