Chile should improve copper smelters before building more, Cochilco says
SANTIAGO - Chile should improve the performance of its existing copper smelters before building new ones, State copper commission Cochilco said on Monday, as global competition for copper concentrate intensifies.
Chile has Latin America's largest smelting capacity, but its plants are operating at about 60% of potential output, Cochilco said.
Smelters process copper concentrate, a material produced by mines, into refined metal used in power grids, electric vehicles and other products.
Global concentrate supplies have tightened because of lower ore grades, mine delays and operational disruptions, while new smelters have raised demand. This has driven processing fees - known as treatment and refining charges - close to zero or into negative territory, squeezing smelter profits.
Chile's share of global smelted copper production fell to 4.2% in 2025 from 13.3% in 1990, even as it produced about 23% of the world's copper concentrate last year.
About two-thirds of Chile's concentrate exports go to China, the world's largest copper-processing market, leaving Chile exposed to changes in Chinese demand and policy.
Cochilco said planned smelters, mainly in Asia, could add 8.2-million metric tons of annual processing capacity by 2041, increasing competition for concentrate.
Chile should only pursue new projects once existing plants are operating reliably and at higher capacity, it said.
