Glencore Plc filed applications to have two copper projects with combined capital expenditure estimated at more than US$13 billion included into Argentina’s investment incentive programme.
The Switzerland-based commodities firm is seeking the tax, customs and currency exchange benefits offered under the government programme for El Pachón in San Juan Province and Agua Rica in Catamarca, the company said in a statement Monday. The programme is known as RIGI, for its Spanish acronym.
Glencore joins a growing list of miners seeking access to the program in a country that was once a pariah for foreign investment because of capital controls and state intervention. Argentina is regaining the confidence of companies as President Javier Milei offers a way to bulletproof their capital commitments.
“This framework has changed the investment landscape in Argentina, providing a key catalyst to attract major foreign investment to the country,” Glencore Chief Executive Officer Gary Nagle said in the statement. “Today’s submission marks a significant step towards the development of El Pachón and Agua Rica.”
El Pachón and Agua Rica are expected to require investments of US$9.5 billion and US$4 billion, respectively, if Glencore decides to proceed with their development. They bring the number of RIGI applications to 20, totalling US$33.6 billion, Economy Minister Luis Caputo wrote in a X post.
For the copper market, El Pachón is of particular interest. It has the potential to become one of the world’s biggest mines and is located in a cluster of deposits that’s set to become a new production hub as demand for the wiring metal picks up. BHP Group Ltd and McEwen Copper Inc are also piling into San Juan.
Argentina has already had success with lithium, a mineral that’s critical to making batteries for electric cars. Copper projects, though, tend to be bigger, pricier and trickier to develop. And Argentina has been a particularly precarious destination for prospectors since it is largely focused on farming and oil, not metals like regional peers Chile and Peru.
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by James Attwood, Bloomberg
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