Minera Escondida

2006 financial reports showed a cumulative investment of US$5.64 billion,[5] and at year end June 2013, Escondida accounted for approximately 5 percent of all copper production.

[6] In 1978, J David Lowell proposed an exploration program along the porphyry copper belt between Chuquicamata in the north and El Salvador in the south.

[7] More holes were drilled to delineate the orebody and a shaft was sunk to provide bulk samples for metallurgical testing.

In 1994, an ammonia leach plant to produce copper cathode from a portion of the concentrates was started up in Coloso, but was not economic and closed down four years later.

At the end of 2006, the company employed directly some 2,951 workers and 3,158 contractors[5] The average copper price in 2007 rose to US$3.23/lb compared with the mine's total direct costs of only 60.8 cents/lb, which fell partly as a result of sharply lower treatment and refining costs charged by smelters.

[9][10] The strike was called because the workers felt they were not sharing in the very high profits being made by the company on the back of the record copper price.

[14] The company managed to keep production at 40% of normal levels, but the union eventually blockaded the road to the mine on 16 August.