Exploration for the continuity of mining in Chile

By Juan Carlos Marquardt, Vice President of Fexmin, the exploration and mining fair, due to be held in Santiago, Chile in August.

Chile leads the world in copper production, but there is currently a danger that other countries will catch up with us. The factors are diverse, but one of the main ones is the reduction in exploration budgets, and particularly those of the greenfield type.

The exploration budget in Chile, which includes the majors segment, reaches US$713.2mn and a 5.48% share of the global budget in 2022. This is a 30.2% increase compared with 2021, and once again positions Chile as the main exploration destination in Latin America, since it was surpassed by Mexico in 2021.

The increase in exploration globally and in Chile is mainly justified by the cessation of sanitary restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic and by the high prices of some minerals registered in 2021 and part of 2022, such as copper, gold and lithium.

However, it is important to make potential national and international investors aware of the possibilities and projections that our country has to explore and generate new mining projects, which allow us to maintain or increase the production of minerals, especially those that will be most in demand by the current world for new technologies, both for the development of renewable energies and for use in electromobility, that allow the effects of climate change to be combatted.

For this reason, at Fexmin 2023, which will take place on August 29-31, we will have exhibitors who will let us know about the opportunities that exist for investors who can finance their exploration projects, which will be the future of Chilean mining.

This event is characterized by the ability of the attendees to talk with the exhibitors, to learn about project proposals, to discuss potential investments and learn about the new technologies that exist for the world of exploration.

We have stated before that in order to maintain mining development in Chile, exploration is the fundamental pillar. However, and these are issues that we will also address at the event, it is essential for the rules of the game for investors to be clear and for the authorities and public to know that the economic pillar of the country is mining.

This content is the sole responsibility of the author and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of BNamericas. We invite those interested in participating as a guest columnist to submit an article for possible inclusion. Contact the editor at mining@bnamericas.com.