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Straits Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Chile's Codelco gets regulatory approval to reopen part of El Teniente copper mine
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox People hold a helmet during the funeral of Jean Miranda Ibaceta, one of the five miners of Chilean state-run copper producer Codelco who died after being trapped following a collapse at El Teniente copper mine, at a cemetery in Rancagua, Chile August 4, 2025. REUTERS/Pablo Sanhueza/File Photo SANTIAGO - Copper giant Codelco has received approval from Chile's mining regulator to reopen a part of its flagship El Teniente mine, after more than a week of suspended operations following a deadly collapse that killed six workers, it said on Friday. Chile's labor inspection office needs to sign off on the plan before El Teniente can resume mining activity, Codelco said in a statement. It did not say when it expects final approval or when operations may restart. The state-run company aims to restart in a number of sectors of the mine, excluding those affected by the July 31 accident, pending further analysis. A major tremor that day caused tunnels to collapse around the new Andesita section of the vast mine, which contains the world's largest underground copper deposit. The mining regulator said the approved areas show no damage or imminent risk, and instructed Codelco to monitor seismic activity and comply with operational guidelines. "Sernageomin emphasized that the restart of operations must be carried out under strict safety standards, prioritizing the protection of worker lives," Codelco said. The labor inspection office did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Earlier, Codelco said it had suspended contracts with third-party workers at El Teniente through at least August 13. Aquiles Cubillos, the prosecutor for the O'Higgins region where El Teniente is located, has said the collapse damaged about 3,700 meters (3.7 km) of passageways, far more than 700 meters initially estimated by the company. He has not specified the severity of the damage, but said it affected two or three areas of Andesita, and five or six areas of the Recursos Norte unit. El Teniente, which is more than a century old, spans more than 4,500 km (2,800 miles) of tunnels and underground galleries - nearly the distance between Chile and New York - deep within the Andes mountains. On Friday, Cubillos' team inspected four damaged levels of the mine, excluding those where the injuries and deaths occurred, and met with Codelco technical experts. Investigators are documenting the damage with photographs to later reconstruct a full map of the affected areas. REUTERS
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Straits Times
Codelco suspends El Teniente contractors through Aug. 13 as it seeks restart
People hold a helmet during the funeral of Jean Miranda Ibaceta, one of the five miners of Chilean state-run copper producer Codelco who died after being trapped following a collapse at El Teniente copper mine, at a cemetery in Rancagua, Chile August 4, 2025. REUTERS/Pablo Sanhueza/File Photo SANTIAGO - Chile's Codelco has suspended contracts with third-party workers at its flagship El Teniente copper mine through at least August 13, as it seeks approval to reopen ten sections of the mine following a collapse last week, it said on Friday. Six people died from a major tremor on July 31 that caused tunnels to cave in surrounding the new Andesita section of the vast mine. Codelco said in a statement that the suspended labor contracts applied to all companies directly related to the incident, and that it had sent further information to mining regulator Sernageomin in a bid to reopen ten "work areas" of the mine. It did not specify which areas. Aquiles Cubillos, the prosecutor for the O'Higgins region, has said 3,700 meters (3.7 km) of passageways had been damaged in the collapse, far more than 700 meters initially estimated by the company. He has not specified the severity of the damage, but said it affected two or three areas of Andesita, and five or six areas of the Recursos Norte unit. El Teniente has about 4,500 kilometers of tunnels deep within the Andes mountains. On Friday, Cubillos' team reviewed four damaged levels of the mine, which do not include the ones where the injuries and deaths occurred, and met with Codelco technical experts, he said. Investigators are documenting the places with photos to be able to later piece together a full map of the damage. REUTERS
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Straits Times
Chile prosecutor meets with Codelco as it probes fatal mine accident
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox People hold a helmet during the funeral of Jean Miranda Ibaceta, one of the five miners of Chilean state-run copper producer Codelco who died after being trapped following a collapse at El Teniente copper mine, at a cemetery in Rancagua, Chile August 4, 2025. REUTERS/Pablo Sanhueza/File Photo SANTIAGO - Chilean prosecutors met with technical experts at state-run miner Codelco on Friday as they investigate an accident at the El Teniente copper mine last week that killed six workers, a top prosecutor said. Prosecutor Aquiles Cubillos of the O'Higgins region told reporters that his office needed Codelco to explain various details of operations inside the mine, describing them as "things that have come up from the investigation." After the staff meetings, his team also reviewed four damaged levels of the mine, which do not include the ones where the injuries and deaths occurred, he said. Investigators are documenting the places with photos to be able to later piece together a full map of the damage. The day before, Cubillos said 3,700 meters of passageways had been damaged in the collapse, far more than 700 meters initially estimated by the company. He did not detail how serious the damage was, but said it affected two or three areas of the Andesita unit, and five or six areas of the Recursos Norte unit. El Teniente has about 4,500 kilometers of tunnels. The mine remained offline on Friday after Codelco asked Chile's mining regulator to approve a partial restart. REUTERS
