Antofagasta share price: Copper miner suspends three mines due to heavy rains in Chile

Chilean copper miner Antofagasta Plc (LON:ANTO) has suspended three of its mines in Chile due to heavy rains in the Atacama Desert, located in the north of the country. The sites in question are Centinela, Antucoya and Michilla. However, Los Pelambres, the company’s most important mine, continues to operate.

“Operations have been suspended, primarily for the safety of employees and others who work at the mines, although some processing of stockpiled material has been possible,” the miner said today in a brief statement to the London Stock Exchange. “The impact of the rain on the operations is currently being assessed and normal operations are expected to resume as soon as the situation improves.”
The heavy rains have forced the Chilean government to declare a state of emergency in the Atacama and Antofagasta regions. Mahmud Aleuy, the country’s deputy interior minister said yesterday that the flooding has left seven dead and 19 missing.Other miners such as the state-owned Corporación Nacional delCobre de Chile and Canada’s Lundin Mining Corp have also been affected by the floods.
In today’s trading, Antofagasta shares were down 2.5 percent at 705.00p, as of 14:29 UTC. The stock has fallen 6.3 percent since the start of the year. The company’s market capitalisation currently stands at nearly £7 billion.
As of March 26, 2015, the consensus forecast amongst 33 polled investment analysts covering Antofagasta has it that investors should hold their position in the company. This stance has been maintained since July 08, 2009, when the sentiment of investment analysts improved from “underperform”.
As of 16:02 GMT, Friday, 27 March, Antofagasta plc share price is 713.00p.