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AI-related demand is reshaping copper pricing, indicating increased demand for copper.
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Colombia3
Aris Mining Completes Soto Norte ESIA, Begins Colombia Community Engagement
Aris Mining has completed the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment for its Soto Norte gold-copper project in Santander, Colombia, and in 2026 began formal community engagement across three municipalities ahead of submitting the ESIA and environmental license application. The company said Soto Norte lies outside the Santurbán Páramo and its buffer zone, and it aligned the ESIA and consultation process with Colombia's regulatory framework and the Escazú Agreement. The milestone follows the ANM's July 29, 2026 approval of the modified technical mine plan for Soto Norte, which confirmed regulators have reviewed the project's geology, reserves and mine design but does not replace the need for an environmental license before construction or mining can begin. Aris Mining's narrative projects $2.2 billion revenue and $688.8 million earnings by 2029, requiring 19.9% yearly revenue growth and a $404.1 million earnings increase from $284.7 million today, with a CA$41.53 fair value implying 66% upside. Some of the lowest estimate analysts had assumed about US$2.0 billion of revenue and US$797.7 million of earnings by 2029 while still citing Soto Norte's lengthy permitting and heavy ESG commitments as reasons for caution.
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Critical Materials & Supply Chain › Gold ▲Regulation
Critical Materials & Supply Chain › Copper Mining & Concentrate Regulation
Critical Materials & Supply Chain › Precious Metals Regulation
Critical Materials & Supply Chain › Copper Regulation
ARIS · Regulation · Positive Aris Mining completed the Soto Norte ESIA and began formal community engagement, advancing the project toward the required environmental license under Colombia's regulatory framework.
Peru
Chile▲
Rio2 Launches 33,870-Metre Condestable Drilling, Suspends Fenix Gold Work
Rio2 Limited launched a two-phase surface drilling and district-scale exploration program at its Condestable Copper Mine in Peru while suspending drilling at the Fenix Gold Mine in Chile, according to a September 2026 company-wide exploration update. The Condestable campaign covers 33,870 metres across two phases and is designed to better understand and potentially convert both breccia-hosted and vein-hosted copper-gold-silver mineralization based on a refined geological model. The program sits on top of the August 2026 approval of the MEIA modification for Condestable, which supports expansion to 10,000 tonnes per day and dry stack tailings. Rio2 said the Fenix suspension stemmed from adverse weather, safety concerns and contractor standby costs, leaving extreme weather as the key near-term operational risk. The company's narrative projects $691.3 million in revenue and $250.6 million in earnings by 2029, requiring 59.3% yearly revenue growth and roughly a $192 million earnings increase from $58.2 million today.
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Critical Materials & Supply Chain › Copper Mining & Concentrate ▲Supply
Critical Materials & Supply Chain › Copper ▲Supply
Rio2 Limited · Supply · Positive Rio2 launched a two-phase 33,870-metre drilling program at Condestable to expand copper-gold-silver resources
COPPER · Supply · Positive Rio2's 33,870-metre drilling at Condestable and MEIA-backed expansion to 10,000 tpd signal potential future copper supply growth
Argentina
Australia▲
BHP Unit Wins El Seguro Copper Exploration Contract in Argentina
Impulsa Mendoza has awarded Public Tender No. 2/2026 to Cerro Quebrado S.A., a BHP Group company, granting it an exploration contract with a purchase option for the El Seguro copper project in Argentina's Malargüe Western Mining District. The award gives BHP a second route into the district alongside its alliance with Kobrea Exploration, deepening its copper exploration exposure in a single emerging Andean jurisdiction. The contract sits alongside BHP's recent production and guidance updates, in which copper output in FY2026 fell 3% year on year to 1,952.8 kt and 2027 copper guidance was set below 2026 levels. BHP's narrative projects $56.1 billion in revenue and $13.3 billion in earnings by 2029, with a fair value of A$61.02, while some of the lowest ranked analysts assumed revenue would fall to about US$52.5 billion by 2029 even as earnings rose to roughly US$11.7 billion.
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Critical Materials & Supply Chain › Copper Supply
Critical Materials & Supply Chain › Copper Mining & Concentrate ▲Supply
BHP.LSE · Supply · Positive BHP's Cerro Quebrado unit won the El Seguro copper exploration contract with a purchase option, expanding its copper resource base in Argentina
Cerro Quebrado S.A. · Supply · Positive Cerro Quebrado S.A., a BHP company, was awarded the El Seguro copper exploration contract with a purchase option
COPPER · Supply · Positive BHP's new copper exploration contract in Argentina signals potential future copper supply growth