SANTIAGO (Reuters) -Copper miner Codelco has asked Chile’s mining regulator for permission to reopen a part of its flagship El Teniente mine after a collapse last week that killed six people, said two sources with knowledge of the matter.
Codelco suspended mining operations at El Teniente, the world’s biggest underground copper mine that produced more than 300,000 metric tons last year, on Thursday evening.
Chilean mining regulator Sernageomin later imposed a formal suspension, and instructed Codelco to present four reports related to the cause and impact of the accident so it could evaluate lifting the measure.
In a statement on Wednesday evening, Codelco said it had responded to three information requests from mining regulator Sernageomin and Chile’s labor inspection office.
(Reporting by Daina Beth Solomon and Fabian Cambero, Editing by Natalia Siniawski)
