Chile’s ENAMI attracts global miners and traders for $1.7 billion smelter modernization

Chile’s ENAMI attracts global miners, traders, and banks for its $1.7 billion Hernán Videla Lira smelter modernization. Discover which companies are bidding and what’s next for the project.

Chile’s state-owned mining company ENAMI announced that 15 companies, including major miners, global traders, investment funds and international banks, have expressed interest in financing the $1.7 billion modernization of the Hernán Videla Lira smelter in the Atacama region.

According to ENAMI, interested parties include mining giant Rio Tinto, commodity traders Mercuria, Hartree Partners, Vitol and Javelin Global Commodities, investment funds such as Orion Resource Partners, and banks including Sumitomo Mitsui Bank Limited, Macquarie Bank and Société Générale.

Also on the list are Japan’s Mitsui, Indian copper producer Indo Asia Copper, and China Nonferrous Metal Industry’s Foreign Engineering and Construction (NFC).

ENAMI’s executive vice president, Iván Mlynarz, welcomed the strong reception from the market:

“It has been very gratifying to see the interest in this mega-project, which reflects investors’ confidence in the company and in Chile’s mining sector.”

A key project for chilean copper

ENAMI launched the investor process in August, offering copper cathode supply in exchange for financing participation.

The modernization of the Hernán Videla Lira smelter, located in Paipote (Atacama region), will enable the facility to process 850,000 metric tons of copper concentrate per year and produce about 240,000 tons of high-purity copper cathodes.

The initiative aims not only to boost capacity and efficiency, but also to ensure compliance with Chile’s stricter environmental standards, aligning with the country’s climate commitments and drive toward cleaner mining technologies.

Next steps

ENAMI said initial offers must be submitted by the end of October, after which the company will move into a binding offer stage.

The Paipote modernization stands out as one of the most strategic copper investments in Chile, at a time when global demand for the red metal continues to rise.