Quake briefly disrupts copper mine in Peru

Denver — Operations have resumed at Southern Peru Copper’s (PCU-N) Toquepala copper mine in southern Peru, where an 8.1-magnitude earthquake shut down operations on June 23.

No injuries have been reported. The quake cut power to the mine and damaged the railroad that ships concentrates to the Ilo smelter on the coast.

The company says it will need three weeks to fix the damage. Meanwhile, the smelter will either work off existing stockpiles or have concentrates trucked from the mine, says spokesman Jerry Cooper.

Southern Peru does not expect production to be affected.

Toquepala sits 40 miles east of Moqueaqua, where damage from the quake was the most severe. Nearly 80% of the buildings in the provincial capital were damaged or destroyed.

Damage was also reported in Arequipa, the largest city in southern Peru, where a tower reportedly collapsed from a 16th century cathedral.

So far, 75 people have reportedly been killed by the quake, with 1,200 injured and more than 34,000 homeless.

The earthquake also spawned a tsunami which struck the coastal town of Camana.

However, 50 miles east of Arequipa, the Cerro Verde mine, which is owned by Phelps Dodge (PD-N), experienced no damage or disruption.