Buenaventura announces temporary suspension of mining activities at Tajo Norte

Buenaventura announced that the company has submitted a notice to the Peruvian Ministry of Energy and Mines for the temporary suspension of mining activities at Colquijirca’s Tajo Norte mine for up to three years. The partial temporary suspension of exploitation activities is due to a delay of Colquijirca’s Modification of Environmental Impact Assessment approval. This delay was caused by various events, including administrative delays related to the Covid-19 pandemic, Peru’s related 2020 state of emergency, as well as recent 2022 regulatory changes related to the processing of environmental assessments. Regular mining operations will continue at the Marcapunta underground mine. However, only exploration activities, stockpiled ore rehandling at the concentrator plant, water management, and care and maintenance activities will be carried out at Colquijirca’s Tajo Norte mine. It is important to note that Buenaventura is implementing a plan to increase production at its Marcapunta underground mine. This year’s 10,000 tpd production rate is therefore expected to ultimately increase to 12,000 tpd in the following 2 to 3 years. The Company will maintain its focus on improving operating efficiency to remain competitive while mining activities at Tajo Norte are suspended.