Copper Producers Association
Ever since people have been using it in the Stone Age, copper is undoubtedly one of the most valuable metals. Because of its excellent durability, malleability, and conductivity of electricity, it is a crucial commercial metal with a wide range of uses.
Cell phones, computers, houses, and cars are just a few of the everyday items that their production relies on copper. To meet their standard of living, astonishingly, every American needs 12 pounds of copper annually.
Copper is recognized as a crucial resource for the modern economy as attention is being drawn more and more to renewable power and the green economy.
The demand for the red metal has risen significantly recently due to a number of reasons. Particularly when manufacturing various modern technologies, including solar energy systems and wind turbines, which are important in combating climate change, are heavily reliant on copper.
More specifically, compared to their conventional fossil fuel-based equivalents, energy transition technologies like electric vehicles (EVs), batteries, solar panels, and wind turbines demand significantly more copper.
For instance, EVs use up to four times as much copper as conventional automobiles do. The Copper Alliance claims that sustainable power systems may need up to 12 times as much copper compared to regular power sources.
The transition to renewable energy is predicted to result in a surge in copper demand of about 600% by 2030, thanks to the quick and widespread adoption of such technologies.
The demand for opening up more copper mines would increase when the world’s modernization and transition to sustainable power accelerate.
As a result, many active copper mines have decreasing reserves, and the copper sector overall is emerging from years of lack of investment in exploration.
Multiple experts have predicted an impending bull market in the copper industry due to the growing supply deficit. According to several projections, the price of copper per tonne in the following years might hit around $10,500 and $13,000 USD. But what about the source of the required copper?
It is worthwhile to examine copper output by nations for investors who are attracted to copper commodities. The most recent US Geological Survey estimates indicate that 22 million metric tonnes (MT) of copper were produced worldwide in 2022.
In 2022, Chile once more claimed the title of the leading producer of copper, though you might be astonished by some of the other countries on the list. Keep scrolling to learn which countries earned a spot in the list and what motivates the production of copper in each of these countries.
Copper Production by Country
Since 15 of the 20 biggest copper mines are located in North, South, and Central America, these three continents produce the majority of the red metal.
Last year, Chile, Peru, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, China, the US, Russia, Indonesia, Australia, Zambia, and Mexico were the top 10 leading copper producers worldwide.
The amount of copper produced in Chile fell significantly from 2021 to 2022, reaching 5.2 million MT in 2022 and accounting for 24% of the world’s total copper output.
It should come as no surprise that a large number of the leading copper miners of the globe, most notably state-owned Codelco, BHP, Anglo American, Glencore, as well as Antofagasta, have substantial operational activities in Chile. Yet, Chile’s output for 2022 was affected by decreasing ore grades and labor disputes.
S&P Global predicts that with new mines speeding up their production rate, Chile’s copper output will increase from now on, reaching over 5.97 million MT. According to Mining Technology, once new projects start their operations, the country’s output of copper will expand at a CAGR of 2.2 percent from 2022 to 2026, reaching over 6.43 million MT.
Given that Chile is the entire globe’s top copper producer, it is not unexpected that 3 of the ten greatest copper mines in terms of capacity are situated there. The Escondida, placed in Chile’s Antofagasta Region of the Atacama Desert, is the world’s leading producer of copper.
In 2022, with an output of about 1.5 million metric tonnes of copper, its capacity was about twice as much as the total production of the second-biggest copper mine on the planet, Grasberg, which is situated in Indonesia.
After Chile, Peru and the Democratic Republic of the Congo came to the second position, with a reported copper mine output of 2.2 million metric tonnes in 2022.
Peru’s copper output fell 100,000 MT from its overall output of 2.3 million MT in 2021 year over year as instability in politics and the nation’s protests at mining sites went on to hinder operations. This occurred after the country’s production was severely impacted by COVID-19 restrictions in 2020, falling from 2.45 million MT in 2019 to 2.15 million in the following year.
Anglo-American’s Quellaveco mine and Southern Copper’s Tia Maria mine are two of the country’s major copper producers. Their most popular markets for the exportation of copper were China, Japan, South Korea, as well as Germany.
As one of the other major copper producers in the world, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) increased its copper production by 460,000 MT from the level in 2021 for 2022, surpassing China and tying Peru with 2.2 million MT.
The Kamoa-Kakula project, a partnership venture of Ivanhoe Mines and partner Zijin Mining Group, is a significant copper resource that is growing in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Robert Edwards of CRU Group claims that (The DRC) now contributes 11% of the world’s mining production, while there are other projects there that are expected to start operating in 2024 and 2025.
In terms of copper output worldwide in 2022, China, which is also the globe’s biggest copper consumer, took the fourth spot. The nation depends on imported copper to satisfy the demand stimulated by its transportation and building industries. China’s copper production declined marginally in 2022 from 1.91 million MT in the previous year.
The Shuguang gold-copper mine, as well as the Zijinshan copper-gold mine, are owned by the Zijin Mining Group, which is one of China’s top producers of metals. A number of Chinese copper producers, such as Zijin Mining, Jiangxi Copper, along with Tongling Nonferrous Metals Group, are compelling the Chinese government to ramp up operations throughout the entire copper supply chain, as per a report by Mining Magazine.
