On April 16 (Thursday), a document showed that Codelco and global miner Anglo American plan to separately submit environmental study reports to regulators for their proposed shared Andina-Los Bronces copper mine in Chile, using what they called an "unprecedented" dual-track model to streamline the approval process. The document showed that the two companies plan to submit two essentially identical applications in December for a copper mine to be jointly operated by both parties. Chile is currently the world's largest copper-producing country. Against the backdrop of an anticipated tightening in global copper supply, this model could serve as a blueprint for other major miners looking to share infrastructure and operations to boost production. The model would also allow Codelco and Anglo American to move faster and reduce risks. Codelco and Anglo American finalised this cooperation agreement in September 2025, planning to increase annual copper production by approximately 120,000 mt from 2030 to 2051, creating at least $5 billion in pre-tax value. ***"Mirror" Applications*** In areas where operations will overlap, the two companies proposed adopting identical environmental protection measures for each miner. A presentation document showed that they considered a single application submission legally unfeasible, as the Chilean constitution requires Codelco to retain ownership of its mining concessions. The two companies had also considered submitting three applications: one from each miner to extend the life of their respective mines, and a third from a joint entity responsible for operating the shared project. They ruled out this option, as it would require the enterprises to relinquish their existing open-pit mine environmental protection permits to make way for the merged mine. This "dual-track structure" also makes it possible for the two mines to resume independent operations in the future. ***On-Site Operations*** The documents detailed the plan to create a single mine site from the existing operations. Anglo American's Los Bronces mine is adjacent to Codelco's Andina mine. The two companies' plans showed that the rock barrier between them will also be mined, forming a single operating pit while keeping the project essentially within the existing footprint of the mines. A document showed that ore extracted from the shared mine site will be alternately sent to the Los Bronces and Andina processing plants, while waste rock will be dumped in each company's respective waste rock piles. To operate the two mines as an integrated system, modifications to waste rock piles, tailings facilities, pipelines, and supporting infrastructure are still required. The two companies stated that shared infrastructure can avoid redundant construction, reduce freshwater consumption, and alleviate pressure on the surrounding environment. ***Risks of a "Shared" Mine*** The two companies also identified significant risks, such as the need for close coordination with regulators, which could put pressure on Chile's already slow environmental review system. They emphasised that the project has "a very high level of public attention" and that there is a risk that environmentalists and affected communities may argue that the two reviews obscure the scale of the impacts. The Los Bronces mine has been accused for years of impacting air quality, water use, and glaciers in the high Andes region where it is located. Although Codelco and Anglo American believe the dual-track approach can reduce the risk of impacts being underestimated, they also acknowledged that it could lead to duplication of environmental protection management measures. (Wenhua Consolidated)

India plans to bid for copper mines in Chile while boosting domestic processing capacity to secure critical mineral supply.

SMM Morning Meeting Minutes: Last Friday evening, LME copper opened at $12,744/mt, dipping to $12,642/mt early in the session. The price center then fluctuated upward to a high of $12,928/mt before fluctuating downward to finally close at $12,857/mt, up 1.27%, with trading volume at 22,000 lots and open interest at 293,000 lots, down 4,028 lots from the previous trading day, indicating bears reducing positions. Last Friday evening, the most-traded SHFE copper 2605 contract opened at 99,200 yuan/mt, fluctuated upward early in the session to reach 99,750 yuan/mt, then the price center gradually shifted lower to a low of 99,090 yuan/mt, followed by wild swings before finally closing at 99,310 yuan/mt, up 1.04%, with trading volume at 45,000 lots and open interest at 171,700 lots, down 2,724 lots from the previous trading day, indicating bears reducing positions.

