Argentina and Chile
Feature

Spotlight: Barrick's and Lundin's Chilean and Argentine assets

Bnamericas Published: Wednesday, January 18, 2023
Spotlight: Barrick's and Lundin's Chilean and Argentine assets

Canadian miners Lundin Mining and Barrick Gold are advancing their Candelaria and Josemaría and Zaldívar and Veladero assets in Chile and Argentina, weathering rising costs, high inflation and global supply chain disruptions.

In Chile, a royalty bill might prove challenging this year. “Before the social outbreak [in 2019] the mining sector was stable, but then the [bill] appeared with more force and the will to change the system so that the State collects more from mining,” Control Risks analyst Leandro Lima told BNamericas.

And in Argentina, “the wetland law and requests for greater environmental protection will continue to be present in public debates around mining projects in 2023,” said Marina Pera, a mining specialist at the same consultancy.

BNamericas provides an overview of the four assets' 2022 results and plans for this year.

Candelaria

Owned by Lundin (80%) and Japan's Sumitomo, Candelaria, in Chile's Atacama region, produced 152,040t of copper and 86,000oz of gold.

For this year, Lundin aims at 145,000t-155,000t and 85,000oz-90,000oz, subject to operational optimization demanding US$400mn.

Lundin will carry out open pit works, improve mill performance and better manage mining waste. Drilling optimization, acquisition of mobile mining equipment and exploration are also on the agenda.

The Candelaria optimization and operational continuity project focuses on compensating for ore depletion and a useful life extension until 2040. The project has been under evaluation since 2020. The environmental evaluation service gave Lundin until June to clarify doubts about air quality, noise, and others.

Josémaria

Lundin will invest US$400mn this year to accelerate pre-construction, involving engineering, equipment acquisition and infrastructure for the project in Argentina’s San Juan province.

The project does not yet produce. Lundin will present a new technical report in the second half.

Veladero 

Also in San Juan, Veladero produced 195,000oz last year. Barrick pursued expansion and optimization operations and improved leaching processes in 4Q22 and brought a transmission line online that supplies renewable energy from Chile.

The project is 50%-owned by China’s Shandong Gold.

Zaldívar

A 50:50 operation with Antofagasta Plc, the mine in Chile’s Antofagasta region, produced 98Mlb (44,452t) of copper in 2022. Barrick will provide more details on February 15.

Subscribe to the leading business intelligence platform in Latin America with different tools for Providers, Contractors, Operators, Government, Legal, Financial and Insurance industries.

Subscribe to Latin America’s most trusted business intelligence platform.

Other projects in: Mining & Metals (Argentina)

Get critical information about thousands of Mining & Metals projects in Latin America: what stages they're in, capex, related companies, contacts and more.

  • Project: Incahuasi
  • Current stage: Blurred
  • Updated: 4 months ago
  • Project: Organullo
  • Current stage: Blurred
  • Updated: 4 months ago
  • Project: Taca Taca
  • Current stage: Blurred
  • Updated: 5 months ago
  • Project: Rio Colorado
  • Current stage: Blurred
  • Updated: 5 months ago

Other companies in: Mining & Metals (Argentina)

Get critical information about thousands of Mining & Metals companies in Latin America: their projects, contacts, shareholders, related news and more.

  • Company: KRK Latinoamericana S.A.  (KRK Latinoamericana)
  • KRK Latinoamericana S.A., founded in 2001, is an Argentinean firm based in Buenos Aires which is aimed at providing comprehensive engineering and execution projects for bulk mat...
  • Company: Mapal S.A.  (Mapal)
  • Mapal S.A., created in 1967 as Construcciones Julio César Pallucchini, is an Argentinean company with head office in San Juan which offers bridges and road works construction se...
  • Company: Puna Mining S.A.  (Puna Mining)
  • Puna Mining S.A. is an Argentinean joint venture incorporated in the year 2017 in Salta whose 77.5% interest was acquired in the same year by the Australian mining exploration a...
  • Company: Cerro Cazador S.A.  (Cerro Cazador)
  • Cerro Cazador S.A., a subsidiary of the Canadian Hunt Mining Corporation in Argentina, is a company dedicated to exploring and developing of mining properties in Santa Cruz, Arg...
  • Company: Minera Exar S.A.  (Minera Exar)
  • Argentine mining company Minera Exar S.A. is a joint venture of Canada's Lithium Americas Corp. and China's Ganfeng Lithium. Its flagship asset is the Cauchari-Olaroz lithium an...
  • Company: Semi S.A.  (SEMISA Construcciones)
  • Argentine company SEMISA, part of local holding company Rovella Capital, provides services for the mining, oil and gas, and power industries. Its service portfolio includes wate...