Asarco

What Asarco does

ASARCO LLC is a US-based, wholly-owned subsidiary of Grupo Mexico operating as an integrated copper mining, smelting, and refining company. Founded in 1899 as American Smelting and Refining Company and headquartered in Sahuarita, Arizona, ASARCO employs approximately 1,700 people and operates three open-pit copper mines in Arizona — Mission Complex, Silver Bell, and Ray Complex — each with associated mills and solvent extraction-electrowinning (SX/EW) plants. Combined SX/EW cathode production capacity is approximately 140 million pounds per year. The company's Amarillo Copper Refinery in Texas is ISO 9001:2015 certified and produces continuously cast copper rod with a maximum capacity of 264,000 short tons per year, alongside copper cathode, selenium/tellurium, nickel sulfate, and anode casting outputs. ASARCO also owns the 54-mile Copper Basin Railway, a short-line railroad connecting Ray Mine to the Union Pacific interchange at Magma, providing captive logistics for copper concentrates, ore, and sulfuric acid movement.

ASARCO's revenue model is hardware sales of refined copper — electrowon cathode from SX/EW operations, 28%-grade copper concentrate, and finished copper rod — sold under negotiated B2B enterprise contracts to wire manufacturers (magnet, automotive, telecom, building wire), copper tubing producers, and electrical conductor fabricators across North America. Sales motion is direct enterprise field sales with no channel partners, distributor network, or self-serve ordering. A secondary, non-material revenue stream is generated through the ASARCO Mineral Discovery Center and guided mine tours at the Mission Mine (ticket pricing $7–$17.50), which functions primarily as community engagement rather than commercial driver.

The company's competitive position rests on full vertical integration from mine through refined rod, ownership of transportation infrastructure, and over a century of accumulated mining permits and reclamation credits on Arizona and Texas sites. Customer relationships are long-term and relationship-driven, supported by ASTM-spec product quality and ISO-certified refinery operations. Following emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2009 and re-integration into Grupo Mexico's Americas Mining Corporation, ASARCO operates as the parent company's primary US copper platform, with Grupo Mexico publicly positioning ASARCO for potential production expansion in 2025.

Name

Asarco

Legal name

ASARCO LLC

Website

https://asarco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1899

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

ASARCO LLC is an integrated US copper mining, smelting, and refining company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Grupo Mexico. It operates three Arizona open-pit mines, the Amarillo Texas refinery producing copper rod and cathode, and its own short-line railroad, selling refined copper to wire and tubing manufacturers across North America.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Integrated Copper Mining and Refining

NAICS

Copper, Nickel, Lead, and Zinc Mining (212230)

SIC

Metal Mining (1000), Primary Smelting & Refining Of Nonferrous Metals (3330)

akta.pro primary industry

Copper Ore Mining (Open-Pit & Underground) (IMAKADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Copper Refining (Electrorefining & Fire Refining) (IMAKADAF), Copper Pyrometallurgy (Smelting, Converting) (IMAKADAE), Copper Concentration (Crushing, Grinding, Flotation) (IMAKADAC), Copper Anode/Cathode Production & Handling (IMAKADAG)

Keywords

• Integrated copper production
• Copper mining operations
• Copper smelting refining
• Solvent extraction electrowinning
• Continuous cast copper rod

Headquarters

HQ city

Sahuarita

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Copper Cathode and Rod Sales: ASARCO produces and sells refined copper products including electrowon cathodes from SX/EW operations and continuous-cast copper rod from Amarillo refinery. Products are sold to wire manufacturers producing magnet wire, automotive wire, telecom wire, and building wire.
2. Copper Concentrate Sales: Dried copper concentrate at approximately 28% copper content is shipped to smelters for further processing
3. Exploration Services: Ongoing exploration drilling at existing deposits to expand and delineate ore bodies for future production

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

ASARCO operates as an integrated copper mining, smelting, and refining company, extracting and processing copper ore at three Arizona mines (Mission Complex, Silver Bell Mine, and Ray Complex), and producing refined copper cathode and continuous cast copper rod at the Amarillo Copper Refinery in Texas. Its customers are industrial copper consumers, including wire manufacturers, brass mills, and tubing producers who use the rod as feedstock for their products.

