Mining companies in Chile call for a “new pact” after rejecting a constitutional proposal

Mining companies in Chile called on Sunday for a new pact to agree on the next constitutional changes in the world’s largest copper producer, after the majority rejection of a controversial Magna Carta proposal that was highly criticized by the sector.

Joaquín Villarino, president of the Mining Council – which brings together the country’s large private mining companies – said that now there must be collaborative work where dialogue and consensus prevail.

“Our country is not built from scratch, it is not built with exclusions, nor is it built with rage. We are going for a new pact, truly inclusive, without revenge and that takes the best of who we are, making the changes that the challenges of the present,” he said in a statement.

He added that the focus of the vital sector on reducing the consumption of water resources, adopting renewable energy, as well as incorporating more technology and innovation is on the right track.

The mining companies complained that the Magna Carta proposal, which was rejected with 62% of the votes, potentially affected investments in the South American country by deepening uncertainty and affecting the rules of the game.

For his part, Jorge Riesco, head of the National Mining Society (Sonami), which also includes small and medium-sized firms in the sector, said he was confident that the mechanism chosen for the continuation of the constituent process would allow for the construction of a proposal that brings together the majority of the country.

“We emphasize that the result of the plebiscite, by rejecting the proposal consulted, provides a valuable opportunity to make a constitutional draft favoring the unity of the country,” he said in a statement.

“We value that citizens have granted this new possibility, which will allow us to establish advances in social matters based on conditions that allow and ensure free entrepreneurship and economic growth, so that the changes are sustainable,” he added.

Multinational copper giants such as BHP, Glencore, Anglo American, Antofagasta Minerals and Freeport operate in Chile, while in lithium – of which Chile is the second largest global producer – Albemarle and the local SQM stand out.

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