Altair plans to invest US$260mn in Chile copper-gold project

Minera Altair filed an environmental impact statement with Chile's review agency SEA, involving US$260 million to mine the La Farola copper-gold deposit in Atacama region.

The goal is to produce 90,000t/y of copper concentrates with gold content, at a rate of 15,000t/d throughput for 15 years, according to the statement.

Capex would be 4% higher than for the La Farola operational continuity project that Altair presented in last September, expand details on the control mechanisms for particulate matter and modify the tailings deposit system from a mixed filtered-sterile one to a filtered system that will optimize water and energy consumption.

If approved, it would reach a maximum depth of 340m, at an elevation of 940m above sea level, up from 900m. The mine will remain open pit and cover 72ha, with a maximum diameter of 1,550m.

The use of high pressure grinding roller technology is maintained for processing and is applied to the concentrator plant to carry out comminution, flotation and crushing.

Only desalinated water will be used, completely ruling out consumption of continental resources. Negotiations with CAP's water unit and Nueva Atacama are underway, the document said.

The project presented last year was withdrawn by Altair, after SEA decided to end the processing early due to the lack of information on atmospheric impacts, areas of influence and nearby communities.

Due to this lack of information, the authority wrote in a resolution from October that it could not “rule out risk to people's health in an area declared saturated by” particulate matter.

Altair withdrew a first environmental impact statement in August 2023.

As outlined in the latest document, works would start in April 2025, considering a 17-year mine life and a closure phase to could begin at the end of 2041.

La Farola has been mined in the past and is one of the most relevant medium-sized mining projects in the national portfolio, which also includes El Espino, Sierra Norte, Arqueros, Costa Fuego and Michilla.

The investment announced by this mining segment amounts to US$2.73bn for 2023-32, according to copper commission Cochilco.