en.Wedoany.com Reported - Australian mining company BHP recently announced that its Escondida copper mine expansion project in Chile has received its first major environmental approval. The Antofagasta Environmental Assessment Commission in Chile has approved early works involving sulfide leaching and power system upgrades, marking the official launch of a series of expansion projects with a total investment of up to $14.7 billion.

The Escondida copper mine, the world's largest, is located in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile, 170 kilometers southeast of Antofagasta, at an altitude of 3,050 meters. BHP holds a 57.5% stake, Rio Tinto holds 30%, and the remaining shares are held by a Japanese consortium. Since commencing operations in 1990, the mine has produced over 34 million tons of copper, accounting for 20% of Chile's national copper output and 5% of global copper supply. Its total copper reserves stand at 32 million tons, with resources exceeding 80 million tons, along with associated precious metals such as gold, silver, and molybdenum. To address the challenge of declining ore grades, BHP plans to increase its global annual copper production to over 2 million tons by the mid-2030s, a goal heavily reliant on the Escondida expansion. The first phase of the project, approved this time, costs approximately $1.3 billion and focuses on sulfide leaching technology upgrades and power system improvements, with subsequent phases involving a series of major upgrades to the mine and processing facilities.

BHP also plans to restart and expand the Cerro Colorado copper mine in Chile, with an estimated cost of $1.5 billion, and to build a new concentrator at Escondida, expected to cost approximately $5.9 billion. In addition to the Escondida expansion, the company anticipates total investments of $10.7 billion to $14.7 billion in its Chilean operations over the coming years. A January 2026 study by S&P Global predicts that with the expansion of electrification, digitalization, and demand from sectors such as data centers and electric vehicles, copper demand will rise to 42 million tons by 2040, potentially creating a supply gap of around 10 million tons. This expansion is a response to the long-term demand outlook.