“An In-Depth Look At 2023’s Top 10 Copper Mining Giants

Copper has recently become one of the most valuable and widely used metals around the world. It has a variety of practical and industrial applications, and it is used to make electrical wiring, plumbing, coins, jewelry, and so much more. In light of the growing demand for copper, numerous companies have sprung up in recent years to meet this need. In this article, we take a look at the world’s top 10 copper producing companies and the role they play in the global copper production landscape. Chile-based mining company Codelco — which stands for Corporación Nacional del Cobre de Chile — is the world’s largest copper producer, and it also produces valuable by-products such as molybdenum, gold, silver, and other metals. The company’s 13 main operations are located in Chile, and it has a history that dates back to the early 19th century. According to estimates, Codelco accounts for 11 percent of the world’s total copper production. In second place is Freeport-McMoRan, a US-based mining company headquartered in Arizona. The company extracts copper, gold, and molybdenum from its mines in Arizona, Utah, and Mexico. As of 2019, the company produces about 1.7 million tons of copper annually, accounting for 6 percent of the world’s total copper production. Coming in at number three is Chilean/Anglo joint venture Anglo American, which manages operations in Chile, Peru, and Argentina. The company produces about 1.3 million tons of copper annually, which accounts for about 5 percent of the total global copper production. Fourth on the list is China Minmetals Corporation, which is the largest Chinese national integrated copper producer. The company operates mines in Yunnan province and Sichuan province, and as of 2019, it produces over 850,000 tons of copper annually, which makes up 3 percent of the world’s total copper production. Luxembourg-based mining conglomerate KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. is another major global copper producer. The company operates both underground and open-pit mines in Poland, and it produces around 800,000 tons of copper each year, which is 2 percent of the world’s total copper production. Number six on the list is Grupo Mexico, the largest private-sector mining company in Mexico and the third largest copper producer in the world. The company’s copper operations are based in the states of Sonora and Sinaloa, and it produces around 750,000 tons of copper annually, which is 2 percent of the total global production. The seventh largest copper producer is US-based Southern Copper Corporation, which produces around 750,000 tons of copper each year. The company operates copper mining complexes in Morelos, Chihuahua and Sonora, and it accounts for about 2 percent of the world’s total copper production. Next on the list is China’s Jiangxi Copper Corporation, which produces about 600,000 tons of copper each year. This makes up 1.5 percent of the total global copper production. Number nine is Brazilian miner Vale S.A., which mainly produces iron, but it also produces around 500,000 tons of copper annually. This makes up 1.5 percent of the world’s total copper production. The tenth largest copper producer is US-based Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc., a spinoff of the original Freeport-McMoRan company. The company produces about 400,000 tons of copper and 1.2 million ounces of gold annually, and these figures make up about 1 percent of the total global copper production. Overall, these ten companies account for 60 percent of the world’s total copper production. By 2023, the estimated total production figures for copper is expected to hit 200225 thousand metric tons, according to a report by GlobalData. As the demand for copper continues to rise, these companies and others like them will play an increasingly important role in meeting this demand.