Chile’s copper mines, including BHP’s Escondida and Codelco’s facilities, have resumed operations after a major power outage caused by a transmission line failure. The outage disrupted power from northern Chile to southern regions, prompting many mines to operate on backup generators. As of Wednesday morning, over 90% of power consumption in residential areas was restored. The outage is under investigation by ISA Interchile.
Operations at some of Chile’s largest copper mines have been restored following a significant power outage that impacted the country’s mining sectors. The outage, attributed to a failure of a transmission line in northern Chile, occurred on Tuesday afternoon, affecting the power grid from northern regions to central and southern areas, as reported by Reuters.
The Escondida copper mine, operated by BHP, was among those left without electricity. Additionally, the state-owned copper miner Codelco noted that all of its mines, including Chuquicamata, Andina, Salvador, and El Teniente, lost power, while some others were able to operate partially using backup generators. Both Antofagasta and Anglo American also confirmed that their operations relied on generators to continue functioning.
By Wednesday morning, Chile’s National Electricity Coordinator (CEN) announced that over 90% of residential power consumption had been restored, although some regions continued to face intermittent outages. The Escondida mine has since resumed full activity, and Anglo American’s Los Bronces and El Soldado mines, along with its Chagres smelter, were also reconnected to power.
Codelco reported a systematic return to normal operations across all its divisions, and Antofagasta confirmed that its mines were also back in operation. In response to the outage, Interior Minister Carolina Toha expressed concern during a press conference, emphasizing the failure of several safety mechanisms and the ongoing challenges faced by various power stations in restarting their systems.
The outage was linked to ISA Interchile, an energy distribution subsidiary of the Colombian company ISA, which is owned by state oil producer Ecopetrol. Luis Llano, the general manager of ISA Interchile, remarked that the company is conducting an investigation into the outage, highlighting issues with electronic and software protection systems that precipitated the disconnection of the high-voltage line and subsequent grid failure.
In summary, following a significant power outage caused by transmission line failure, several of Chile’s major copper mines, including Escondida and those operated by Codelco, have resumed normal operations. The National Electricity Coordinator reported a substantial restoration of power consumption, although some areas continue to experience interruptions. Interior Minister Carolina Toha raised concerns regarding safety protocols, and ISA Interchile is investigating the technical failures that led to the outage.
Original Source: www.mining-technology.com
