Las Bambas is a joint venture project between the operator MMG (62.5%), a wholly owned subsidiary of Guoxin International Investment Co. Ltd (22.5%) and CITIC Metal Co. Ltd (15.0%).
With an estimated mine life of 18 plus years, the operation produces copper concentrate, with by-products of gold and silver, as well as molybdenum concentrate through conventional processing methods.
Ore at Las Bambas is mined from an open pit. The ore is crushed and transported on a 5.5-kilometre overland conveyor to a conventional flotation plant where copper concentrate is produced, then to a molybdenum plant for further processing. Concentrate is then transported by truck and rail to the Port of Matarani in the Arequipa region, where it is shipped to customers worldwide.
After a successful commissioning of the operation, Las Bambas commercial production got underway on 1 July 2016. It is one of the world’s largest copper mines, with an annual nameplate throughput capacity of 51.1 million tonnes and annual production is expected to be around 280,000 to 320,000 tonnes of copper in copper concentrate.
Las Bambas’ contribution from taxes and royalties exceeded US$193 million. More than 6,000 direct and indirect jobs were created, benefitting 25 per cent of residents from the Apurímac region.
