Codelco and Saudi Arabia in talks about copper investment; 2025 output expected to increase

In an interview with the company's Chairman on Friday, Codelco's Chairman said that the company is in discussions with Saudi Arabia about potential joint investments in copper.

Maximo Pacheco, the Chairman of Codelco, said that by 2025 it was expected that Codelco would increase its own production to around 1.4 millions tons.

Pacheco stated that the Saudi Arabian state-owned firm had held discussions with them as both sides felt a need to increase value.

In an interview with Pacheco, following the annual Future Minerals Forum of the Kingdom's miners, Pacheco said: "We are very open to joint investment opportunities."

Saudi Arabia is pursuing copper and lithium as it bids to become the hub for manufacturing electric vehicles and batteries, part of Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman's plans to wean its economy off oil.

Pacheco stated that he met with Saudi Arabia's mining minister as well as representatives of Manara Minerals. Manara Minerals is a joint venture formed by Saudi Arabian Mining Company, the Public Investment Fund and Saudi Arabian Mining Company.

He expressed his hope that the discussion would result in an announcement within the next few months.

The markets are moving very quickly. "We need to be just as fast," Pacheco said.

He noted that he had talked about technology transfers with Saudi Arabia and mentioned the experience of the Kingdom in desalination. Both sides discussed the introduction of new technologies into mining, including artificial intelligence.

Bandar al-Khorayaf, the mining minister of Saudi Arabia, previously stated that Saudi Arabia is interested in Chilean lithium assets.

Codelco is looking for a partner to work on a large lithium project at the Maricunga Salt Flat. Pacheco stated that the company had a short list of potential investors, and Saudi companies weren't on this list.

He said that the board will vote on the project by March.

Codelco is struggling to raise production from a 25-year low due to declining ore grades and accidents at major construction sites. The company will ramp up output by the end of this year in order to reach its 2024 goal of 1.328 million tons. Reporting by Pesha Magd; Editing and Tomaszjanowski by Veronica Brown

(source: Reuters)