Chemistry:Rare-earth resources in Chile

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Rare-earth resources in Chile is located in Chile
Penco
Penco
Chanco
Chanco
N. Nahuelbuta
N. Nahuelbuta
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Location of some of the principal rare-earth resources being explored in Chile.

Chile is relatively unexplored[1] for rare-earth elements (REEs) and as of 2026 there is no mining of REEs.[2] The Chilean Ministry of Mining has led efforts to characterize REE resources in the country.[3] Chile's main REEs resources have been identified as of 2026 to lie in the commune of Penco near the coast in central Chile and in the Norte Chico between Coquimbo and Copiapó.[4]

Old tailings from the mining of other resources have also been identified as potential sources of rare-earth metals in Chile.[1][5] Reprocessing of the tailings for REE extraction is expected to be water and energy intensive and will also generate new tailings.[5]

Rare-earth mining Chile operates under the general laws that apply to other forms of mining and does not have a specific legal framework.[1] In March 2026 Chile signed an agreement with the United States with regards to the exploitation and commercialization of rare-earth metals.[4][upper-alpha 1] This move has been interpreted by analysts an attempt by the United States to diminish Chinese influence in the rare-earth metals market.[4][upper-alpha 2]

Penco Module and nearby deposits

Since at least 2016 the company Aclara Resources, which its owned in 55.9% by Hochschild Mining and 10.1% by CAP, has been developing plans to commercially exploit rare-earth metals nexto to Penco.[2] The project, known as Penco Module (Spanish: Módulo Penco), has as of March 2026 its environmental impact assessment was under evaluation by the Environmental Assessment Service.[2] If approved the mine is planned to produce an average of 811 tons of RRE-oxides annually,[2] starting production in 2028.[9] The mine in Penco is part of scheme by Aclara Resources that includes more mines in Brazil and a rare-earth separator plant in Louisiana in the United States to be supplied with the output from its future mines.[2] The mining project in Penco had been previously rejected by the National Forest Corporation for its impact on the tree species Citronella mucronata.[9] The 2026 Chilean wildfires occurred in January over much of the project area wiping out both the native forest hosting the Citronella mucronata and exotic forest plantations.[9][10] The fact that the wildfire could potentially benefit the mining project and that it allegedly started simultaneously in patches of native forest led to accusations of the fires being intentional on behalf of Aclara Resources.[9][10]

About 60 km south of Penco regolith formed from granites of the Coastal Batholith of central Chile in Cordillera de Nahuelbuta have been investigated as a source of rare-earth metals.[11] North of Penco NeoRe and Chilean Cobalt Corp have together explored for REE in the coastal communes of Chanco, Cobquecura and Pelluhue.[2]

Notes

  1. ↑ The agreement was published under the name Joint Declaration for the Establishment of Consultations on Critical Minerals and Rare Earth Elements (Spanish: Declaración Conjunta para el Establecimiento de Consultas sobre Minerales Críticos y Tierras Raras) and was signed on March 12 by Chile's Minister of Foreign Affairs Francisco Pérez Mackenna and Deputy Secretary Christopher Landau.[2][6]
  2. ↑ In December 2024, Trump nominated former United States Border Patrol agent Brandon Judd as the United States ambassador to Chile.[7] In his Senate confirmation meeting, Judd stated that he wanted to "restrict China’s access to Chile's resources."[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Plaza Reveco, Rafael Mauricio (2022). "Incentivos jurídico-económicos a la minería y procesamiento de tierras raras" (in es). Revista de derecho ambiental 17. doi:10.5354/0719-4633.2022.66408. https://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?pid=S0719-46332022000100129&script=sci_arttext. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Badal, Ignacio (2026-03-14). "Tierras raras en Chile: los proyectos que podrían llamar la atención de EE.UU." (in es). La Tercera. https://www.latercera.com/pulso/noticia/tierras-raras-en-chile-los-proyectos-que-podrian-llamar-la-atencion-de-eeuu/. 
  3. ↑ (in es) Análisis de Minerales Críticos y/o Estratégicos (Report). Chilean Copper Commission. 2024. https://www.cochilco.cl/web/analisis-de-minerales-criticos-y-o-estrategicos/. Retrieved 2026-03-25. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Haas, Bárbara (2026-03-13). "Tierras raras en Chile: para qué sirven, dónde están y por qué EEUU está interesado en ellas" (in es). Radio Bío-Bío. https://www.biobiochile.cl/noticias/bbcl-explica/bbcl-explica-notas/2026/03/13/tierras-raras-en-chile-para-que-sirven-donde-estan-y-por-que-eeuu-esta-interesado-en-ellas.shtml. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Araya, Natalia; Kraslawski, Andrzej; Cisternas, Luis A. (2020). "Towards mine tailings valorization: Recovery of critical materials from Chilean mine tailings". Journal of Cleaner Production 263. 
  6. ↑ "President José Antonio Kast participates in signing of declaration on critical minerals and rare earth elements with the United States". 2026-03-12. https://www.gob.cl/en/news/president-jose-antonio-kast-participates-in-signing-of-declaration-on-critical-minerals-and-rare-earth-elements-with-the-united-states/. 
  7. ↑ Agouborde, María Victoria (December 6, 2024). "Trump nombra como embajador en Chile a un exmiembro de la Patrulla Fronteriza" (in es-CL). https://elpais.com/chile/2024-12-06/trump-nombra-como-embajador-en-chile-a-un-exmiembro-de-la-patrulla-fronteriza.html. 
  8. ↑ Patrick, Igor (April 17, 2025). "Chinese embassy in Chile accuses US of ‘hegemonism’ over Trump nominee’s remarks" (in en). https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3306837/chinese-embassy-chile-accuses-us-hegemonism-over-trump-nominees-remarks. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 "Incendios y acusaciones sacuden planes de Aclara y proyecto de tierras raras Penco en Chile" (in es). BNamericas. 2026-01-22. https://www.bnamericas.com/es/reportajes/incendios-y-acusaciones-sacuden-planes-de-aclara-y-proyecto-de-tierras-raras-penco-en-chile. 
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 de Vicente, Agustín (2026-01-19). "Aclara niega rumores sobre el origen del fuego en Penco" (in es). Reporte Minero & Energético. https://www.reporteminero.cl/noticia/noticias/2026/01/incendios-penco-fundo-coihueco-aclara-modulo-penco-declaracion-publica. 
  11. ↑ Bustos, Nicolás; Marquardt, Carlos; Belmar, Álex; Cordeiro, Pedro (2022). "Regolith-hosted rare earth exploration in the Chilean Coastal Range of the Central Andes". Journal of Geochemical Exploration 234. doi:10.1016/j.gexplo.2021.106934. 



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