THE LEADER VOLUME 21 • NUMBER 4
Editorial Director Paul Moore BSc( Hons), MSc paul @ im-mining. com
Editor Daniel Gleeson BA( Hons) daniel @ im-mining. com
Advertising Sales Phil Playle phil @ im-mining. com + 44( 0) 1442 870 829
Production Manager Kate Corley kate @ im-mining. com
Accounts Manager Jo Hedley Du Bois finance @ im-mining. com
Marketing Assistant Joanna English BA( Hons) jo @ im-mining. com
Circulation Assistant Jane Alter circulation @ im-mining. com
Design and Production Luke Evans luke @ lecreative. co. uk
Website www. im-mining. com
Annual Subscription Enquiries Emma Smith emma @ im-mining. com
Annual Subscription UK and Europe £ 160, 230 Rest of the world US $ 270
International Mining( ISSN No: 1747-146X) is published monthly by Team Publishing Ltd, GBR and is distributed in the USA by Asendia USA, 17B South Middlesex Avenue, Monroe NJ 08831 and additional mailing offices. Periodicals postage paid at New Brunswick NJ. POSTMASTER: send address changes to International Mining, Asendia USA, 701C Ashland Avenue, Folcroft, PA 19032
Printed by The Manson Group, St Albans, UK
© Team Publishing Ltd 2025 ISSN 1747-146X
IM uses, as preference, SI units throughout, so, for example, all tonnes are metric unless otherwise stated. All dollars are US unless otherwise stated
Making future plans
Brownfield expansions and simply planning for existing production continuity at large mining operations is an art in itself. Two of Chile’ s largest copper mining operations – BHP’ s Escondida and Freeport’ s El Abra – recently submitted their plans to the country’ s Environmental Impact Assessment System or SEIA.
BHP’ s concerns its New Escondida Concentrator project and related investment plan to ensure the sustainability of operations in the coming decades. The new concentrator will replace the production capacity of the historic Los Colorados plant, which is nearing the end of its operational life and whose investment is estimated to range between US $ 4.4 billion and US $ 5.9 billion. WSP is acting as a consultant for the application.
Its implementation will have a positive impact on supplier development and job creation. An average of more than 2,500 workers are projected during the project’ s construction, with peaks of approximately 6,000 people during the busiest months. If environmental approval is obtained, construction would begin, with first production estimated between 2031 and 2032. The new concentrator will allow Escondida to maintain its total processing capacity of 460,000 t / d of sulphide ore, enabling production to remain within currently approved levels.
Today all production moves through the Los Colorados, Laguna Seca( LS1) and Phase V Concentrator Plant( LS2) plants. Together, these facilities have a maximum approved capacity of 418,000 t / d as an annual average. As a result of operational optimisations and ore characteristics, the additional 10 % capacity will be obtained.
BHP has previously said that the new plant would use a traditional comminution circuit design with two SAG mills, plus pebble crushing and ball milling( SABC) for more flexibility. This compares to the three SAG mills at Los Colorados. Its throughput would be 50 Mt / y or 137,000 t / d; and it may reach a maximum of 57.5 Mt / y as an annual average.
It would be able to utilise latent capacity following the shutdown of the Los Colorados concentrator in areas such as crushing, tailings transport, concentrate handling and other infrastructure. It will also incorporate innovation with industryproven technologies in flotation using large mechanical cells and Hydrofloat coarse particle flotation( CPF). The up to 57.5 Mt / y throughput compares to the Los Colorados throughout of 40 Mt / y.
The Escondida and Escondida Norte pits are currently operating under the approved limit of 547 Mt / y ex pit. The project also proposes to increase the total movement to 610 Mt / y ex pit and, considering the rehandling of material, to reach 669 Mt / y, maintaining the authorised capacity of the dumps. The project includes the construction of a 25.7 km double-circuit transmission line between the Monte Mina Substation and a new S / E EGP 220 / 33 kV substation, from which 4 33 kV distribution lines will be derived.
Freeport McMoRan’ s filing concerns the future of El Abra. The US $ 7.5 billion project considers the extension of the current operations of the Sulfolix sulphide heap leaching project, the development of a new copper sulphide exploitation and processing concentrator and the incorporation of a new water source for industrial use. With these actions, it is planned to extend the operation of the site for an additional 40 years, with an approximate extraction of 8,400 Mt of material from the pit, according to the associated mining plan.
Among its main works and actions, the project contemplates the expansion of the pit; the development of the permanent leach pad at height; the construction and operation of a concentrator plant with an ore processing capacity of 300,000 t / d and a thickened tailings deposit.
In order to make the water transition to desalinated water, it will be necessary to temporarily keep the current Salar de Ascotán well field in operation, while the construction and operation of a desalination plant and its respective impulsion and transport system is completed. This system will operate through two routes: the desalinated water aqueduct and the interconnection aqueduct.
In the mine area, the project also incorporates the extension of the Lastre 02 dump, the implementation of a new dump called Lastre 07, the modification of the Lastre 04 dump, the enabling of three sectors of temporary ore stockpiles and the installation of a new conveyor belt between the mine and the concentrator.
For its part, the current solvent extraction and electrowinning plant of the leach line will expand its production of high-grade copper cathodes, maintaining a nominal processing capacity of 115,000 t / d and an average annual production rate of 225,000 t of fine copper.
Finally, to ensure the correct execution of the project, the implementation of various auxiliary works is considered to provide land access, electricity supply, and facilities for adequate and centralised waste management.
Paul Moore Editorial Director paul @ im-mining. com
International Mining | APRIL 2026 3