Chile's Codelco, the world's No. 1 copper producer, has closed its Chuquicamata smelter and refinery to prevent a further spread of Covid-19 among its staff, following the death of a third worker this week.
The move makes Chuquicamata the first major copper asset to close due to the sharp spike of coronavirus cases in Chile in the last two weeks.
The news came on the heels of the country's environmental regulator filing pollution charges against the miner over a 2016 tailings spill.
The century-old copper mine is Codelco's second-largest, after El Teniente. Last year, it churned out just over a quarter of the company's total production.
The Chuquicamata smelter, also owned by Codelco, is one of the world's largest of its kind.
Codelco said the measure was "transitory" in nature and would be "gradually" implemented. The company estimates around 400 people will stop working at the smelter and refinery.
Nicol??s Rivera, General Manager of the division, said that halting processing operations at Chuquicamata would allow the company to focus on the more critical production areas.
Copper output levels have held up so far in Chile, but the more than 1,000 Covid-19 cases in the country's mining industry indicate that risks of further restrictions are very likely, said Colin Hamilton, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets.
Despite the pandemic, Codelco has plowed ahead with an ambitious 10-year, US$40 billion overhaul of its mines to keep up production rates.
It has already finished one of its biggest projects - the US$5.6 billion conversion of the Chuquicamata open pit mine into an underground operation.
Ongoing major mine upgrades include a US$5.5 billion new level at the El Teniente underground mine, the company's largest and the world's no. 6 by reserve size, slated to begin operations in 2023.
It also involves converting the El Salvador mine to an open-pit mine from underground operations. The US$1 billion project, known as Rajo Inca, is expected to extend the productive life the mine by 40 years and increase output by 30% from current levels.
In the copper giant's pipeline of so-called structural projects there is also the US$1.3 billion expansion of the Andina mine. The operation accounted for roughly 11% of Codelco's output in 2018.
Codelco operates seven mines and four smelters, all in Chile. Its assets account for 10% of the world's known proven and probable reserves and about 11% of the global annual copper output, with 1.8 million tonnes of production.