Milei is betting big on copper to ‘Make Argentina Great Again’

Argentina’s President Javier Milei is scrambling to unlock the South American country’s copper potential, seeking to capitalize on surging global demand amid a push toward electrification and renewable energy.

Milei, a self-described anarcho capitalist who won a shock election in 2023, has unveiled a series of tough reformist measures in an effort to stabilize the traditionally volatile economy and “Make Argentina Great Again.”

As part of this push, Milei’s administration hopes the mining sector can play a key role, particularly in regard to copper and lithium.

One of the libertarian president’s flagship policies has been to introduce the Large Investment Incentive Regime, or RIGI, a scheme designed to provide generous tax, trade and foreign exchange benefits to large-scale investors over a 30-year period.

To date, 20 projects worth just over $30 billion have sought entry into Argentina’s RIGI, according to global risk intelligence firm Verisk Maplecroft, three-quarters of which are in mining. Copper alone is estimated to represent $16 billion, more than all non-mining sectors combined.

Major players including BHP, Glencore and Rio Tinto are among those making bold bets on Argentina’s copper and lithium potential, with top executives from Glencore and Rio Tinto recently traveling to meet with Milei on a trip to Buenos Aires.

Ro Dhawan, CEO of the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), a trade body representing roughly one-third of the global industry, described Argentina as “arguably the most exciting new copper story today.”

There are other countries and jurisdictions which may be more geologically rich, Dhawan said, but not one that sits at the intersection of a stable domestic political environment, and the provision of basic infrastructure and facilities and sufficient other investments complementary to the mining industry.

Among the most notable copper projects in Argentina is BHP and Lundin’s Vicuna joint venture.

Situated along the Chile-Argentina border, the Vicuna District is regarded as a geologically prospective region. Indeed, the deposits at Vicuna’s Josemaria and Filo del Sol mines are estimated to contain 13 million metric tons of measured copper and 25 million tons of inferred copper.

For ICMM’s Dhawan, the potential significance of BHP and Lundin’s Vicuna copper project is extraordinary.

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