SMM Morning Meeting Summary: Overnight, LME copper opened at $12,398/mt, dipped to a low of $12,280/mt early in the session, then the price center rose to test a bottom at $12,755.5/mt, and finally moved sideways to close at $12,705.5/mt, up 3.06%, with trading volume at 28,000 lots and open interest at 294,000 lots, down 357 lots from the previous trading day, mainly driven by bears reducing positions. Overnight, the most-traded SHFE copper 2605 contract opened at 98,080 yuan/mt, touched a high of 98,500 yuan/mt early in the session, then the price center fluctuated lower to test a bottom at 97,890 yuan/mt, and finally closed at 98,330 yuan/mt, up 0.11%, with trading volume at 33,000 lots and open interest at 178,000 lots, down 3,110 lots from the previous trading day, mainly driven by bears reducing positions.

Panama’s government expects to issue a resolution by Tuesday allowing First Quantum Minerals to remove stockpiled ore from the closed Cobre Panama copper mine, Trade Minister Julio Molto said Monday.The mine holds about 38 million metric tons of stockpiled ore, which could yield roughly 70,000 tons of copper. First Quantum has said processing could begin about three months after formal approval and take around a year to complete.

Ero Copper and Southern Copper have reported strong earnings growth, reinforcing investor confidence in copper producers amid ongoing market volatility.

According to CMOC’s official WeChat account: On March 27, CMOC released its 2025 annual results report, which showed that the company’s operating revenue reached 206.684 billion yuan, standing firmly above the 200 billion yuan mark for the second consecutive year; net profit attributable to shareholders came in at 20.339 billion yuan, up 50.30% YoY and setting a new record for the fifth consecutive year; net operating cash flow reached the second-highest level in its history at 20.843 billion yuan; and total assets exceeded 200 billion yuan for the first time, reaching 200.932 billion yuan, up 18.03% YoY. In particular, in Q4, the company recorded operating revenue of 61.198 billion yuan, net profit attributable to shareholders of 6.059 billion yuan, and copper production of nearly 200,000 mt, all setting record highs for a single quarter. In 2025, with organisational upgrading as its main focus, the company built a “specialised, internationalised, and younger” team, refined its operations, and, together with rising prices for major products and strong production and sales, pushed its performance to a new peak. Specifically— Operating quality continued to improve. Revenue from the mining segment reached 77.713 billion yuan, accounting for 38% of total operating revenue, with the “mining” share up about 7 percentage points from 2024. Among this, revenue from copper products was 55.096 billion yuan, accounting for 27% of total operating revenue and 71% of mining-segment revenue. Both “copper” share indicators increased by about 7 percentage points YoY. This was attributable to the continued debottlenecking of two world-class copper mines, TFM and KFM, based on their existing six production lines. During the reporting period, the company’s copper production reached 741,100 mt, setting another record high and consolidating its position among the world’s top 10 copper producers. Based on the midpoint of production guidance, the completion rate was 118%, while maintaining double-digit growth of 13.99% YoY. Sales were 730,200 mt, up 5.90% YoY. Together with higher prices, copper revenue increased 31.63% YoY. Production of other products also exceeded expectations: niobium production hit a record high of 10,348 mt, with a completion rate of 103%; phosphate fertiliser production was 1.2135 million mt, with a completion rate of 106%; cobalt production was 117,500 mt, with a completion rate of 107%; molybdenum production was 13,906 mt, with a completion rate of 103%; and tungsten production was 7,114 mt, with a completion rate of 102%. In addition, the company recorded physical trading volume of 4.71 million mt, with a completion rate of 111%; IXM’s gross margin under IFRS was 2.11%, a recent high. The results of “cost reduction and efficiency improvement” became even more evident. Full-year operating costs were 157.229 billion yuan, down 11.56% YoY. In 2025, mining areas worldwide focused on key words such as innovation, technological transformation, and process optimisation, putting the concept of “refined operations” into practice. In Q4, TFM’s overall copper beneficiation and smelting recovery rate, equipment operating rate, and raw ore throughput all exceeded the calendar schedule; KFM established an ore characteristics database and ore blending model, lifting grinding efficiency by more than 30% YoY; at CMOC Brazil’s niobium segment, the recovery rates of two beneficiation plants rose by about 2 percentage points from the previous year, setting record highs; in China, recovery rates at Shangfanggou molybdenum and Sandaozhuang molybdenum and tungsten increased by 3.24 and 2.65, and 3.17 percentage points YoY, respectively, also reaching record highs. Centered on “multiple products, multiple countries, and multiple stages,” the company built a “copper + gold” dual-pole structure in 2025, adding gold resources last year. Together with the greenfield gold mine in Ecuador and four operating gold mines in Brazil, the company will have gold production capacity of 20 mt in South America by 2029. The Ecuador gold mine is expected to start production in 2029, with land acquisition and power supply assurance advancing rapidly; the Brazil gold mines achieved output above target in the first two months, and are expected to produce 6-8 mt of gold this year. Targeting copper production of 800,000-1 million mt in 2028, the company is building Phase II of the KFM project, which is expected to add annual copper capacity of 100,000 mt after coming into operation in 2027; TFM identified resource potential in relevant deposits, and preliminary preparations for Phase III construction are accelerating. In addition, the company completed the issuance of a $1.2 billion one-year zero-coupon convertible bond, broadening financing channels to support the implementation of its strategy. Alongside earnings growth, the company consistently practiced high-standard ESG principles. During the reporting period, ESG governance was further improved and digitalisation advanced; environmental performance led globally: the carbon emission intensity of its copper products was lower than that of 70% of mining companies worldwide, while the shares of renewable energy and water recycling increased further from 2024 to 38% and 89%, respectively; total global economic contribution reached 182.42 billion yuan, and global community investment was 488 million yuan. 2026 is a critical year for the company to fully implement its new development strategy and deepen platform-based operations and refined management. The company will further build a platform-based organisation: with the global supply chain centre as the pioneer, it will enhance synergies and cost competitiveness; relying on the “622” model, supplemented by multinational mine management experience and standardised business processes, it will improve its global control system. Centered on the “copper-gold dual poles,” the company will further transform its resource advantages into capacity and production advantages, while continuing to seek high-quality targets. With the goal of becoming a “globally leading, distinctive world-class mining company,” the company will continue to forge ahead in the mining industry.

