Lime as a key input in the growth of copper mining in Chile and its future in Argentina

Calidra 's statement

Copper production is analyzed and new projections are estimated year by year since it is an essential input for the development of new technologies, buildings, electric vehicles, industrial equipment and machinery, mainly in the most industrialized countries in the world such as China, United States, India and Germany.

In this sense, Chile continues in the number 1 position in the world ranking as the main copper mine producer in the world , with a 26.3% share of the global market, according to the latest figures published by the Mining Council (CM) association. . On the other hand, in the last quarterly report of the Chilean Copper Commission (Cochilco) and its August 2023 updates, a global demand for the refined red metal of 25.2 million metric tons (MT) is projected for this year.

World mine copper production , on the other hand, would increase by 2.8% this year to reach 22.2 million metric tons (MT), highlighting the production increase of the three largest producers worldwide: the Republic Democratic Congo, Peru and Chile. In the latter, mine production would reach 5.4 million tons (MT), with an increase of 1.0% compared to 2022. Meanwhile, for the year 2024 an increase of 4.3% is projected, reaching 5, 6 million tons.

China plays a leading role in the price and level of demand for copper as it is the leading manufacturer of electronic equipment in the world. In fact, it is estimated that more than 50% of the production of this metal in Chile is bought by businessmen and officials of organizations of the Asian giant. “While the value of copper has experienced some recent turbulence due to rapidly rising interest rates and weak economic data, what remains firm is how much copper the world needs, as the highly conductive metal is a component industrial infrastructure and electric vehicles,” said the latest Cochilco report.

Chile: which are the current projects with the highest production and those with the greatest potential for the future?

Currently, Chile has important active exploitation projects, located mainly in the Central Region, Norte Chico and Norte Grande. Taking into account 2022 values published by Cochilco and the Mining Council, the Central Region contributed approximately 0.77 million MT, highlighting operations such as the Andina and El Teniente Division ( Codelco ), Los Bronces Division ( Anglo American ) and Valle Central Mining ( MVC).

While the Norte Chico Region generated close to 0.76 million MT, in which operations such as Los Pelambres ( AMSA ), Minera Candelaria y Caserones ( Lundin Mining ), Salvador Division (Codelco) and Carmen de Andacollo ( TECK ) were rank in the top positions.

Finally, another 3.59 million MT were contributed by the Norte Grande Region , where important tasks such as Escondida ( BHP ), Collahuasi ( Collahuasi ), Chuquicamata and Radomiro Tomic (Codelco) and Centinela (AMSA) can be distinguished.

In total, the three regions produced a total of 5,472,356 MT of copper , reaffirming Chile as the main producer of the industry globally.

Argentina has eight megaprojects to multiply copper production

Argentina has the possibility of growing exponentially in terms of copper, since it not only has the necessary geological potential, but also has projects in the pipeline that are very advanced in terms of their technical and economic evaluation.

Argentine mining has eight megaprojects for the production of red metal in different stages of development distributed in five provinces, whose construction in the coming years will require investments of more than 22,000 million dollars and will allow incremental exports to exceed 11,000 million dollars per year .

This is clear from a work by the Mining Secretariat of the National Government released on the occasion of the presentation of the new optional and progressive regime for mineral export rights.

These are the Josemaría projects, the only one that started the construction phase, with an announced capex of US$4.1 billion; El Pachón , which is going through the feasibility stage with an initial investment of US$ 4,500 million; El Altar in advanced exploration that will require some US$ 3,000 million; and Los Azules , in a preliminary economic study (PEA) for US$ 2,363 million. All located in the province of San Juan.

In Catamarca , the Minera Agua Rica Alumbrera (Mara) project has advanced to the pre-feasibility stage and has an expected return on investment of US$3.1 billion; in the north of Mendoza , the San Jorge project -also in pre-feasibility- with an initial investment of US$370 million; while, in Salta, the Taca Taca mine is undergoing a preliminary economic study for US$ 3,583 million. Finally, Filo del Sol , which has a construction cost of US$1,266 million.

The most important in terms of reserves are El Pachón, Los Azules, and Taca Taca , projects that together represent 62% of the total copper reserves in Argentina and their construction and commissioning will require more than US$ 10,000 million, almost the half of the total projected investment.

In terms of production, they would provide a capacity of 693,000 tons at the 2020 production level: a 3% global share. But if all the projects were running at full capacity, Argentina's share would rise to 5%, with a maximum volume exceeding 1.2mt/y.

By the year 2031, assuming a scenario where the 8 projects are producing at full capacity, this would imply an inflow of additional foreign currency that could exceed US$11.1 billion per year. The result of this projection is even more important, since only the exports of these eight projects could more than double the value exported by the entire mining sector as a whole.

