Facility

Las Bambas Copper Mine

Las Bambas (Cotabambas Province, Apurímac Region, Peru; altitude ~4,000m; MMG Limited/CMOC Group 62.5%, Guoxin International Investment 22.5%, CITIC Metal 15%) is one of Peru's largest copper mines, producing approximately 270,000-300,000 tonnes/year of copper ore concentrate. The mine was sold by Glencore to MMG (a subsidiary of China Minmetals, now part of CMOC Group's orbit) in 2014 for ~$7B before it began production. Las Bambas opened in 2016 and immediately became a flashpoint for community conflict: the mine's concentrate trucks must travel approximately 200km on public roads (the 'Las Bambas Road') through indigenous Quechua communities in Apurímac, Cusco, and Arequipa regions. Community blockades of this road have repeatedly halted all mine output, with blockades occurring in 2016, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 — some lasting weeks to months. Each sustained blockade halts approximately $7-8M/day in copper production. Source: MMG Limited Annual Reports 2022-2024.