What have been the main achievements of the Ministry of Mines in the last 12 months?

The Ministry is currently working on a National Lithium Strategy, looking over broad areas of action of the sector to seek environmental and social balance. The strategy not only explores developing more mines, but also studying wages and how we can add value through institutions like CORFO.

Another important pillar of the government’s focus has been committing to a reduction of permitting times by 30%, focused on the time it takes for us to evaluate projects. I would like to highlight our efforts to build a National Critical Minerals Strategy and establish our sectoral plan for climate change, demonstrating the wide range of issues the Ministry of Mining has dealt with over the past year. How do you plan to balance faster permitting times with environmental responsibility?

One of the most important things to me is that all the minerals produced in Chile are done so in a responsible manner. We have high environmental standards, but there is always room for improvement alongside a commitment from a societal perspective. The Ministry is looking for balance within the strategy to consider all stakeholders’ points of view. Currently, we are working on a bill in Parliament that will allow us to be more efficient without compromising environmental or social objectives.

In parallel with this legal modification, the Government is supportive of investment and employment, meaning we are working to approve as many projects as make sense. From our inauguration to present, we have approved 76% of projects, with the majority of mines in development today a result of our pro-business stance.

The Government is also ensuring social responsibility, through enforcing the Royalty Law, which is distributing CLP$440 billion to all regions of the country, and now this includes money from mining operations in the local area.

What can we expect from the upcoming National Critical Minerals Strategy?

We project that the strategy will be released in the next four months, with a strategy built with information from various sources, including 16 key actors in mining from institutions such as Sernageomin and Cochilco, the private sector and academia. The strategy will have a broad focus, including the redistribution of money to affected territories and how we can help increase the production of critical minerals in Chile. How does the Ministry foster public-private relations through the National Lithium Strategy?

Chile has developed its mining industry with the three key pillars of public companies, private companies, and small and medium-sized mining companies. For us, through the National Lithium Strategy, we must see all three of these aspects working together. An example of this is the alliance of Codelco and SQM. Through the six new salt flats we have opened to the private sector, we are hoping to see more examples of public-private alliances. What is the position of the Ministry of Mines regarding foreign investment entering mining?

Fortunately, Chile is a globalized country, whereby we have 34 free trade agreements covering 65 economies that represent 66% of the world’s population and 88% of the global GDP. Two-thirds of the copper produced in Chile is from private companies, exemplifying the necessary nature of such investments. In this light, we work with InvestChile, a specialized body in charge of attracting investment, on making sure that Chile can handle such figures in terms of infrastructure and personnel.

Recently, the President visited India, where their government showed particular interest in Chilean mining. India is an interesting market for us due to free trade treaties and their compliance with many of the standards we have in place here. Can you outline the plans of the Ministry over the next year?

It will be a great task to carry out and implement the National Critical Minerals Strategy and collaborate to obtain the legalities needed to accelerate investment projects in Chile. As well as this, we will be looking to implement legislation to aid smaller mining operations in the country. We do not doubt that this government will be able to aid and facilitate the US$83 billion of projected investment, the largest in over a decade. It is because of this we are pushing forward with several new initiatives.