Southern Copper (NYSE, LON: SCCO) is evaluating a $680 million expansion of its Cuajone mine in southern Peru. The move is intended to counter declining ore grades and improve efficiency as the copper industry faces growing pressure to develop new supply, according to a company filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as reported by mining.com.
The proposal would increase milling capacity by 33%, from 90,000 to 120,000 tonnes per day. Projected average annual production is 55,000 tonnes of copper and 1,400 tonnes of molybdenum. The company is also studying a further increase to 150,000 tonnes per day.
Anglo American CEO Duncan Wanblad, speaking at a mining conference last week, said “There’s real scarcity of supply.” He pointed to limited resources, lengthy permitting processes and rising development costs as obstacles to expanding copper production. Analysts have recently highlighted a growing disconnect between potential mine expansions and the production that companies have committed to deliver. BloombergNEF (BNEF) estimates the industry needs $332 billion in new mine investment to avert a supply shortage likely to begin in 2028.
The researchers expect the deficit to widen to 3 million tonnes, or 8% of consumption, by 2035, and to reach 20 million tonnes, or 44%, by 2050. Wood Mackenzie, in a report released Thursday, said geopolitical disruptions and soaring electricity demand driven by artificial intelligence (AI) are putting increasing pressure on global metals supplies, particularly copper, as mining investment struggles to keep pace. Supply risks are also visible at the operational level.
A separate mining.com report, headlined “Chile copper mines disruptions put 5% of production at risk,” covers disruptions in Chile, the world’s largest copper producer. The price ticker on the mining.com page showed copper at $5.6358 per pound, up 2.72% at the time the page was captured. Sources: Southern Copper regulatory filing with the SEC; Duncan Wanblad, CEO of Anglo American, at the FT Metals and Mining Summit 2026; BloombergNEF (BNEF); Wood Mackenzie; mining.com (Cecilia Jamasmie, October 22, 2026).
Source: mining.com