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Amazon Web Services (AWS) has secured a two-year agreement with Rio Tinto's Nuton venture to supply copper from the Johnson Camp mine in Arizona, which recently became the first new source of U.S. copper in over a decade. The Nuton project aims to produce approximately 30,000 tonnes of refined copper over four years using a bioleaching process that extracts copper from low-grade ore.

This collaboration will allow AWS to incorporate Nuton copper into its U.S. data centers while providing cloud-based analytics to optimize copper recovery. Although the 14,000 metric tons expected from Nuton will not meet all of AWS's copper needs, it represents a significant step in securing critical materials for data center construction amidst rising global copper demand. Analysts warn of a potential copper shortage affecting AI development and economic growth, with estimates indicating a 25% supply shortfall by 2040 due to dwindling mining output.