Peru's copper mining faces $63 bn investment stall over legal certainty, demand boost

Executives at the XVI International Mining Symposium in Lima warned that legal certainty is the decisive factor holding back about US$63 billion in copper projects in Peru. Senior managers from Rio Tinto, Anglo American, Freeport McMoRan and others said prolonged permitting and social conflicts have left more than US$50 billion of investments idle, turning projects such as Tía María, Los Chancas and Michiquillay into long‑term liabilities.

Peru, the world's second‑largest copper producer, sits on a “gigantic” opportunity as global demand surges with electrification, electric‑vehicle production and renewable‑energy infrastructure. Analysts from CRU Group highlighted that demand growth rates are unprecedented, but the supply response is lagging because new mines are deeper, costlier and take far longer to bring into operation. The consensus among the speakers is that accelerating permits and improving the regulatory environment is essential to unlock the country’s copper potential and attract the needed capital.

The discussion underscored the strategic importance of Peru’s copper reserves for major consumers such as China, the United States and Europe, and emphasized that without clearer, faster legal processes, the country risks losing a significant share of future investment in the sector.