Chile copper mines dodge radical changes

FILE PHOTO: Sheets of copper cathode are pictured at BHP Billiton's Escondida, the world's biggest copper mine, in Antofagasta, Chile

SANTIAGO: Major copper producers from BHP Group to Freeport-McMoRan Inc will likely avoid drastic changes in the way they do business in Chile as writers of a new constitution wrapped up deliberations on mining proposals.

In a vote on the Constitutional Convention floor on Saturday, a plan to replace the nation’s investor-friendly concession model with a system of temporary and revocable permits fell short of the two-thirds threshold needed to be included in a document that will be put to a referendum on Sept 4.