Chilean mining company Antofagasta has received environmental approval for a major $1.1 billion expansion of its Los Pelambres copper mine, the regional government of Coquimbo stated on February 14. The project includes a desalination plant at its port facility in Los Vilos, and new ore mills and related infrastructure at the mine itself, the company said in a statement. The miner also said it will need to obtain additional permits and final approval from its board of directors before it can begin work on the project.
At the AGM in 2017, Chairman Jean-Paul Luksic stated: “At Los Pelambres, our next development project is the Incremental Expansion project. This is our most advanced project and we finalised the feasibility study in March this year. We now expect the capital expenditure to be $1.05 billion, very similar to the pre-feasibility study estimate, with some $425 million earmarked for a desalination plant and pipeline that will provide up to 400 litres per second of water. This will complement the continental water sources we already have and provide us with water security. This project also involves construction of a new concentrator line at Los Pelambres, and when complete will add 55,000 tonnes of copper to our annual production, bringing total production to over 400,000 tonnes a year.