Chile’s Cochilco says large-scale copper mining costs keep growing

The costs of large-scale copper mining in Chile kept rising due to lower production and rising service costs, a report from the state-run Chilean Copper Commission (Cochilco) said on Tuesday. The report, which covers the first half of the year, said that the direct cost reached 198.8 cents per pound, a year-on-year increase of 39.6 cents. The report sampled 22 mining operations, which represent 93.5% of production.