Codelco and other copper mining giants are set to plow billions of dollars into the revitalisation of Chile’s mines, but that may not be enough to keep the country from losing ground to competitors elsewhere in the world.
Demand for copper is widely expected to take off by the mid-2020s amid a boom in electric vehicle production, but Chile is saddled with mines facing crippling declines in ore grades and a system that allows the bulk of its exploration concessions to sit idle.