El Salvador mine
| Location | |
|---|---|
| Location | El Salvador |
| Commune | Diego de Almagro |
| Country | Chile |
| Coordinates | 26°14′30″S 069°33′26″W / 26.24167°S 69.55722°WCoordinates: 26°14′30″S 069°33′26″W / 26.24167°S 69.55722°W |
| Production | |
| Products | Copper |
| History | |
| Opened | 1959 |
| Closed | 2026–2031 |
| Owner | |
| Company | Codelco |
| Year of acquisition | 1971 (Chilean nationalization of copper) |
El Salvador mine (The Savior) is a combined open pit and underground copper mine located in Chile and owned by the state owned copper mining company Codelco. The mine is located in the company town of El Salvador.
The mine was originally built by The Anaconda Company in the late 1950s, but in 1971, with the nationalization of the copper industry in Chile, full ownership of the mine was turned over to the newly formed, state owned copper mining company Codelco.
Codelco had planned to close the El Salvador mine in 2011, but extended the mine life by an additional 15–20 years. El Salvador operates as Codelco's smallest mine with the highest cash costs.
The El Salvador mine was developed by The Anaconda Company. Production at the mine began in 1959, and was intended to replace production of the company's Potrerillos mine, which would be closing due to a decline in ore quality. Production from the El Salvador would increase Chile's total output of copper about 450,000 tons of copper per year. Rather than a decrease in production, out of satisfaction and relief, the company renamed the mine El Salvador, Spanish The Savior. When President Salvador Allende nationalized the Chilean copper mining industry and Codelco was formed in 1971, the El Salvador mine, (and other mines owned by Anaconda, and Kennecott Copper Corporation) became property of Codelco. After the military led coup by Augusto Pinochet in 1973, the mines were not returned to the companies. However, Chile did reimburse losses (in part) to Anaconda and Kennecott.
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