Cobre Panama, owned by First Quantum Minerals, has been included in the ranking of the world’s top ten largest mines in terms of tons of extracted minerals, according to World Energy Tradel. It is estimated that for the third quarter of 2021, this mine will produce approximately 96.24 million tons of copper, silver, gold, and molybdenum ores, according to production reports provided by the Vancouver-based company.
Operational since 2019 and located in Costa Abajo de Colon in Panama, Cobre Panama contributes 3.5% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Currently, the mine is in negotiations with the National Government for a new concession agreement, which has faced opposition from environmental and community groups due to the government’s promotion of open-pit mining policies.
The ten mines listed, compiled by Miningintelligence, are large or medium-sized companies, with eight of them among the top 50 mining companies in the world. The Escondida copper mine, owned by BHP, the world’s largest mining company, ranks first on the list. Escondida produces an average of 360,000 tons per day, and it is projected to extract 130.78 million tons of copper, silver, and gold ores in 2021.
In second place is the Collahuasi mine, a joint venture between Anglo American and Glencore, also located in Chile, with a projected extraction of 104.65 million tons of copper, gold, and silver ores in 2021. Other notable mines include Buenavista by Southern Copper in Mexico, Las Bambas by MMG in Peru, Sentinel by First Quantum Minerals in Zambia, Aktogay by Kaz Minerals, Paracatu by Kinross Gold in Brazil, Antamina by BHP and Glencore in Peru, and Los Bronces by Anglo American in Chile.
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