A Rio Tinto executive said the company expected the Resolution Copper mine in Arizona, US, to come online in the mid-2030s.After years of litigation, this Anglo-Australian mining giant secured control of the land required to build one of the world's largest copper mines this month.The company had now launched a $500 million drilling program to explore the previously inaccessible 30% of the deposit. This exploration would help the company determine the commissioning timetable, but the first batch of copper ore was expected to be produced within a decade.

Rio Tinto expects Resolution Copper mine to open by mid-2030s, may export some concentrate HOUSTON, March 24 (Reuters) – Rio Tinto aims to bring its Resolution Copper project in Arizona online by the mid-2030s, but may need to export some copper concentrate due to challenging economics for smelting in the U.S., a senior executive said on Tuesday. The mining giant recently gained control of key acreage for the project after a lengthy court battle.

SMM Morning Meeting Summary: Overnight, LME copper opened at $12,016.5/mt. After dipping to $11,955.5/mt in early trading, its center rose sharply to a high of $12,160/mt, and then continued to hover at highs, finally closing at $12,092.5/mt, down 1.05%. Trading volume reached 23,000 lots, open interest stood at 293,000 lots, up 406 lots from the previous trading day, mainly reflecting increased short positions overall. Overnight, the most-traded SHFE copper 2605 contract opened at 93,600 yuan/mt and touched a low of 93,480 yuan/mt at the open. Its center then moved higher to a high of 94,990 yuan/mt, after which copper prices maintained a fluctuating trend at highs, finally closing at 94,670 yuan/mt, up 0.17%. Trading volume reached 51,000 lots, open interest stood at 198,000 lots, down 533 lots from the previous trading day, mainly reflecting reduced short positions throughout the day.