CHILE · MINING
Key Facts
- —The country Chile, the world’s largest copper producer, mines about 23% of the world’s copper and is led by the conservative government of President José Antonio Kast.
- —Why it matters The United States took 68% of its refined copper imports from Chile in 2021 to 2024, so Chilean output and tax certainty touch US manufacturers and investors.
- —Why now The pitch came on Tuesday 20 October 2026 at a London seminar during LME Week, three days after Chile published its new economic law on Saturday 17 October.
- —What happened Economy and Mining Minister Daniel Mas and Foreign Minister Francisco Pérez Mackenna presented a projected mining investment portfolio of US$105 billion through 2034 to global mining executives.
- —The numbers Corporate tax falls from 27% to 23% by 2029, and tax stability runs 10, 15 or 20 years depending on project size, starting at US$50 million.
- —What it means for you US copper buyers and investors in miners with Chilean assets get a policy signal, not a contract, and the tax changes start only from January 2027.
- —Still open Which projects make up the US$105 billion, who compiled the figure, and how many companies take up the new tax-stability contracts.
- —Power Index Chile ranks 3rd of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 63.6 points (October 2026 edition).
The Chile mining pipeline of US$105 billion was pitched to global mining executives in London on Tuesday 20 October 2026, during LME Week, the London Metal Exchange’s mining week. Economy and Mining Minister Daniel Mas and Foreign Minister Francisco Pérez Mackenna said Chile holds 23% of the world copper market and has a projected mining investment portfolio of US$105 billion through 2034.
For US readers the pitch matters because Chile was the source of 68% of US refined copper imports in 2021 to 2024, according to the US Geological Survey. The same survey estimates Chile mined 5.3 million tonnes of copper in 2025, close to a quarter of the 23 million tonnes mined worldwide.
The speeches followed Chile’s new economic law, which President Kast promulgated on 9 October and the Diario Oficial published on Saturday 17 October. Our earlier analysis, Chile Mining Strategy: Less Tax, Argentina Treaty, covered the government’s mining plans before the ministers took them abroad.
What Chile Told Mining Executives in London
Mas and Pérez Mackenna spoke at the Anglo-Chilean Society’s annual mining seminar, held within LME Week, according to the government summary carried by Chilean mining outlets. The audience was executives from large mining companies, according to the same summary.
Mas said the ambition is to make Chile “the most competitive mining and logistics platform in South America”, and not only a place to extract minerals. He added that the Kast government wants to ease private investment while the state keeps protecting the public interest.
Pérez Mackenna told the audience that Chile offers institutional stability, a solid democracy and one of the cleanest and most competitive energy mixes in the southern hemisphere. He said the legal framework protects long-term investment and that the foreign ministry promotes copper, lithium and technology infrastructure abroad under a campaign called Choose Chile.
The foreign minister also pointed to three government plans: the National Mining Policy, the National Critical Minerals Strategy and the National Lithium Strategy. He presented them as an invitation for international capital to build value chains inside Chile rather than only export raw material.
The Tax Changes Behind the Chile Mining Pipeline
The law behind the pitch is the Law of National Reconstruction and Economic and Social Development, known in Chile as the megarreforma. CNN Chile reported that Kast promulgated it on Friday 9 October, and La Tercera reported its publication in the Diario Oficial on Saturday 17 October.
The corporate income tax rate falls from 27% to 25.5% for 2027 income, to 24% in 2028 and to 23% from 2029, according to CNN Chile. Mas and Pérez Mackenna cited the same cut in London, together with tax stability of up to 20 years for large mining developments.
The stability regime starts on 1 January 2027 and runs 10 years for investments from US$50 million to under US$100 million, 15 years from US$100 million to under US$350 million and 20 years from US$350 million, CNN Chile reported. Chile’s Constitutional Court, which reviewed the law, narrowed the regime on 26 August by removing the Finance Ministry’s power to extend the deadlines for bringing capital into the country and to add “related projects” to an existing contract.
