Chile Says US$10 Billion at Codelco Was Poor

CHILE · MINING

Chile’s government says more than US$10 billion of Codelco’s recent investments were poor, because they did not raise output. Daniel Mas, the minister who runs both the economy and mining portfolios, said the state copper giant should make 1.7 million tonnes this year but will finish near 1.2 million.

For US readers, Codelco is one of the world’s largest copper miners, and copper wires the power grids, electric cars and data centres that America is building. Codelco also sells bonds to international investors, and Mas said a separate scandal over its output figures goes to the heart of their trust.

What Happened

Mas gave the estimate in a radio interview released on Tuesday 10 November 2026. “In different strategic projects, we estimate that over 10 billion dollars have not been good investments,” he said.

He pointed to Chuquicamata Subterránea, an underground expansion meant to extend the life of Codelco’s Chuquicamata mine in northern Chile. He said it did not deliver the extra output that justified it, and that it cost double.

Mas said Codelco “should be at 1.7 million” tonnes and invested to get there, but will close the year near 1.2 million. “We lost that money because we do not have more production,” he said.

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Why the Projects Fell Short

Asked for the causes, Mas said the projects are very long and complex, with problems in the studies, the building and the management. He added that “bad luck” with some crises raised the losses, and called it “a sum of factors that end in this disaster”.

Codelco’s chair, Bernardo Fontaine, made a similar case in an interview published on Monday 9 November 2026. He said Codelco invested US$32 billion over eight years while its output fell from 1.7 million to 1.2 million tonnes.

Fontaine also said company reports show costs 78% above those of multinational peers, and that ore grade, the share of copper in the rock, does not explain the gap. He called the results of the big structural projects “disappointing”.

The Separate Output Scandal

On Thursday 5 November 2026, Fontaine told an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting that 42,100 tonnes of copper were counted wrongly in 2024 and 2025. The preliminary split is 24,000 tonnes in 2024 and 18,100 tonnes in 2025.

The error could force an accounting write-down of US$120 million to US$140 million, Fontaine said. Audits by KPMG and EY, two global accounting firms, are still running and are due in December.

Mas called the case “very serious”, though he said its cost is “of another magnitude” than the investment losses. He said eight executives have been removed, the problem surfaced only through an anonymous complaint, and “there could be crimes”.

What the Government Plans

Mas said the government will review the bodies around Codelco, including Cochilco, the state copper commission, and Sernageomin, the national geology and mining service. “All of that failed,” he said, and he asked whether Cochilco can both advise and police the company.

He backed Fontaine’s idea of inviting private firms to develop new deposits, and said the government will review the legal limits that make that hard. Mas ruled out privatisation: “No, we have never talked about that.”

Chile’s Socialist Party, a centre-left party, says there is a campaign to discredit Codelco so its assets can be sold. For earlier steps in the dispute, see our reports on the governance review and on the bonuses tied to the false output.

What It Means for You

If you own Codelco bonds or mining funds with Chilean exposure, the key question is whether the company can rebuild trust and output at the same time. A shortfall of about 0.5 million tonnes against plan means less copper than Codelco planned to sell, which matters to buyers including US manufacturers.

Watch the audit results, which Fontaine says should be ready in December. They will show how large the overstatement really is.

What Is Not Known

Mas gave Chuquicamata Subterránea as an example, so it is not known which other projects make up the US$10 billion. It is also not known how he calculated the figure.

The final size of the output overstatement is open until the audits end, and Fontaine said it could grow. It is also unclear whether any crimes will be proven, and how far the legal limits on private partners will change.

More: Chile news in English, every day from The Rio Times.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Did Chile’s Minister Say About Codelco?

Daniel Mas said more than US$10 billion of Codelco’s investments in strategic projects were not good ones. He said they did not raise output.

How Much Copper Will Codelco Produce in 2026?

Mas said Codelco will end the year near 1.2 million tonnes. He said it should be at 1.7 million tonnes.

Is Chile Planning to Privatise Codelco?

No, Mas said the government has never discussed it. It wants private firms to help develop new deposits instead.

How Much Copper Was Counted Wrongly?

Codelco’s chair says a preliminary 42,100 tonnes were overstated across 2024 and 2025. Audits due in December will fix the final figure.

Sources: Chile’s Ministry of Mining and Ministry of Economy, statements by Minister Daniel Mas, 10 November 2026; Codelco, extraordinary shareholders’ meeting and statements by chair Bernardo Fontaine, 5 and 9 November 2026; Cochilco, the Chilean Copper Commission; Sernageomin, the national geology and mining service.

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated AI newsroom. Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief. The Rio Times also runs Ask Rio Times, which answers from 100,000+ of our own articles, the daily Latin America Power Map, and prediction-market odds on elections and markets.. How we use AI · Report an error