The Peruvian mining industry is the main driver of the
country’s economy, and has featured prominently in both business and political
news. Earlier this week, the Miami
Herald reported on the story of the Andean mining town of Morococha. Two
years ago, the Aluminum Corp. of China (Chinalco), paid to completely relocate
the small town five miles away so that it could build a massive open-pit copper
mine.
The Herald article quoted locals as saying that the new town
is a significant upgrade over the previous town. A Chinalco official also told the Herald that
this investment in building good relations with the local community shows that
Chinese companies have learned from past mistakes.
In other mining-related news, Peruvian business journal Gestión
reported on the fall in investment in the Peruvian mining industry. According
to statistics from the Peruvian Ministry for Energy and Mines, investment so
far in 2015 is 15% below the previous year, but this is in line with industry
estimates.
Gestión explained that this is because large investments in
various mega projects are finally coming to an end as the projects come online,
and there are no projects of similar magnitude left in the pipeline. The
article also noted that this trend is not limited to just Peru, but has in fact
affected the global mining industry. Not to worry, though, as this means that
within a few years, the lack of new projects will surely lead to a rise in
mineral prices.
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