Industria Proyecto: Water & Desalination

The Mantoverde Development project represents the operational continuity of the mine until 2041, through the exploitation of its sub-surplus sulfide resources. It considers the extraction and beneficiation of new ore reserves, expanding sectors that are currently being exploited. The process will be carried out through a new concentrator plant with a capacity of between 33 ktpd to 35.6 ktpd. It comprises an open-pit copper mine, with a crushing plant, mechanized material transport and stacking system, heap leaching, and a solvent extraction and electro-winning process. It also has a desalination plant. This project will allow Mantoverde to produce an average of 106 thousand tons of fine copper and 33 thousand ounces of gold per year, including approximately 74,000 tons of copper contained in high grade clean concentrate per year.

Dominga’s desalination plant returns the water to the sea without chemicals and at the same temperature at which it was collected. In this way, Dominga will not use water from the Los Choros basin and will also provide water from its desalination plant to the inhabitants of the commune of La Higuera for human consumption. The port project will be voted on by the Committee of Ministers of Chile’s Environmental Impact Assessment System (SEIA) at the end of the year following requirements and analysis of the ecosystem and the health of the surrounding communities.

The project consists of desalination seawater plant with an estimated 200m3/h water delivery to the town of Mejillones in the region of Antofagasta. It includes engineering, equipment supply, transportation, operation, construction, services commissioning for the plant. The treatment at the plant consists of a double reverse osmosis system with a capacity of 100m3/h each. This project is currently in execution, starting in September 2014, having a deadline date in October 2015.