CU
Chile mine regulator probes worker death at BHP’s Escondida
Chile’s mining regulator Sernageomin said on Friday it is investigating the death of a worker at BHP’s Escondida, the world’s largest copper mine.
Two sources with knowledge of the matter said mining operations continued normally after the incident.
BHP in a statement said a contractor had died on Thursday. An internal memo from Chilean construction company Workmate described the worker as a crane operator at Escondida.
(By Fabian Cambero and Daina Beth Solomon; Editing by Kylie Madry)
Codelco lifts El Teniente loss estimate, copper output target intact
El Teniente operation. Photo by Codelco.Codelco’s copper losses from the accident at its El Teniente mine are likely to be 45% higher than previously estimated, but chairman Maximo Pacheco still expects the world’s largest copper miner to slightly increase output this year.
Loss of output from Chile’s El Teniente along with other disruptions including at Freeport-McMoRan’s Grasberg mine in Indonesia has tightened supplies and pushed copper prices to $11,000 a metric ton this week, close to the record hit last year.
The July accident at El Teniente, Codelco’s most profitable mine, will reduce its output by 48,000 metric tons this year and cost the company around $500 million in EBITDA.
In an interview ahead of LME Week, a gathering of the global metal industry in London, Pacheco said Codelco’s production from January to September was 2% above the same period of last year.
“We continue to believe that in 2025, we should have a production level that is slightly above last year’s,” he said.
The state-owned miner’s copper output for the first nine months of the year was 938,000 tons while Codelco’s guidance for 2025 is 1.34 million-1.37 million tons.
Codelco lifts El Teniente loss estimate, copper output target intact
Codelco’s copper losses from the accident at its El Teniente mine are likely to be 45% higher than previously estimated, but chairman Maximo Pacheco still expects the world’s largest copper miner to slightly increase output this year.
Loss of output from Chile’s El Teniente along with other disruptions including at Freeport-McMoRan’s Grasberg mine in Indonesia has tightened supplies and pushed copper prices to $11,000 a metric ton this week, close to the record hit last year.
The July accident at El Teniente, Codelco’s most profitable mine, will reduce its output by 48,000 metric tons this year and cost the company around $500 million in EBITDA.
In an interview ahead of LME Week, a gathering of the global metal industry in London, Pacheco said Codelco’s production from January to September was 2% above the same period of last year.
“We continue to believe that in 2025, we should have a production level that is slightly above last year’s,” he said.
The state-owned miner’s copper output for the first nine months of the year was 938,000 tons while Codelco’s guidance for 2025 is 1.34 million-1.37 million tons.
Rock burst
On the internal investigation into the El Teniente accident, due to be finalized by the end of the year, the most probable cause was a rock burst due to a change in the geological structure of the deposit, according to Pacheco.
“This was a process of vertical unloading due to geometric changes and cavity interaction in the northwest of the deposit…weakening the structure and facilitating downward movement of material. This means at depth, rock layers are shifting over one another,” Pacheco said.
That, he added, means Codelco needs to monitor terrain structure, seismic activity and geomechanical factors throughout the entire mine, which is made up of 4,500 kilometers of tunnels.
The Andesita unit within the El Teniente complex will remain suspended until the investigation is complete.
On the internal investigation into the El Teniente accident, due to be finalized by the end of the year, the most probable cause was a rock burst due to a change in the geological structure of the deposit, according to Pacheco.
“This was a process of vertical unloading due to geometric changes and cavity interaction in the northwest of the deposit…weakening the structure and facilitating downward movement of material. This means at depth, rock layers are shifting over one another,” Pacheco said.
That, he added, means Codelco needs to monitor terrain structure, seismic activity and geomechanical factors throughout the entire mine, which is made up of 4,500 kilometers of tunnels.
The Andesita unit within the El Teniente complex will remain suspended until the investigation is complete.
Environmental permits
Codelco plans to apply for environmental permits by 2027 for the joint operation of its Andina mine and Anglo American’s neighboring Los Bronces operation, Pacheco said. The companies finalized their agreement last month, saying it will produce $5 billion in savings.
Pacheco also said Codelco will contribute to discussions on the future of Teck Resources’ Quebrada Blanca mine in Chile, where it holds a 10% stake and has two seats on the mine’s board.
Teck is aiming to combine Quebrada Blanca with the adjacent Collahuasi mine as part of a proposed merger with Anglo American.
(By Pratima Desai, Daina Beth Solomon and Fabian Cambero; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
Codelco plans to apply for environmental permits by 2027 for the joint operation of its Andina mine and Anglo American’s neighboring Los Bronces operation, Pacheco said. The companies finalized their agreement last month, saying it will produce $5 billion in savings.
Pacheco also said Codelco will contribute to discussions on the future of Teck Resources’ Quebrada Blanca mine in Chile, where it holds a 10% stake and has two seats on the mine’s board.
Teck is aiming to combine Quebrada Blanca with the adjacent Collahuasi mine as part of a proposed merger with Anglo American.
(By Pratima Desai, Daina Beth Solomon and Fabian Cambero; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
Codelco posts worst monthly copper output in decades on accident
Image: Chuquicamata mine by Roberto Candia. (Courtesy of Codelco via Flickr.)Codelco registered the lowest month of copper output in more that two decades after a mine collapse disrupted the Chilean firm’s efforts to recover from a protracted production slump.
The state behemoth produced 93,400 metric tons in August, according to data released Thursday by Chilean copper agency Cochilco. That’s down 25% from the same month last year and the lowest since the agency’s data set began in 2003.
A July 31 accident at El Teniente mine killed six people, injured nine and halted activities for more than a week, prompting the company to trim its annual output projection. While work has resumed in areas unaffected by the collapse, the Chilean industry’s worst accident in three decades is undermining Codelco’s status as the world’s biggest copper producer.
That adds to mounting supply-side risk in the global copper market just as the energy transition and building of more data centers start to push up demand for the wiring metal.
Escondida, operated by BHP Group, produced 105,100 tons in August, lower than July though little changed from a year ago, according to Cochilco data on the world’s biggest copper mine.
Meanwhile, the Collahuasi mine — in which Anglo American Plc and Glencore Plc each have a 44% stake — posted a slight increase from July, but remained well down on last year’s production levels due to a period of lower quality ore.
(By James Attwood)
Codelco registered the lowest month of copper output in more that two decades after a mine collapse disrupted the Chilean firm’s efforts to recover from a protracted production slump.
The state behemoth produced 93,400 metric tons in August, according to data released Thursday by Chilean copper agency Cochilco. That’s down 25% from the same month last year and the lowest since the agency’s data set began in 2003.
A July 31 accident at El Teniente mine killed six people, injured nine and halted activities for more than a week, prompting the company to trim its annual output projection. While work has resumed in areas unaffected by the collapse, the Chilean industry’s worst accident in three decades is undermining Codelco’s status as the world’s biggest copper producer.
That adds to mounting supply-side risk in the global copper market just as the energy transition and building of more data centers start to push up demand for the wiring metal.
Escondida, operated by BHP Group, produced 105,100 tons in August, lower than July though little changed from a year ago, according to Cochilco data on the world’s biggest copper mine.
Meanwhile, the Collahuasi mine — in which Anglo American Plc and Glencore Plc each have a 44% stake — posted a slight increase from July, but remained well down on last year’s production levels due to a period of lower quality ore.
(By James Attwood)
No comments:
Post a Comment