Antofagasta Minerals to invest US$30mn in exploration

Chilean copper miner Antofagasta Minerals, a subsidiary of London-based Antofagasta plc, (LSE: ANTO) will invest US$30mn in 2005 to explore for deposits in Chile and Peru, newspaper El Mercurio reported. The amount is double the US$15mn the company spent on exploration in 2004. The objective is to recover the resource base given that with the production capacity increase of Pelambres, its main mine, the latter's mining life was reduced to 30 years from 45, the paper said. Furthermore, El Tesoro has 13 years mine life left and Michilla will wind up in 2011. The company is not only increasing its investments in mineral exploration but is also in preliminary talks to acquire deposits in Chile, the paper quoted executive vice-president and CEO Marcelo Awad as saying. Antofagasta Minerals' main exploration project is Esperanza in northern Chile, where a 2004 feasibility study estimated a US$700mn capex for a 150,000t/y copper operation. Antofagasta plc is 60%-owned by Chile's Luksic family.