This move is not common in Latin American countries.
Previously, First Quantum missed the deadline on Wednesday night and failed to sign the new tax agreement that has been in progress since September 2021.
First Quantum said on Friday that it was doing everything possible to support its business in Panama, “including through all available legal means”. It also expressed disappointment at the “unnecessary actions” of the Government.
It is reported that the focus of the dispute between the two sides seems to be a clause that requires the Vancouver based mining company to pay Panama at least 375 million dollars in royalties.
From the perspective of the copper market, any continuous shutdown of the copper mine will further tighten the global supply. By 2030, it is expected that the annual shortage will be 4.7 million tons.
The mine achieved commercial production in September 2019. It is estimated that its proven and possible reserves are 3.1 billion tons, and its full capacity production can produce more than 300000 tons of copper annually, accounting for about 1.5% of the global copper production.
First Quantum is one of the largest copper miners in the world and the largest copper producer in Canada.
The company said that it was considering expanding the processing capacity of Cobre mine from 85 million tons per year to 100 million tons per year in 2023.
This will increase the copper output of the mine to nearly 360000 tons by the end of this year and 350000-380000 tons by 2023.