Sierra Gorda plans $100M exploration push, mine-life extension in Chile

Chilean copper miner Sierra Gorda plans to invest $100 million in exploration over five years as it looks to raise output and extend the life of its mine in northern Chile, general manager Marcelo Bustos said in an interview published on Monday in newspaper El Mercurio.

Bustos told the newspaper the company is pursuing three medium-term projects: a $100 million exploration campaign for 2028-2032, an extension of the mine’s life to 2049 from 2035, and a possible increase in concentrator capacity to 165,000 metric tons per day from 130,000.

The exploration plan will be submitted in 2026 through an environmental impact study, while the mine-life extension project is expected to be filed in 2027 or 2028, Bustos said.

A decision on the plant expansion is due this year.

Sierra Gorda, in Chile’s Antofagasta region, is owned by Poland’s KGHM Polska Miedz with 55% ownership and Australia’s South32 with 45%.

(By Kylie Madry; Editing by Brendan O’Boyle)