Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has announced the sale of its 80% interest in the Candelaria/Ojos del Salado copper mining operations and infrastructure to Toronto-based Lundin Mining Corp. for $1.8 billion in cash. Pending Q4 regulatory approvals, $2 million is contingent on 5% of net copper revenues through 2019 based on average realized prices.
“This represents another important step in our debt reduction,” said Freeport-McMoRan CEO Richard Adkerson in a statement. “We remain committed to focusing on our portfolio of high-quality assets;” Phoenix-based Freeport forecasts net after-tax profits of $1.5 billion.
As of Q4 2013, Candelaria/Ojos enjoyed recoverable reserves of 4 billion copper lb and 1.1 million gold oz. Consolidated production through Q3 2014 totaled 169 million copper lb and 42,000 gold oz. The project lies 12 miles south of Copiapó, in northern Chile’s Atacama province.
