Chile’s copper production is expected to increase by 3.7 percent to 5.957 million tonnes this year. By 2024, the country’s copper output is to reach about 6,703 million tonnes, as more than 20 projects are expected to begin operations during this period, according to figures released by data analytics company GlobalData.
Last year, Chile’s copper production dropped by 0.7 percent, but the next years are expected to accelerate the sector’s growth, according to indus-try observers.
Vinneth Bajaj, an associate project manager at GlobalData, said in a statement that while “the country’s mining sector avoided a full-scale lock-down as seen in neighboring Peru, operational restrictions and rising cases impacted the progress of various developments.”
Of the 20 Chilean copper projects, seven are under construction and ex-pected to add some 641,300 tonnes of copper production capacity, as indicated by figures from GlobalData.