The same law speeds up environmental permits, according to La Tercera, and removes a 10% capital gains tax on listed shares from 1 January 2027, according to CNN Chile. The share-tax change matters to foreign holders of Chilean stocks.
Codelco and the Lithium Message
Mas also pointed to Codelco, the state-owned copper company, and to its alliances with private partners for capital and technology. He said the government is moving toward special operating contracts with private firms in lithium and new ways to recover lithium through a circular economy.
Officials at the seminar put Codelco’s 2025 production at 1.44 million tonnes, which matches the 1,439,732 tonnes in Codelco’s own March 2026 results. That total includes Codelco’s attributed shares in El Abra (49%), Anglo American Sur (20%) and Quebrada Blanca (10%), and its own mines produced 1,334,445 tonnes.
Codelco said in May it had detected deviations in its 2025 production figures, and on 14 October it said inconsistencies in the 2024 and 2025 numbers are under audit. Its board called an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting for 5 November, and we covered the government’s stance on partners in Chile Rules Out Sale of Codelco’s Parent.
Our Codelco explainer covers the company’s debt and the El Teniente accident. Our report Codelco Copper Output Audit Finds 2025 Overstatement covers the 2025 figures that are now under review.
Chile’s Place in the Copper Market
The 23% share cited in London matches the US Geological Survey’s 2025 estimate of 5.3 million tonnes of Chilean mine output out of 23 million tonnes worldwide. The survey puts Chile’s output at 5.5 million tonnes in 2024, so the survey’s own estimate is a fall of about 4%.
That decline is one reason new projects matter to the pitch, although the sources reviewed do not link the two. Our guide Chile Natural Resources Explained 2026 shows where the copper and lithium sit.
What It Means for You
US manufacturers and wire, cable and electronics buyers took most of their imported refined copper from Chile in 2021 to 2024, so a stable tax regime that favours new mines supports future supply. The pitch is a statement of intent, and nothing in the sources reviewed shows a signed deal, a named project or a new contract.
Investors in listed miners with Chilean assets should note that the tax cut and stability contracts apply only from 2027, and that each stability contract depends on the size of the investment. The Codelco audit shows that the investment story still faces tests at home.
Travellers and residents will not see the mining policy in daily life. Our Santiago expat city guide covers the capital where most of these decisions are made.
What Is Not Known
The sources reviewed do not say which projects make up the US$105 billion portfolio, who compiled it, or how much of it is already committed. The figure was given by Chilean officials as a projection through 2034, and no independent estimate was found.
No summary names a company that has signed a deal in London or applied for the new tax-stability contracts. It is also not known when the first stability contracts could be signed.
No revised Codelco 2025 total was found in the sources reviewed, so the 1.44 million tonnes cited in London may change after the audit. The shareholders’ meeting on 5 November may clarify its numbers.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much mining investment did Chile pitch in London?
Chilean ministers presented a projected mining investment portfolio of US$105 billion through 2034. The figure is a government projection, and the sources reviewed do not list the projects.
Who presented the Chile mining pipeline?
Economy and Mining Minister Daniel Mas and Foreign Minister Francisco Pérez Mackenna presented it on Tuesday 20 October 2026. They spoke at the Anglo-Chilean Society’s mining seminar during LME Week in London.
How low will Chile’s corporate tax fall?
The corporate tax rate falls from 27% to 25.5% for 2027 income, to 24% in 2028 and to 23% from 2029. The cut is part of the megarreforma law published on 17 October 2026.
Why does Chile matter to US copper buyers?
Chile supplied 68% of US refined copper imports in 2021 to 2024, according to the US Geological Survey. It also mines about a quarter of the world’s copper.
Is the US$105 billion a signed investment?
No, it is a projected portfolio, and no signed deal or named project was reported from the London seminar. Companies still have to decide whether to build.
Sources: Minería Chilena, 20 October 2026; CNN Chile, 20 October 2026; Nueva Minería, 20 October 2026; CNN Chile, 9 October 2026; La Tercera, 17 October 2026; Codelco results release, 27 March 2026; Codelco board release, 14 October 2026; US Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Copper.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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