The US, which had a slight increase of 6% in copper output in 2022, is ranked 5th when it comes to nationwide manufacturing of copper. Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, Montana, Michigan, and Missouri made up the majority of the nation’s output, which went through processing in 17 of the 25 mines, accounting for 99 % of the nation’s mine output.
The most significant rise in US mined copper production, based on the US Geological Survey, was produced by one of the country’s greatest copper resources, the Bingham Canyon mine in Utah, a section of Rio Tinto’s Kennecott operations.
In addition, the US is one of the top 10 nations that export copper products into the world market, most notably ores, concentrates, and to some extent, refined copper.
The Russians ramped up their copper output in 2022 from 940,000 MT in 2021 to be regarded as the sixth major producer of copper in the world.
The Siberian Udokan deposit, held by Udokan Copper (formerly known as Baikal Mining Company), is one of Russia’s largest copper mines. Once it was revealed that the enterprise was trying to raise US$1.25 billion to build a mining and metallurgical plant at the project, the deposit gained worldwide attention in 2018. It is currently under development and is set to open in 2027.
Then, from 734,000 MT in 2021 to an overall 920,000 MT in 2022, Indonesia’s manufacturing of copper surged considerably. The Grasberg block cave mine, situated in Papua, is the biggest producer of copper in the nation and the second-biggest mine in the entire globe.
It is controlled by Freeport-McMoRan, associated with PT Freeport Indonesia, which was the largest copper producer company in 2022, with a copper production of 1.53 million metric tonnes (MT). Even though the company’s present mining rights last until 2041, Freeport is negotiating with the Indonesian government to promote it beyond that year.
The next country on the list, Australia, produced 830,000 MT of copper in 2022, up from 813,000 MT in 2021. BHP’s Olympic Dam copper-uranium-gold operation in South Australia, which holds a solid position as the 4th biggest copper deposit in the entire globe even if it might be more recognized for its uranium, is one of Australia’s greatest copper businesses.
A Glencore subsidiary-run project in Queensland called Mount Isa is also noteworthy. The two copper mines are based at Mount Isa and process 6.5 million MT of ore annually, making it one of Australia’s major producers of copper.
Zambia, which is ranked 9th in terms of the amount of copper produced globally, had a decline in production the previous year; its 2022 total production of 770,000 MT was much lower than its 2021 output of 842,000 MT.
The majority of the nation’s copper is produced in 4 prominent mines, notably Lumwana by Barrick Gold and Kansanshi by First Quantum Minerals.
Another notable copper-producing company is Mopani Copper Mines. The Zambian government acquired full possession of the business in 2021 after formerly owning 10% of it when it was controlled by Glencore, partnering with First Quantum.
Mexico, which produced 740,000 MT of copper in 2022 as opposed to 734,000 MT in 2021, is ranked tenth overall. Sonora, by far the greatest copper-producing state in Mexico, is home to one of the major copper mines in the entire nation, called Grupo Mexico’s Buenavista del Cobre.
Besides, the largest copper producers in the world announced plans to reduce greenhouse gases released to zero by 2050, which could make the industry more appealing to investors that are considerate of the environment.
The International Copper Association members have been recently obliged to reduce both direct and indirect greenhouse gases by 30 to 40 percent by 2030, 70 to 80 percent by 2040, and zero by 2050, with copper demand projected to rise by twofold to 50 million tonnes by 2050 from that of 2020.
BHP Group, Codelco from Chile, Glencore, Freeport-McMoRan, JX Nippon Mining & Metals Corporation from Japan, and KGHM from Poland are all among the contributory members. No members from China, the world’s largest producer of refined copper, contributed, though.
The copper manufacturers intend to lower direct and indirect emissions by decarbonizing the electricity grid, increasing efficiency and scrap collection. Copper can often be produced from scrap metal only by using electricity, simplifying the decarbonization process.
Additionally, the ICA members promised to cooperate with clients to cut “scope 3” emissions by 10% by 2030, 30% to 40% by 2040, and 60% to 70% by 2050.
These shared goals provide a clear path to reaching projected cuts in emissions of as much as 85 percent by 2050, with the remaining emissions to be tackled by brand-new technology and improved cooperation, according to the ICA—the total emissions from the copper sector account for 0.2% of all greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.
The typical amount of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) released during the manufacture of refined copper in 2018 was 4.6 tonnes for each tonne of copper, a 13.4% decrease from 5.4 tonnes in 1990.
Considering copper’s crucial position in the power transition and the “ambitious” decarbonization objectives, the industry could serve as an appealing investment option for investors who are considerate of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards, according to the ICA.
Investing in mining and the production process is not possible for everyone, especially retail investors. Cryptal.global aims to solve all the problems by combining Blockchain technology, the mining industry, copper production, and tokenization.
Still have questions? Get in touch:
Telegram | Twitter | Youtube | Whitepaper | Reddit | FAQ
