Codelco finds 42,100 tonnes of inflated copper output

Chile's state owned Codelco has identified 42,100 tonnes of artificially inflated copper production in its reporting, after probes found work in process material misclassified as finished output to meet targets.

Why it matters: Codelco is one of the world's largest copper producers, and a production reporting failure of this size, with nine staff dismissed, cuts into confidence in the output figures the copper market relies on.

Data as of Mining.com report of November 5, 2026, read in full in this run via the browser route after the text fetch was refused, reporting board chairman Bernardo Fontaine's disclosure at an extraordinary shareholders meeting, including remarks carried by Emol. Single source at this tier, and the article names neither the three mines involved nor the period over which output was inflated. Developing item.

Chile’s state owned copper producer Codelco has identified 42,100 tonnes of artificially inflated production in its reporting, board chairman Bernardo Fontaine told an extraordinary shareholders meeting on Thursday, after probes found work in process materials had been misclassified as finished output to meet targets. Codelco has ordered audits and dismissed nine employees across three mines and its corporate offices, and Fontaine said a separate irregularity affected 17,000 tonnes of copper inventory valued at between $120 million and $140 million.

Fontaine said the company expects copper production in 2026 to be closer to 1.2 million tonnes, with annual output of around 1.3 million tonnes projected over the following four years, and that a recovery plan will tighten internal controls and accountability.

Codelco finds 42,100 tonnes of inflated copper output

Sources