Sumitomo Joins Chile Copper-Gold Mine Project, Securing Key Stake

Japanese conglomerate Sumitomo Corporation has joined forces with Canadian mining development company G Mining Group to develop the Dos Amigos copper-gold mine project in northern Chile. The joint venture, a 50-50 partnership, involves Sumitomo subscribing to approximately C$48 million worth of new shares for an effective equity interest of around 12.5%.

The Dos Amigos project is expected to produce around 37,000 tons of copper and 57,000 ounces of gold annually for approximately 25 years. Production start-up is slated for the first half of the 2030s, with an attributable copper production of around 5,000 tons per year for Sumitomo.

Koji Watanabe, head of Sumitomo's Non-Ferrous Metals Development Business Unit, emphasized that by investing from the early development stage, Sumitomo can increase the world's copper supply without incurring high costs associated with acquiring existing mines. He noted that G Mining Group's capabilities and resources made it an attractive partner for this project.