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Beneath the world’s largest open-pit copper mine in Chile lies a tunnel complex filled with dust so dense that machines frequently break down and workers can’t operate without spacesuit-like helmets.
Chile is the world’s largest supplier of the red metal and Codelco accounts for just over a quarter of the country’s output. “While the accidents have different causes, there are certain common factors related to breaches in control mechanisms,” the agency toldIn an interview at Codelco headquarters in Santiago, Pacheco said there had been a lack of maintenance partly due to supply chain and staffing issues during the COVID-19 pandemic. This caused a series of delays and equipment failures that are still being felt, he said.
Pacheco and other executives said they expect the slump to revert in 2024 as more projects come online and Codelco’s Ministro Hales mine normalizes operations after a massive landslide in 2022. Located in Chile’s northern desert region, Chuquicamata’s underground operation has sandier and finer soil than El Teniente.
The report says the company used fewer, weaker rebars that were spaced further apart than originally planned. It also replaced steel frames with insufficiently stable retaining walls. Juan Carlos Guajardo, head of the consultancy Plusmining in Santiago, said that while mining projects are rarely finished on time and on budget, Codelco “has had some significant strategic errors,” especially attempting simultaneous projects.
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