March 2 (Bloomberg) -- LS-Nikko Copper Inc., the world's second-biggest buyer of copper concentrate, said its ore imports from Chile are unlikely to be affected by the Feb. 27 earthquake that killed more than 700 people.

The earthquake "is unlikely to disrupt ore supplies from the country as mines were not damaged since they are located in the northern part and reopened after just a brief shutdown," Lee Joon, a spokesman for the Seoul-based company, said in a telephone interview today.

Copper surged to the highest in more than five weeks yesterday in London on concerns the quake disrupted supplies from Chile, the world's largest producer. The metal for three- month delivery on the London Metal Exchange fell 1.4 percent to $7,300 a metric ton at 12:11 p.m. Seoul time as mines reopened in the South American nation.

LS-Nikko, operator of the world's third-largest copper refinery and smelter, is closely monitoring any possible delays in shipments, Lee said.

The company, a joint venture between South Korea's LS Corp. and a Japanese group led by Nippon Mining & Metals Co., consumes between 1.5 million tons and 1.6 million tons of copper concentrates a year. Chile is the biggest source of the company's concentrate needs, he said.