Product overview

ASARCO (American Smelting and Refining Company) is an integrated copper mining, smelting, and refining company operating as a U.S. subsidiary of Grupo Mexico. The company operates three copper mine properties in Arizona (Mission Complex, Silver Bell Mine, and Ray Complex) with associated mills and SX/EW plants, plus the Amarillo Copper Refinery in Texas that produces copper cathode, rod, and related products. Copper Basin Railway provides logistics support. The company offers mine tours through the Mineral Discovery Center. ASARCO's portfolio includes copper cathodes (approximately 140 million pounds annually combined from Ray and Silver Bell SX/EW operations), copper concentrate at 28% purity, and finished copper rod products up to 264,000 short tons per year capacity.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Refined Copper Cathode High-purity (99.99% Cu) LME Grade A cathode produced at the Amarillo Copper Refinery in Texas. Sold to industrial copper consumers, including wire rod mills, brass mills, and tube manufacturers.
• Continuous Cast Copper Rod 8 mm diameter continuous cast copper rod produced in standard coils at the Amarillo Copper Refinery. Used as feedstock by wire mills that draw rod into wire for electrical and industrial applications.
• Mission Complex Copper and Silver Production Underground copper mine, mill, and SX/EW plant south of Tucson, Arizona producing copper concentrate, copper precipitate, and silver for downstream smelting and refining.
• Silver Bell Mine Copper Production Open-pit copper mine operated with an associated mill and SX/EW plant near Tucson, Arizona, contributing copper concentrate to ASARCO's integrated production.
• Ray Complex Copper Production Open-pit copper mine near Hayden/Kearny, Arizona, operating two separate milling facilities (flotation concentrate production and SX/EW) to support ASARCO's integrated copper output.
• Copper Basin Railway (CBR) Freight Services Short-line freight railway serving the copper mining region in Arizona, providing captive logistics for moving copper concentrates, fuel, and consumables between ASARCO operations.
• ASARCO Mineral Discovery Center and Mine Tours Public visitor center and guided mine tours located next to the Mission Mine in Sahuarita, Arizona, offering educational tours of an operating copper mine for school groups and the general public.

Quantifiable outcome

• Land reclamation of over 2,000 acres of former mining land restored for agricultural use
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Mitsui & Co., Ltd.minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Silver Bell Mining, L.L.C. was formed as a partnership with 75% Asarco and 25% Mitsui & Co., Ltd. Mitsui held a minority stake in the Silver Bell mining operations. In 2014, ASARCO acquired the remaining 25% stake from Mitsui to own 100% of Silver Bell LLC.
• Union Pacific RailroadcoreOthers · 1 January 2006Copper Basin Railway connects with Union Pacific Railroad at Magma for interchange of rail traffic. ASARCO purchased the entire Copper Basin Railway in September 2006, which operates as a short-line railroad transporting copper materials and provides connectivity to Class I railroad network.
• Anamax Mining CompanyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1979Eisenhower Mining Company was a partnership between Anamax and ASARCO formed to mine the Palo Verde copper deposit located between Mission and San Xavier copper mines. ASARCO later acquired Anamax's interest in the Eisenhower mineral reserves in 1987.
• San Manuel Arizona Railroad (SMARRCO)minorOthersSan Manuel Arizona Railroad interchange point at Hayden connects Copper Basin Railway operations with SMARRCO for rail traffic to San Manuel and Mammoth Mine.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Freeport-McMoRan: Largest publicly traded US-based integrated copper miner, operating open-pit copper mines (Morenci, Bagdad, Safford in Arizona), with SX/EW and concentrate production. Closest direct competitor to ASARCO, sharing geography (Arizona), customer base (wire rod manufacturers), and integrated production model.
• Southern Copper Corporation (SCC): Sister company under Grupo Mexico, operating integrated copper mines, smelters, and refineries in Peru and Mexico. Directly comparable integrated copper production model, sharing corporate parent technology, capital allocation framework, and end-market exposure.
• First Quantum Minerals: Mid-tier global copper miner with operations producing copper concentrate and cathode for global markets. Comparable mine-to-concentrate business model with similar end-market customer base in cathode and concentrate sales.
• Antofagasta plc: Chile-focused copper miner producing concentrate and cathode from four operating mines. Compares closely to ASARCO as a copper-mining specialist serving global cathode and concentrate markets, though concentrated in Chile rather than the US Southwest.

Broad incumbents

• Rio Tinto: Diversified global miner with significant copper exposure (Kennecott mine in Utah, Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia). Competes in US copper concentrate and cathode markets and offers comparable industrial-minerals portfolio scale, though as a much larger diversified player.
• BHP Group: Diversified global miner with substantial copper production (Escondida, Pampa Norte in Chile, Olympic Dam in Australia). Competes for global copper cathode and concentrate offtake and shares integrated mining-to-metal exposure with ASARCO.
• Glencore: Global miner and commodity trader with significant copper mining and smelting operations across South America and Africa. Comparable integrated copper model with added trading arm that competes for cathode and concentrate offtake worldwide.

Emerging players

• Capstone Copper: North and South America-focused copper producer with operating mines producing cathode and concentrate. Comparable mid-scale integrated copper operations targeting similar US and global cathode markets.

Regional players

• Aurubis AG: Europe's largest copper smelter and refiner producing copper cathode and rod from primary and secondary feedstocks. Comparable downstream refining-and-rod business; primarily serves European markets rather than US but represents the closest non-US integrated copper-products peer.
• KGHM Polska Miedź: Polish state-owned integrated copper producer with mining, smelting, and refining operations producing cathode and wire rod. Comparable fully-integrated copper model; operates predominantly in Europe rather than North America.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/AsarcoLLC

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Asarco