A landslide overnight has blocked the only access road to the Cerro Alto copper mine in the high Andes of central Chile, halting concentrate shipments from one of the region's larger operations. The operator, Minera Cerro Alto, says no one was injured. Copper prices rose sharply in early trading. This page is updated as news comes in; the newest entries are at the top.
10:00 Reopening estimate
Minera Cerro Alto says it expects to reopen one lane of the road within five to seven days, once engineers confirm the slope is stable. Full two-way traffic could take three weeks. The mine holds about four days of concentrate storage on site, according to a company spokesperson, after which it would need to slow the mill.
09:25 Price holds gains
Benchmark three-month copper is up 2.8 per cent on the morning, its largest one-day rise in seven weeks, according to Break's metals desk. Traders say the move reflects the tight concentrate market more than the size of the mine. "One road, one mine, and the whole market jumps," said Alejandro Fuentes, a metals broker at Pardo & Vial in Santiago. "That tells you how thin the cushion is." Background in Copper's Quiet Squeeze.
08:40 Trucks rerouted
About 60 concentrate trucks that were due to leave the mine today are parked at the site. Trucks already on the road below the slide have been diverted to a longer gravel route through a neighbouring valley, which adds about five hours to the trip to the port. The company says that route cannot carry the full volume.
08:10 Smelters check their stocks
Two Asian smelters that buy Cerro Alto concentrate under annual contracts say they are reviewing their inventories. One purchasing manager, who asked not to be named because the contract terms are private, said his plant holds about three weeks of feed and could run for a fortnight without the mine. "A week of closure is a nuisance," he said. "A month would change our schedule." Spot offers for concentrate were withdrawn by at least two traders this morning.
07:55 Photos from the slope
Images shared by the operator show a section of the road about 400 metres long covered by rock and mud, with a crack running across the hillside above it. The site is about 35 kilometres below the mine at a hairpin bend. Heavy machinery has arrived but is holding back until geologists inspect the slope.
07:10 No injuries confirmed
Minera Cerro Alto confirms all staff and contractors are accounted for. A night shift of 340 workers remains at the mine camp, which has food and fuel for at least two weeks. Shift changes by road are suspended; the company is arranging a helicopter for medical cover.
06:30 Road blocked
Local radio reports a landslide on the mountain road leading to the Cerro Alto mine after two days of unusually heavy rain. The road is closed in both directions. The mine produces about 180,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate a year, most of it shipped to smelters in Asia through a port on the Pacific coast.
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