Why was the plant written down to zero value if they could make...

Why was the plant written down to zero value if they could make a profit on the copper and not re-opened??
Some gold mines, nickel mines, copper mines etc all close down/go on c&m basically because they are not profitable at the prevailing prices.
IMHO if the plant had not been closed because of being unprofitable processing copper, then the opportunity for a deal here would never have been available. Why else do you think the opportunity was available in the first place??
Do you really think that a profitable operation is going to entertain a huge loss on original investment to go off on a tangent with an unknown company??

Some holders need to start thinking clearly here, about why the plant was available for such a cheap deal in the first place. Or perhaps get on the phone and ask JB would be simpler.