Republicans demand probe into Codelco copper

Chile's state miner Codelco is facing a new round of political scrutiny after opposition lawmakers moved to push a congressional investigation into an internal audit that questioned part of the company's 2025 copper output. Republican Party deputies Stephanie Jéldrez, Carlo Arqueros and Ignacio Urcullú said after a May 13 session of the Chamber of Deputies' Mining Commission that they would back an investigatory commission and had already sent formal requests for information to the company. (biobiochile.cl) (reporteminero.cl) The dispute centers on a preliminary internal review reported this week by Chilean media and discussed in Congress. That review said roughly 20,000 metric tons of fine copper may have been incorporated into December 2025 production figures without fully meeting the company's internal requirements, raising questions about whether annual output was overstated. (redimin.cl) ### Where did the 20,000-ton figure come from? Diario Financiero first reported, and other Chilean outlets subsequently matched, that a preliminary internal audit at Codelco found possible irregularities in the way December 2025 production was recorded. Emol said the document indicated that nearly 20,000 tons did not meet the technical specifications needed to be recognized as production for that month. (biobiochile.cl) BioBioChile reported that the Mining Commission reviewed that audit on May 13 and described it as showing a possible deviation of close to 20,000 tons in Codelco's 2025 production results. CNN Chile said the finding pointed to breaches of protocol in the accounting of 20,000 metric tons of fine copper during December 2025. (reporteminero.cl) ### Which lawmakers are pressing the case? Stephanie Jéldrez, Carlo Arqueros and Ignacio Urcullú, all identified by Chilean media as members of the Mining Commission, led the push from the Republican Party after the commission session. Their party caucus said on May 14 that the lawmakers were seeking an investigatory commission over the alleged deviation of 20,000 tons. (emol.com) Arqueros said the commission would demand formal explanations from the state miner. In a statement published by the Republican caucus, he said the lawmakers had sent official letters to the company and would cross-check available information because the reported figures were too significant not to require an explanation. (biobiochile.cl) ### What else are critics tying to the dispute? Jéldrez linked the production questions to broader complaints about governance at the company. BioBioChile and the Republican caucus both quoted her as saying the new information, together with cost overruns at the Rajo Inca project and criticism over corporate remodeling expenses, justified deeper oversight. (biobiochile.cl) The same reports said the Ventanas No. 1 union had also questioned the company over compliance with the law governing supply to the Ventanas smelter. BioBioChile said Codelco's annual report acknowledged 100 tons that should have arrived and did not. (diputadosrepublicanos.cl) ### What do Codelco's published 2025 results show? Codelco's full-year 2025 operational and financial report, released on March 27, said the company produced 1.440 million tons of copper including its stakes in associates, down 0.1% from a year earlier. The report said own copper production rose slightly by 6,000 tons, with gains at Ministro Hales, Salvador and Radomiro Tomic offsetting lower production at Gabriela Mistral, Chuquicamata and El Teniente. (biobiochile.cl) Codelco's investor relations pages still list its 2025 financial statements, analysis and key operating data. The company has not, in the materials surfaced here, published a public statement on its website addressing the specific 20,000-ton audit issue. That is an inference based on the absence of such a statement in Codelco's press and results pages returned in current searches. (biobiochile.cl) ### What happens next in Congress? A June 3 special session of the Mining Commission was reported by Chilean mining outlet Redimin, which said lawmakers had elevated the case through formal information requests to Codelco and its board. The Republican caucus separately said those requests had already been sent. Any formal investigatory commission would depend on support inside Chile's Chamber of Deputies. (codelco.com) For now, the next visible milestone is the reported June 3 commission session, where lawmakers are expected to seek answers from Codelco based on the audit findings and the documents they requested. (redimin.cl) (codelco.com)