Overview
- Freeport says the plan would roughly quadruple El Abra’s capacity to more than 300,000 metric tons of copper per year.
- The proposal includes a new concentrator, a seawater desalination plant, and expanded tailings storage.
- El Abra operates as a joint venture, with Freeport holding 51% and state-owned Codelco 49%.
- Company executives met in Santiago with newly appointed Economy and Mining Minister Daniel Mas as the process gets underway.
- FCX fell about 5% in pre-market trading as copper futures weakened, and any expanded production is not expected before 2033.