Somewhere beneath the Atacama Desert — the driest place on Earth — lies the foundation of the global clean energy revolution. Chile doesn’t just participate in the mining industry. It defines it.

The numbers that stop you mid-sentence

Chile is the world’s largest copper producer, accounting for 24% of global output, and the second-largest lithium producer, with 27% of global production. Put that in perspective: one country, stretched like a ribbon along the Pacific coast, supplies more than a quarter of the world’s two most strategically critical minerals for the energy transition.

In 2024, Chilean mines produced 5.5 million tons of copper; a 5% increase from the previous year while mining exports reached 57% of total Chilean exports and contributed approximately 12% of GDP.

That’s not a mining sector. That’s a mining civilization.

Copper: The metal the world is running out of

Every electric vehicle needs roughly 83 kg of copper. Every wind turbine needs up to 4 tonnes. Every solar panel, every charging station, every smart grid, copper is the invisible thread running through all of it.

The annual average copper price in 2024 was $4.18 per pound, with the estimated price for 2025 at $4.25 per pound. Demand is structural and rising. Supply is not keeping pace. Chile sits at the center of that equation.

BHP alone accounts for 27% of Chile’s total copper production and has announced plans for between $10.7 and $14.7 billion of investment over the next decade, most of it concentrated in Chile. When the world’s largest mining company doubles down, you pay attention.

Lithium: White gold for the battery age

Chile holds 48% of the world’s lithium reserves, primarily in the Atacama and Maricunga regions. The Salar de Atacama alone accounts for 25% of current global lithium supply.

Unlike Australia, which mines hard rock, Chile extracts lithium from brine through solar evaporation ponds a cheaper and more efficient method. Sun does most of the work. The Atacama has plenty of that.

In 2024, Chile produced 49,000 metric tons of lithium, with battery-grade lithium carbonate averaging $14,000 per metric ton.

$83 billion on the table

This is not a mature, slow-moving industry coasting on past glory. A total of $83.2 billion in mining investment projects are under execution for 2024–2033 — the highest value pipeline in a decade.

Mining attracted $8.65 billion in foreign direct investment in 2024, up 6% from 2023 — even as global FDI declined. Capital is flowing in. Infrastructure is expanding. The supply chain is being built in real time.

What this means for suppliers and service companies

A $83 billion investment pipeline doesn’t just need miners. It needs:

• Friction and wear components for heavy machinery running 24/7
• Hydraulic systems for excavators, trucks, and drilling rigs
• Spare parts for the fleets of vehicles operating in extreme conditions
• Industrial equipment capable of surviving desert heat, altitude, and constant use

The Atacama doesn’t forgive cheap parts. Quality, durability, and reliable supply chains are what procurement teams in Chilean mining actually buy.

The gateway opens every year in Antofagasta

The heart of Chilean mining is not Santiago, it’s Antofagasta, the northern port city surrounded by copper and lithium operations. Every June, the industry gathers at Exponor, Chile’s second-largest mining trade show, where global suppliers meet the buyers, engineers, and operations managers who run this industry day to day.

For international companies looking to enter this market, Exponor is not just a fair. It’s a door.

BridgeTurco works with international industrial suppliers entering the Chilean mining market from first contact to closed contract.

Talk to us about what’s possible.