Valle de Copiapo iron ore mine

Valle de Copiapó is a mining complex owned by the Chilean steel producer Compañía de Acero del Pacífico (CAP) with operations close to the city of Copiapó, approximately 800 kilometres north of Santiago. The area is comprised of two operating sites, the Cerro Negro Norte (CNN) mine and the Magnetite Plant concentrator, and one undeveloped deposit, El Laco. After a fall in costs in 2021 following a weaker Chilean peso, Valle de Copiapó's C1 direct cash cost is set to increase by 8% in 2022, as a result of mounting inflation and higher diesel prices. We anticipate Valle de Copiapó will reach its full steady-state output rate by 2022. Due to the lack of water in the area, CAP has been forced to build a desalination plant and pump water back to the mine site, so that the ore can be processed and beneficiated. This has not only lifted the operating cost of the project but has also added an additional layer of technical difficulty to the operation.