Copper (Cu), is a soft, malleable and ductile metal with high thermal and electrical conductivity.
The surface of freshly exposed pure copper is orange-red. Copper is used as a conductor of heat and electricity, as a building material, and as a component of various metal alloys, such as in jewelry design, copper-nickel alloys for marine hardware and coins, and for temperature It is an important bulk metal mineral, and it is the earliest metal discovered and used by human beings. In ancient times, people mined open-pit copper mines and used the obtained copper to make weapons, utensils and other utensils. The development and use of copper had a profound impact on the progress of early human civilization and social development.
World demand for copper has grown steadily, more than tripling over the past 50 years, according to the International Copper Study Group (ICSG), with a huge impact on the mining industry. There are many large-super-large copper mines being mined in the world, and the annual output is calculated in kilotons (kt). So which of the top 10 copper mines in the world are on the list?
10 – El Teniente (Chile)
The El Teniente copper mine in the Chilean Andes has an annual output of 399,000 tons. It is the largest underground mine in the world and the sixth largest copper mine in the world (calculated by reserves). Located about 80 kilometers south of the Chilean capital, Santiago, it was discovered in the early 19th century by its current owner, Codelco, and has been in business since 1905. The company undertook a $3.4 billion expansion of the mine with the aim of extending the productive life by 50 years. The project started in 2011 and completed in 2018, creating 3,500 construction jobs.
09 – Las Bambas (Peru)
Las Bambas, located in Cochabamba in Peru’s Apurimac region, produces 400,000 tonnes of copper. A joint venture of three companies, Minmetals Group (MMG), Guoxin International Investment Co Ltd (22.5%) and CITIC Metal Co Ltd (15%), has only developed 10% of the mine’s land so far. The MMG company website stated that when the mine is fully operational, it will become the largest copper mine in the world, making Peru a leader in the global copper industry.
08 – Antamina (Peru)
Antamina is located 170 miles north of Lima, the capital of Peru. The company was formed by BHP Billiton (33.75%), Teck (22.5%), Glencore PLC (33.75%) and Mitsubishi Corp. (10%), ICSG data showed joint venture. Its copper production is 450,000 tonnes. Besides copper, Antamina is also a producer of silver, bismuth, molybdenum and lead. It’s one of the largest mining investments in mining history, backed by $3.6 billion in investments, according to the company’s website.
07 – Polar Division (Norilsk/Talnakh Mills) (Russia)
Polar Division (Norilsk/Talnakh Mills is a Russian copper mine on the Taymyr Peninsula, Russia, adjacent to several other copper-nickel mines, all owned by Norilsk Nickel. Based on the difference, the company’s largest ore reserves can produce 450,000 per year T. Polar Division was developed in the 1930s as a nickel mine and later became a mine for several different types of metals: cobalt, gold, silver, platinum, and of course, copper.
06 – Cerro Verde II (Peru)
Cerro Verde II is located 32 kilometers southwest of Arquepica, Peru. It is an open-pit copper mine with an area of about 157,007 acres. It is the second largest copper mine in Peru in terms of reserves. The annual output is 500,000 tons. It is owned by a consortium of Freeport-McMoRan Corporation (53.56% ownership of the mine), SMM Cerro Verde Netherlands (subsidiary of Sumitomo Metal), Compania de Minas Buenaventura (19.58%) and public shareholders (5.86%).
05 – Buena Vista del Corbe (Mexico)
Buenavista de Cobre, also known as Cananea, is a copper mine located in Sonora, Mexico. It is the second largest copper mine in the world in terms of reserves, with an annual output of 525,000 tons, and is one of the oldest open-pit mines in North America, having started production in 1899. It is owned by Southern Copper Company (SCC), a subsidiary of the Mexican group.
04 – Morenci (U.S.)
Morenci is located 16 kilometers south of Sivir City, Arizona, USA, with a copper production of 570,000 tons. It has been in operation since 1872 and is currently run by Freeport McMoRan, which also owns 85% of the shares, with the remaining 15% belonging to Sumitomo affiliates. Morenci is the largest copper producer in North America.
03 – Collahuasi (Chile)
Collahuasi is the second largest copper mine in Chile with an annual output of 630,000 tons. Located in the Atacama region of northern Chile, it is one of the largest copper reserves in the world, with 9.964 million tons of mineable copper reserves. The company, which is jointly owned by Anglo American (44%), Glencore (44%) and Japan’s Mitsui + Nippon (12%), sells most of its copper to China for processing. smelting. The copper mine has been in operation since 1999, and in 2012 it produced 5.1% of Chile’s total copper production.
02 – Grasberg (Indonesia)
Located in the Indonesian province of Papua, Grasberg is not only the world’s second largest copper mine, but also the world’s largest gold mine (by reserves). Freeport McMoRan (90.64%) and the Indonesian government (9.36%) have set up a joint venture, operated by PT Freeport Indonesia Co, with an annual production capacity of 750,000 tons. Discovered in 1988 and operating since 1990, the Grasberg Mine is one of the largest open pit mines in the world.
01 – Escondida (Chile)
Escondida, named after the Spanish word for “hidden”, is located in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile and is the world’s most productive copper mine. Since mining began in 1990, it is one of the world’s deepest open-pit mines, producing 1.27 million tonnes of copper, or 5% of the world’s supply. It is jointly owned by BHP Billiton (57.5%), Rio de Janeiro (Tinto Corp.) (30%) and Japan’s Escondida (12.5%).
Copper is the third most used metal in the world, among which Chile is the world’s largest copper producer and China is the world’s largest copper importer. In terms of the rights and interests of copper mines, the rights and interests of the top ten copper mines in the world are basically deeply tied to the old “mining oligarchs”. Except for the Polar Division copper mine, which is held by Russia’s Norilsk Nickel, the other top ten copper mines are all held by the world’s top ten copper industry groups.
Among the top ten copper mines in production in the world, only the El Teniente copper mine uses underground mining alone, and the remaining nine copper mines are all open-pit mining, which has obvious advantages in mining costs. In addition, in addition to the main production of metal copper, the 10 copper mines generally produce gold and silver by-products, and some mines also by-produce molybdenum, selenium, nickel, and zinc, which further reduces mining costs. Finally, the top ten copper mines in the world are mainly produced by flotation, with a high recovery rate of ore dressing and a good degree of comprehensive utilization of resources.
Annual demand for copper is expected to grow by 53% by 2040, driven by electric vehicles. But at the same time, copper inventories are approaching record lows, while production cannot keep up with demand, and the shortage will become more serious. According to the worst forecast of S&P Global, the global copper shortage rate (as a proportion of demand) will increase from 2% in 2022 to around 20% in 2035. According to Goldman Sachs, copper prices on the London Metal Exchange are expected to reach $15,000 by 2025.
