{"text":[[{"start":8.5,"text":"Chile’s government will allow state-owned mining company Codelco to reinvest all of its 2025 profits in an unprecedented move to ease a financial crisis at one of the world’s largest copper producers."}],[{"start":21.34,"text":"Mining and economy minister Daniel Mas said on Monday that Codelco, whose profits are normally largely redirected to Chile’s treasury, would retain “100 per cent” of the $2.42bn it generated last year for the first time since its founding in 1976."}],[{"start":38.46,"text":"The decision comes as Codelco grapples with a slump in production of the red metal, which is essential for electric grids, clean energy infrastructure and the data centres needed to power AI."}],[{"start":49.28,"text":"The world is facing a 10mn tonne shortfall of copper by 2040 without major supply expansion, according to analytics group S&P Global. Already, tight supply has kept prices near record highs this year."}],[{"start":62.7,"text":"Codelco, which produces around 5 per cent of the world’s copper, is balancing several major construction projects to extend the life of its ageing mines. In the process, it has accumulated a debt pile worth more than $20bn, one of the largest in the industry."}],[{"start":79,"text":"“Our goal is to provide real equity capacity to safeguard the risk rating,” Mas said. “The response to big production challenges [must not] be to continue increasing the company’s debt.”"}],[{"start":90.02,"text":"While the government generally collects the lion’s share of Codelco profits, it has been allowed to retain around 30 per cent in recent years."}],[{"start":97.86,"text":"Rightwing president José Antonio Kast’s lifeline for the miner comes despite his government’s stated priority of reducing Chile’s fiscal deficit."}],[{"start":107,"text":"“The state is willing to sacrifice current tax revenues with the expectation of protecting the company’s ability to generate value and resources for Chile in the future,” said Juan Carlos Guajardo, founder of Santiago-based consultancy Plusmining."}],[{"start":120.98,"text":"The reinvestment won’t “automatically” reduce Codelco’s debt, he added, “but it will give it greater financial breathing space and reduce the need to go back to the market to finance part of its investments”."}],[{"start":132.14,"text":"Codelco said in May after an internal audit that it had overestimated production in 2025 by almost 27,000 metric tonnes."}],[{"start":142.26,"text":"The revised output figure of 1,307,570 metric tonnes is the lowest in almost three decades and a 19 per cent decline from 2021."}],[{"start":154.3,"text":"Bernardo Fontaine, who Kast appointed as chair of Codelco in May, has pledged that the company will prioritise profitability over output, arguing that his predecessors were unrealistic in pursuing a target of producing 1.7mn metric tonnes of copper annually within five years."}],[{"start":172.5,"text":"“This capital injection . . . gives us great support right when we need to work on and implement a comprehensive recovery plan,” Fontaine said on Monday."}],[{"start":182.18,"text":"Analysts warned Codelco would still need to show it can correct recent failures in managing large projects and containing costs."}],[{"start":189.78,"text":"“Codelco must demonstrate its ability to use this capital efficiently,” Guajardo said. “If these resources contribute to stabilising production, improving project execution, and restoring cash flow, the decision will have been invaluable. If that doesn’t happen, the problem will simply have been postponed.”"}],[{"start":212.62,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1786415600_4558.mp3"}