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Chile’s state-owned copper giant Codelco has reassigned nearly three-quarters of the workers affected by the suspension of its Andes Norte expansion at El Teniente, the world’s largest underground copper mine, as safety concerns continue to disrupt operations.
The company has relocated 1,817 of the 2,460 workers tied to the suspended activities, or about 74%, according to local news outlet BioBioChile. El Teniente division general manager Julio Díaz disclosed the figures during a hearing before the Senate Mining and Energy Commission.
“Contract workers deserve the same respect, the same protection, and the same commitment to safety as any Codelco worker,” a union leader said during the hearing, according to BioBioChile.
The disruption adds pressure on Codelco as Chile’s mining industry struggles with production challenges. Mounting safety concerns and labour disputes across the state-owned miner’s operations are complicating efforts to maintain output while advancing key copper expansions.
Seismic safety concerns
Codelco suspended work at Andes Norte section of El Teniente in August after technical assessments identified seismic hazards associated with the depth of the deposit. The findings, based on analyses conducted over the previous six months, revealed risks different from those the company had previously identified and monitored.
The disaster was the second fatal incident of its kind at the operation in less than a year. Codelco faces criminal, regulatory and technical investigations into the collapse, while its internal inquiry into the precise cause remains ongoing.
Chile copper mines disruptions put 5% of production at risk
Safety concerns intensified earlier this month when two workers died after a snow avalanche struck a small open-pit area at the operation.
The series of fatal incidents has placed the miner’s safety practices under heightened scrutiny, particularly its ability to protect employees and contractors working in hazardous conditions.
Unresolved issues
During the Senate hearing, union representatives challenged the completeness of Codelco’s disclosures and demanded more information about safety protocols, internal investigations and contractor working conditions.
Union leaders said they possessed documents that had not been made public, accusing the state-owned company of withholding information about this month’s accident. Among their allegations was a report indicating that workers remained at the plant for an hour and 15 minutes after the accident occurred.
Lawmakers also questioned the adequacy of the information presented and called for further investigations into the company’s handling of the incidents and workers’ complaints.
Codelco copper mine blockade adds to supply concerns
Labour tensions have also surfaced at Codelco’s Ministro Hales copper mine in northern Chile, where workers blocked access to the operation for about six hours on Monday over unpaid bonuses following a serious workplace accident.
Union representatives and employees erected barricades at the mine’s main entrances in Calama, halting production and vehicle movements.
“Safety is at a standstill, and the workers are not receiving their bonuses as they should,” Alberto Muñoz, legislative director of the Federation of Copper Workers, said on Tuesday.
At El Teniente, the fate of the remaining 643 workers affected by the Andes Norte suspension remains unresolved. Codelco has not announced a date for restarting the project, with operations dependent on further technical evaluations of seismic conditions.