The project will raise the mine’s production of fine copper to 400,000 mt/y from the current level of 226,000 mt/y, an increase of some 170,000 mt/y by 2011. Molybdenum production will reach 5,400 mt from the current level of 2,123 mt. This project will transform Los Bronces into one of the largest copper mines in the world.

Los Bronces, an open-pit operation located in the Andes, 65 km northeast of Santiago at an elevation of 3,500 m, includes copper sulphide ore treatment plants, a 56-km slurry pipeline, copper and molybdenum floatation plants and two solvent extraction-electro-winning (SX-EW) plants for the low-grade ore dump leaching process.

The Los Bronces Development Project entails an investment of $1.7 billion to build new grinding facilities at Confluencia and a new flotation plant at Las Tórtolas 2. It is expected to be completed in three years and to have a mine life of more than 30 years.

Project management, engineering and procurement will be executed by Bechtel Mining & Metals for 70% of the project and direct hire construction will be executed through a joint venture of Bechtel and Sigdo Koppers, who will provide the direct hire labor and supervision.

According to Anglo American, this development is the first stage in its pipeline of copper expansion projects which aims to increase copper production to approximately 1.7 million mt/y by 2016. In addition, Anglo American’s Base Metals division is currently advancing the $1.2-billion Barro Alto nickel project in Brazil, which will double total group nickel production by 2011.