A banner that reads "All together we will fight. All together we will win" is pictured outside Escondida, the world's biggest copper mine, during the strike. The strike has helped push the price of copper up to $2.76 a pound, its highest level in nearly a year.STRINGER/Reuters
BHP Billiton Ltd. has put one of its smaller Chilean copper mines on the chopping block, according to people familiar with the matter, in what will likely be a difficult sale.
Although copper is one of the mining giant's core businesses, BHP has started shopping Cerro Colorado around to potential buyers, sources said.
Cerro Colorado is located in the Atacama desert, where BHP's prized Escondida mine is also situated. But Cerro's copper grades and production have been declining, making it less attractive for buyers.
It is unknown whether there would be interest from Canadian copper producers. HudBay Minerals Inc. has historically preferred to acquire projects and build its mines from scratch. Lundin Mining Corp. recently gobbled up a Chilean mine for $1.8-billion (U.S.) and is still digesting the acquisition.
The sale of Cerro Colorado comes as BHP grapples with a strike at Escondida, the world's largest copper mine. The strike has helped push the price of copper up to $2.76 a pound, its highest level in nearly a year. Though prices are still depressed compared to 2011 when the red metal was trading above $4 a pound.
The Australian-Anglo-based miner has pared down its business to focus on a handful of minerals and metals such as copper, iron ore and coal. In the early stages of the commodities downturn, BHP hived off some of its unwanted assets into a separate company called South32, based in Australia.
BHP did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Rachelle Younglai