Corporate Update and Engineering Study Proposals under Evaluation

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 22, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Candente Copper Corp. (TSX:DNT, BVL:DNT) ("Candente Copper”, “Company”) is pleased to announce that it has received and is reviewing proposals from two internationally acclaimed engineering firms for engineering studies to identify and define various value add options for the development of the Cañariaco Project.

The first goal of the engineering study is to define/identify a smaller, higher grade, start up option for Cañariaco with a smaller initial capital expenditure (“CapEx”) and accelerated payback period. This is expected to be able to be permitted and financed to production more quickly than the larger option. The intention would be that once the development capital is paid back, the smaller operation could then be expanded to fully recognize the value of the large copper-gold resource that exists at Cañariaco.

The second goal is to explore other potential options with a mind to establish both cost efficiencies and environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) friendly development options. Current industry wide ESG initiatives and responsible investing is driving innovation in environmentally friendly, sustainable development and finance products. This innovation has been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic and increased urgency around the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals, resulting in many new development options to consider now.

“We are very excited to see the results of the new engineering studies and the extra value they can help us unlock in Cañariaco,” comments Joanne Freeze.

The engineering studies will commence with Desk Top Conceptual Studies which will focus on optimizing the block model of the mineral resource with the goal of developing a new mine plan targeting on higher grade portions of the deposit for the early years. Then various other aspects of the development will then also be reviewed. Assuming favourable results from the Desk Top Conceptual Studies, the Company could move into a Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) on the Revised Project Concept. The Desk Top Conceptual Studies are expected to take approximately 6 weeks to complete with a subsequent PEA expected to take an additional 4 months. The Company is fully funded for this work.