Chapter 116: What a Terrifying Thing
"The task I gave you includes monthly summaries and quarterly reports. Look at the time—it's been almost three months since I last visited the project site."
Chen Jinhe still vividly remembered his recent trip to the Ali region and assumed that Tao Mingzhi had returned to the company headquarters because it was time to report. He didn't think much of it. When he saw Li Zaiqiang, he smiled sincerely. "Old Li, long time no see. Thank you for coming all this way."
"Flying over isn't too bad," Li Zaiqiang replied, looking exhausted but brimming with energy.
It had been a long and tiring journey—over a thousand kilometers by car from Gaizhe County to the provincial capital of Tibet, followed by a flight across thousands more to Jian'an Province.
"Wait a moment, I'll call the entire management team over to hear your report." Chen Jinhe took the Qinglong Copper Mine project very seriously.
From its initial approval, to securing funding, the company's executives and board members could all sense his unwavering commitment.
Hu Shenwu from the County State-owned Assets Office and Yao Zhenyu from the Geological Bureau arrived shortly after being informed.
"Didn't we say the symposium on mine expansion was delayed until the afternoon?"
Yao Zhenyu had originally been on his way to the meeting, only to turn back midway upon hearing it was postponed. Half an hour later, he was summoned again for an emergency meeting.
"Everyone's here, just grab a seat wherever," Chen Jinhe said sternly. "Let's listen to the progress report on the Qinglong Copper Mine project."
The upper management and board members were no longer surprised—every time something related to exploration came up, the chairman made a big deal out of it.
"Chief Engineer Li, should I give the report, or would you prefer to?" Tao Mingzhi asked politely.
"You go ahead." At his age, Li Zaiqiang had no interest in the spotlight.
"Then I'll briefly report to the leadership on the phased results we've achieved with the Qinglong Copper Mine exploration."
Tao Mingzhi stood, his voice resonant in the chairman's office. "Thanks to our tireless efforts, we've found mineralization at Qinglong Copper Mine—and it's a major deposit! Based on current drilling results, surface trench exploration, and adit surveys, we estimate a total of five million tons of contained copper metal, along with several tons of gold, silver, and other precious by-product metals…"
"How much?" Chen Jinhe interrupted, thinking he must've misheard.
"Five million tons!" Tao Mingzhi lifted his head, voice loud and full of excitement.
Just as he expected, the senior leadership was stunned—just as he had been when he first saw the number.
"You've only been working over there for what—three months?" Chen Jinhe frowned, feeling slightly misled. "You can't possibly discover such a large deposit in such a short time!"
Sitting beside him, Yao Zhenyu scoffed. "Minister Tao, that sounds like a joke."
"I'm not joking!" Tao Mingzhi quickly clarified.
"Our Zise Copper-Gold Mine may primarily produce gold, but its copper value is just as significant!"
Yao Zhenyu pulled out a set of data to compare with Tao Mingzhi's claims. "Our Zise Mine currently has 2.15 million tons of identified copper reserves. And you're saying Qinglong has found five million tons in just a few months? That's two Zise Mines!"
When compared like that, it becomes clear just how staggering a five-million-ton copper deposit really is.
Zise Mining's core asset, the Zise Copper-Gold Mine, had already exhausted its high-grade gold caps after years of operation. Only low-grade peripheral gold remained. The mine had gradually shifted to copper extraction, which was why they'd heavily invested in developing bioleaching technology.
With resources depleting, they were desperate to break out of Jian'an Province and find a new base of operations. If they didn't, Zise Mining would vanish within twenty years.
Seeing Tao Mingzhi's awkwardness—wanting to defend his claims but not daring to challenge the board—Chen Jinhe smiled faintly. "Don't rush. Just explain things clearly. You did give us a bit of a shock saying you found five million tons right off the bat. We've discussed the Qinglong Copper Mine a lot recently, and everyone thinks this is going to be a long-term battle—two or three years, at least."
He glanced at Li Zaiqiang and continued, "According to the feasibility report from Li Tang, the exploration goal for Qinglong Copper Mine is over 20 million tons. That's a massive undertaking. Report the actual numbers—don't exaggerate."
"Chairman, the data came from Chief Engineer Li, and I've been on-site the whole time. I know the numbers are solid, no fluff!" Tao Mingzhi said bitterly, looking to Li Zaiqiang for support.
Chen Jinhe turned to Li Zaiqiang with a smile. "When we inspected the site, you told us the work plan: surface mapping, engineering surveys, and geophysical measurements. That's a wide scope. You said we might not finish even that this year. And if the surface shows mineralization, drilling wouldn't start until next spring. Am I right?"
"Yes," Li Zaiqiang answered calmly, now confident after seeing mineralization. "Our original plan was as the chairman said, but we adjusted our focus based on real conditions."
He laid a geological map of the ore body in front of everyone. "From our fieldwork, we've identified two main ore bodies—Zones 1 and 2. We focused on geophysical surveys and surface engineering in those areas. Once mineralization was confirmed, we went straight to drilling. We've drilled nearly 20 holes so far. Except for a few at the periphery, most encountered good copper mineralization."
"You changed the work plan based on field conditions?" Chen Jinhe nodded in understanding.
"Yes. I discussed it with Minister Tao on-site, and he agreed in principle," Li Zaiqiang quickly said.
"Yes, I mentioned the adjustment in last quarter's report and even faxed the update to the company," Tao added.
"I remember now!" Chen Jinhe had seen the faxes but hadn't fully grasped the change at the time.
"Chairman, this is the analytical data from each borehole and surface trench, all verified by certified institutions," Tao Mingzhi said, handing out the reports.
Chen Jinhe was the first to receive a copy. As he flipped through the data, his initial skepticism quickly gave way to deep shock.
Seeing the rows of figures, he was overwhelmed by a feeling that couldn't be put into words.
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