Codelco will overhaul overhaul Copper Mine in Chile and start operation in the second half of next year

Codelco, a Chilean copper miner, has been approved by its board of directors to spend $1.383 billion on a comprehensive overhaul of the overhaul copper mine.

According to the plan, the state-owned mining company will start the construction of the Rajo Inca project to convert overhaul from an underground mine to an open-pit mine.

The move is expected to extend the production life of aging mines and increase their production to 95000 tons of (tpa) per year.

Codelco points out that the cost of the, Rajo Inca project will be 33 per cent lower than the original estimate in 2014.

Construction of the Rajo Inca project will begin this year. According to the company, the project includes 22 months of work prior to the stripping of the rock that covers the deposit.

"after obtaining favourable environmental eligibility decisions and funding approved by the board of directors in February 2020, the structural project will mean the rebirth of overhaul as it will become a more modern, technological, sustainable and productive mode of operation," Codelco said in a press release.

Codelco is expected to start operating the overhauled mine in the second half of next year.