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A Chilean court ruling on Friday has put a question mark over Anglo American and Glencore’s jointly owned Collahuasi mine, by threatening to set aside the operation’s environmental authorisation.Anglo and Glencore, which each hold 44% stakes in the huge Chilean copper mine, said in separate statements on Monday that they did not expect the move to immediately affect production.They said Collahuasi was in the process of seeking full clarification from Chile’s Second Environmental Tribunal and environmental assessment service (SEA) about the specific effects of their ruling and any effect on the operation.The tribunal’s ruling sets aside an environmental authorisation issued by the SEA in 2021, which the mining giants say followed a rigorous assessment process, including consultation with indigenous groups.It was also confirmed by the ministers’ committee in August 2023.The ruling specifically relates to the mine’s desalination plant, which is still in the process of construction but almost complete, and its impact on the local communities and marine environment surrounding the operation, they said.Water scarcity in the desert region surrounding Collahuasi is well-documented and has weighed on the operation since the early 2020s, according to Anglo’s production reports.The operation began building the huge desalination plant in 2022. It will supply 1,050 litres per second to the mine, using a water pumping and electrical transmission system to move water through a 194km pipeline from Puerto Collahuasi to the mining site.Collahuasi is a huge asset, producing more than 550,000 tonnes of copper a year, employing close to 5,000 people and representing one of the world’s largest copper assets, accounting for more than 2% of the world’s known reserves.In the latest annual report, Anglo said its desalination plant would meet a large portion of the mine’s water requirements by mid-2026 when it becomes fully operational.“Until then, the operation continues to progress mitigation measures to optimise and reduce water consumption, including the provision of ultra-filtered seawater that was delivered in July and ramped up during the second half of 2025,” it said.Business Day
