A giant deposit of gold, silver, and copper discovered in South America

Recent explorations near the Chilean-Argentine border have unveiled hidden underground resources estimated to be worth tens of billions of dollars.

New Eldorado

Straddling the Argentine province of San Juan and the Chilean region of Atacama, Vicuña is controlled by mining giants Lundin Mining and BHP. It consists of two primary deposits, Filo del Sol and Josemaria, which are already ranked among the top ten copper production sites in the world.

While it’s also known for containing significant quantities of gold and silver, a series of surveys and modeling have indicated that it has much more to offer than previously estimated.

Highlighting the remarkably high metal content, Lundin estimates that around 13 million tons of copper, 900,000 kilograms of gold, and 18.6 million tons of silver could be extracted, making it “a globally significant deposit and mining complex.”

Theoretically, such a resource quantity could help to “rebalance the global supply” (currently, China controls about 40% of copper production), but their extraction will pose several technical (massive and deep drilling) and ecological (water consumption, toxic waste) challenges.

Valuable Metals

Exploited since antiquity for crafting coins and precious objects, gold has long been central to the global monetary system. Remaining a top reserve asset, it is now widely used in electronics and aerospace.

Renowned for its remarkable conductive and thermal properties at room temperature, silver is also integral to many crucial technologies for the energy transition (battery packs, photovoltaic panels, etc.).

With ongoing demand, copper consumption is expected to surge by 60% by 2040 (wind turbines and electric vehicles utilize significant amounts).

Last month, Kazakhstan announced the discovery of one of the largest rare earth deposits in the world.