


MINERA TRES VALLES PRESENTS PURCHASING
AGREEMENT TO CHOAPA MINING ASSOCIATONS
The activity brought together leaders and representatives of the main unions and groups of copper miners from the cities of Illapel, Salamanca and Canela.
Since 2012, Minera Tres Valles has been purchasing ore from third parties with the mission of promoting development opportunities for the local small-scale mining industry by acquiring, processing and selling their mined copper.
Through a talk given to the main organizations of small-scale miners in the Choapa province, Tres Valles showed the implications of its ore purchasing agreement, such as buying lots of both oxides and mixed copper (oxides plus chalcocites) starting from 350 tonnes with a payment scale for grades ranging from 0.50% to 3.50%.
Together with the accreditation of suppliers and explaining the purchasing process, the Company also announced its two lines of work dedicated to promoting productivity among local mining. The first of these is the leasing of mining properties from within the approximate 45,000 hectares that belong to Minera Tres Valles. The second one establishes a collaborative framework agreement with the Mining Association of Salamanca and the San Lorenzo Mining Union, which allows members to freely mine at various shared locations granted by the Company.
Sebastián Cortés, Sustainability Manager at Minera Tres Valles, highlighted “the work of encouraging production from small-scale and artisanal miners, who are an important part of the local economy and are undeniably valuable for the Company. Our social development projects, together with this purchasing agreement, are built in order to achieve a virtuous link among projects that vary in scale, creating new job opportunities and improving the working conditions for small-scale miners.”
The event was attended by the Regional Mining Secretary, Roberto Vega, who emphasized that the development of this initiative “responds to the government’s call to set Chile in motion; mining, especially small-scale mining, revives communities and this is why we appreciate Minera Tres Valles’ efforts to collaborate with small producers from Choapa to achieve economic revitalization.”