Halo Minerals (AIM: HALO) has secured a key mining permit for its Playa Verde copper-gold tailings project in Chile, advancing plans to recover metal from historic mine waste as global demand for copper accelerates.
The permit allows Halo’s subsidiary Minera Playa Verde to dredge mineral-bearing material from Chañaral beach, including within the urban area. Chile’s Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (MINVU) raised no objections to the authorization, removing a regulatory hurdle as the company works towards a final investment decision (FID), the company said.
“The granting of this permit represents another important milestone in the advancement of Playa Verde and continues the progress we are making across the Project’s permitting and development workstreams,” Halo CEO Andrew Dennan said.
The project offers an alternative to conventional copper mining by extracting valuable metals from existing tailings while treating material accumulated along the coastline. The approach could help developers tap overlooked sources of supply without relying entirely on new mines, which often face lengthy permitting and construction timelines.
One man’s trash, another’s treasure
Playa Verde is designed to process about 5 million tonnes of mineral-bearing material annually, producing an estimated 8,600 tonnes of payable copper in cathodes and concentrates. Halo projects annual cash flow of approximately $50 million.
The operation would use dredging equipment to recover historic tailings deposited at Chañaral before transporting the material to a metallurgical processing plant.
“Playa Verde presents an opportunity to recover copper from historic mine tailings while treating and conditioning material that has accumulated on the beach at Chañaral,” Dennan said. “We believe this combination of copper production and environmental benefits differentiates Playa Verde and reinforces its potential to become a responsibly developed source of copper.”
The permit marks progress, but the project has yet to reach a final investment decision.
Growing supply gap
The approval comes as the mining industry faces a widening gap between projected copper demand and future mine supply, driven partly by electrification, renewable energy infrastructure and artificial intelligence.
Global copper consumption is forecast to climb 61% between 2026 and 2050 to nearly 46 million tonnes annually, potentially leaving a supply shortfall of 20 million tonnes, equivalent to 44% of projected demand.
The rapid expansion of data centres adds another source of pressure. BHP estimates copper demand from data centres could increase sixfold by 2050, while a single hyperscale AI facility can require as much as 50,000 tonnes of the metal, compared with 5,000 to 15,000 tonnes for a conventional installation.
Dennan argues that the mining industry’s traditional response to rising consumption — developing new deposits — overlooks opportunities to recover metals from waste generated by decades of previous production.
An estimated 282 billion tonnes of mine tailings exist worldwide, representing a potentially significant secondary source of critical minerals. However, the economic viability of individual recovery projects depends on factors including metal grades, processing costs and environmental requirements.