BHP Billiton is waiting for an update on conditions at Chile's Escondida, the world's largest copper mine, after it temporarily suspended operations due to bad weather, a spokeswoman said today.
The mine was halted Saturday after being hit by heavy rain and snow.
Melbourne-based BHP, majority owner of Escondida, will resume operations when weather conditions change and it is safe to do so, company spokeswoman Kelly Quirke said.
Escondida, located in the north of Chile at about 3100 metres above sea level, produced about 1.09 million metric tonnes of copper in 2010.
The mining operation is 57.5 per cent owned by BHP and 30 per cent by Rio Tinto. The Jeco Corp venture between Mitsubishi, Mitsubishi Materials and Nippon Mining & Metals owns a 10 per cent stake, and Jeco 2 owns 2.5 per cent.
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