Finning International’s South American operation has been awarded a multi-year mining contract by Lundin Mining Corp to deliver new equipment and product support to the Candelaria copper mines in northern Chile.

Finning will supply nearly 70 pieces of new Caterpillar large mining equipment valued at some $185 million to the Candelaria open pit and underground mines, as well as support the entire fleet under a maintenance contract. The fleet will include hydraulic shovels, off-highway trucks, and auxiliary equipment, and will be delivered over the next three years.

“We are pleased to build on our strong partnership with Lundin Mining at Candelaria. Our focus is to support Lundin in its efforts to operate efficiently and cost effectively, while improving productivity,” said Marcello Marchese, President, Finning South America. “We remain constructive on the long-term outlook for copper. This is the first significant order for mining equipment that Finning has secured in Chile since the industry’s decline in 2014. As activity in the mining sector begins to improve, we are well positioned to capture equipment and product support opportunities,” concluded Marchese.

Candelaria consists of an open pit mine and an underground mine providing copper ore to an on-site concentrator with a capacity of 75,000 t/d. Picture courtesy of Metallurgium (John O. Marsden), offering consulting services to the metals and minerals extraction industry worldwide.

Finning International is the world’s largest Caterpillar equipment dealer, operating in Western Canada, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, the UK and Ireland.