Already huge Cobre Panamá mine expands

Canadian miner First Quantum Minerals is planning a $327 million expansion of its already massive mining and processing complex in Panama, the largest copper mine coming to market over the next couple of years and the biggest single private sector investment in the nation's history.

According to an updated technical report for Cobre Panama, located about 120 km west of Panama City and 20 km from the Atlantic coast, the Toronto-based company expects to grow it from 85 million tonnes to 100 million annual tonnes pre year, beginning in 2023.

The Cobre Panama copper project processed its first ore in early February, fifty years after the deposit was discovered, but only six years since First Quantum gained control over it.