Teck's Chilean copper mine will be forced to suspend production for about a month due to mechanical failure

On June 2 (Monday), Teck Resources announced that its Carmen de Andacollo open-pit copper mine in Chile would be forced to suspend production for approximately one month due to mechanical failures.

In a statement released on Monday, Teck stated that the unplanned production halt—triggered by maintenance shutdowns of the SAG mill—would not have a significant impact on 2025 production. Teck indicated that the Carmen de Andacollo mine would mitigate the disruption by rescheduling some plant maintenance work to coincide with the shutdown.

Teck expects the Carmen de Andacollo mine, which accounts for approximately 10% of 2025 copper production, to produce between 45,000 and 55,000 mt of copper this year, in line with previous forecasts.

Shane Nagle, a mining analyst at National Bank Financial, noted in a report that a one-month unplanned shutdown could reduce 2025 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) by less than $20 million. He stated that the rescheduled maintenance work should help make up for the shortfall in the second half of the year.

Teck also announced a temporary, unrelated shutdown of the ship loader at the Quebrada Blanca port facility in northern Chile. Teck indicated that repairs to the ship loader were also expected to take approximately one month.

Teck stated that operations at the Quebrada Blanca mine and processing plant were proceeding normally. As shipments could be made through alternative ports, there would be no significant impact on sales.

Teck stated that it expects the Quebrada Blanca mine to produce between 230,000 and 270,000 mt of copper in 2025. Overall, the company plans to produce between 490,000 and 565,000 mt of copper this year.