Grupo Calidra as an ally of the copper industry

With the objective of supplying copper mining in the accelerated demand for lime, one of the main inputs in the flotation, leaching, roasting, calcination and gas and effluent treatment processes, the Calidra Southern Cone Group –Chile and Argentina - Redoubles its efforts to enhance its infrastructure. Likewise, it works to adapt to the characteristics of the processes of each of its clients to provide products optimized for their needs.

In addition, the Calidra Group manages to differentiate itself from its competitors thanks to the quality of its lime that allows mining producers a higher yield. The state-of-the-art Maerz vertical double-shaft Regenerative Parallel Flow (FPR) kilns that the company uses in the calcination process not only allow them to produce high-grade and reactive lime, but also achieve greater efficiency with the energy already used. that use less fuel and save up to 30% more than traditional methods.

Additionally, the reactivity achieved makes the lime produced by Grupo Calidra more efficient in the mining process, resulting in the reduction of lime needed and, thanks to this, minimizing the number of trucks in transit, thus reducing carbon emissions and impact. environmental. In other words, both in the production of high-grade lime and its level of reactivity achieved by Maerz kilns contribute to the reduction of carbon emissions.

In Chile, through its modern Noviciado Industrial Plant and its distribution centers, the Calidra Group has the capacity to meet the demand for lime throughout the local market . This model industrial complex is capable of adjusting to the needs of the Chilean customer: it has 32,000 tons of stock throughout the year; a storage capacity that exceeds 50 thousand tons when all the distribution centers in the country are added.

The Novitiate Industrial Plant boasts 2 storage domes with a capacity of 14,000 tons each, built in concrete, ensuring a hermetic seal that prevents temperature shocks and moisture ingress for better lime preservation.

The plant guarantees the supply of the full range of particle sizes required by the copper industry (0-10 mm, 3-10 mm, and in some cases, 0-6 mm), and the supply of other industries such as the steel industry, (19 -38 mm), paper mills (10-19 mm) and the lithium industry (premium pulverized).

Unlike other classification and storage plants, the Novitiate Industrial Plant is located at a strategic point, it works 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. In this way, the mining companies of the region have guaranteed the delivery of a key mineral in the extraction of copper, with all the granulometries available and at a distance that reduces the degradation of the product.

Likewise, the Santiago de Chile Plant has the possibility of supplying not only from Argentina, but also from other Grupo Calidra plants located in Peru and Mexico . Thanks to this, the company can reach the different ports of the country, guaranteeing a constant quality supply and minimizing the risks of supply breaks. This, added to the 5 distribution centers throughout Chile, allows the multinational to supply the different consumers of large-scale mining, both copper and lithium.

In Argentina, the company has three production plants located in the province of San Juan which, together with its distribution centers throughout the territory, allow it to ensure a constant supply of lime to all industries in Chile and Argentina, including mining. coppermade.

With more than 115 years of experience, the Group provides solutions that go beyond the product. His understanding of the business and flexibility allow him to adapt to the needs of the client and adapt his offer to the particular characteristics of the production of each industry that he supplies.

Contribution of lime in the copper production process

Regardless of the mineral of origin or the process chosen to obtain copper, none of them escapes the use of lime, which constitutes one of the main inputs in copper mining in processes such as flotation, leaching, roasting, calcination and respective treatment of gases and effluents. In fact, the Chilean Copper Commission (Cochilco) has considered it in the first place in its report on critical inputs.

In sulphide minerals, the low copper grades force them to be previously concentrated. The most widely used method is flotation, with which concentrates with copper grades of the order of 30% or more are obtained.

The separation in this process is based on the difference in surface affinity for water of the different mineral species present in the pulp.

In flotation processes, lime plays a double role. It acts as a PH regulator and pyrite depressant. Milk of lime is a suspension of calcium hydroxide which, when ionized, releases hydroxide ions and calcium ions into the medium. Due to its ability to release hydroxides, it provides the necessary alkalinity conditions to achieve optimum copper flotation conditions. However, the PH alone does not achieve the depression of the pyrite, for this the presence of calcium ions is required.

Pyrite, of the chemical species present, is the one with the highest sulfide content. This causes its surface to have a greater number of active sites and greater polarity, the Ca2+ and OH- ions precipitate on the active sites and participate in surface reactions forming a passivating layer of undissolved CaSO4 and Ca(OH)2. This prevents the interaction of the collectors, with which the pyrite particles do not achieve the necessary hydrophobicity to adhere to the bubbles, which instead of floating are trapped and eliminated with the flotation "tails". Hence, not any alkali can replace the role of lime in the copper flotation process.

This press release was published in English using an automatic translation system.