Two of the largest mining companies in the world, Codelco and BHP, are to collaborate with the objective of exchanging information in areas of mutual interest, such as the electrification of mining activities, the supply of desalinated water, stability and monitoring of tailings deposits, and the development of technologies for the decarbonisation of processes, among others.
The largest copper producer in the world, Chilean state-owned Codelco, and one of the largest multinational mining companies in the world, BHP, have signed, for the first time in their history, a collaboration agreement that will focus on the accumulated experience of both companies in innovation projects focused on strengthening the sustainability of their operations. The agreement follows the announcement of a separate arrangement between Codelco and Rio Tinto announced in October 2022 which had the objective of “sharing knowledge about security, technology, operational performance, productivity and advances in environmental, social and governance matters (ESG).”
“Our copper is part of the solution to climate change that threatens the planet and must be produced in a sustainable manner, consistent with that cause. In order to imagine these new ways of doing mining, innovation is one of the main axes of our management, a focus that we can only develop in alliance with players who are equally active in this search, as is the case with BHP,” commented the CEO of Codelco, Andre Sougarret.
The Chilean mining group says open innovation is one of the enablers of its current business strategy, which places significant value on the ability to convene external capabilities around the world. “Suppliers, research centres, universities and companies with common challenges, such as BHP, are key players in complementing the knowledge and experience of the state mining company and creating sustainable solutions.”
“The alliance with Codelco reflects our efforts to work collaboratively in the search for solutions to face one of the most urgent challenges in the world: stopping climate change. We cannot advance decarbonisation or contribute to the energy transition alone. For BHP, agreements such as this show how joint work between the public-private sector is essential to make mining an increasingly sustainable industry,” says Rag Udd, President of BHP Americas.
The agreement addresses the main current challenges of the mining industry shared by both companies, among them, the search for technologies that enable the economic exploitation of low-grade minerals, the operation in deep deposits and with complex metallurgical conditions, the design of tasks that use less or no water in their processes and that generate the least impact on the environment, and the effective exploitation of advanced technologies in terms of mineral exploration.
The document signed by Codelco and BHP establishes that the exchange of knowledge will have a term of five years and will be guided by a steering committee and implemented by working groups with professionals from the two companies.
