Strong copper price reviving Peru's mining mojo, Minister says
LIMA - Peru's dented mining mojo, hit by years of political turmoil in the Andean country, is being buoyed by strong copper prices and a bullish outlook they will rise further, helping lure back investor interest, the country's Mining Minister said on Friday.
"The price of copper is a great attraction," Romulo Mucho, told Reuters in an interview at his office, a reference to prices that hit two-year peaks of $10 208 a metric ton this week, close to the record high of $10 845 in March 2022.
Goldman Sachs earlier in the day hiked its year-end price target to $12 000 per ton, from $10 000 previously, citing the copper market's path into scarcity and expectations of a larger deficit of the key metal needed for electrification.
Mucho said that the trend was helping salve mining companies' caution in the country, the world's no. 2 exporter that has struggled to fend off a challenge from rival producer Congo as incoming mining investment has dwindled.
The minister added he had met with executives from Newmont, Teck Resources, Hudbay Minerals, Antofagasta Minerals and others in recent months, who had shown interest in new ventures and operational mines.
"Most of the CEOs I talked to asked what projects there are and how they can get involved," Mucho said, blaming political uncertainty under former governments for hurting the sector. Peru has had half a dozen presidents in the last six years.
"Confidence is being recovered."
Peru expects to produce some three-million tons of copper this year, up from 2.75-million last year, a goal Mucho stuck by, though he added production from protest-hit Las Bambas, owned by China's MMG, was key to hitting the target.
Comments
Research Reports
Projects
Latest Multimedia
Latest News
Showroom
FlameBlock is a proudly South African company that engineers, manufactures and supplies fire intumescent and retardant products to the fire...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Our Easy Access Chute concept was developed to reduce the risks related to liner maintenance. Currently, replacing wear liners require that...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation
