Kutch Copper, Codelco in pact for strategic exploration

MUMBAI: Adani Group-owned Kutch Copper and Chile’s Corporación Nacional del Cobre de Chile (Codelco) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the strategic exploration of the Kaburkaala project in Chile.

Located in the Calama copper belt of the Antofagasta Region in northern Chile, the Kaburkaala project is in one of the most prolific copper districts in the world.

“By securing robust access to global copper resources, we are building supply chain resilience for the critical industries driving our nation's growth—spanning renewable energy, advanced manufacturing, infrastructure, and technology,” Jeet Adani, director at Kutch Copper said in a statement.

“More than just a mining asset, we view this strategic partnership as a long-term investment in India's future,” he said.

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Copper supply globally is heavily concentrated, with Chile and Peru together accounting for roughly 35% of global mine output. Top five producing countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, China and the US, supply well over half of the world’s mined copper.

Kutch Copper -- housed in Adani Enterprises – recently said that it is not facing any challenges in procuring copper concentrate for its smelter operations. Procuring copper concentrate for smelting operations has been tight globally, especially in the last two years as the capacity for smelters has grown at a faster than mining of copper.

For the Adani group, this proposed partnership will help build an integrated globally diversified copper value chain, linking upstream resources in Chile with its copper smelter complex at Mundra, India.

The MoU builds on two earlier agreements. Earlier in 2025, Codelco agreed to supply copper concentrate to Kutch Copper’s Mundra smelter. In November 2025, the companies signed a further agreement to review three Chilean copper projects and set a framework for potential joint development.