Opposition committee senators questioned Finance Minister Jorge Quiroz's statements this Wednesday about the possibility of bringing private capital into Codelco, and called on President José Antonio Kast to clarify his government's plans for the state-owned company.
The reaction came after Quiroz stated, in an interview with Bloomberg, that Codelco will need private capital in the long term, beyond the per-project exploration partnerships it already uses.
"In the longer term, we may have to think about private capital investment in Codelco itself," the minister said, specifying that any such measure would maintain state control and is not part of the Executive's immediate plans.
In a joint statement titled "Codelco Belongs to Chile," the lawmakers declared: "We flatly reject the statements of the Finance Minister, who once again seeks to open the door to possible private participation, by way of a covert privatization."
The senators accused the Executive of pushing a campaign against the state copper company. "The current government has, from day one, deployed a campaign aimed at discrediting the work of the state copper company before public opinion, with the apparent intention of making it lose value and ultimately selling part of it to private parties at a much lower price," they stated.
The lawmakers ta…
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Opposition committee senators questioned this Wednesday the statements made by Finance Minister Jorge Quiroz about the possibility of bringing private capital into Codelco, and called on President José Antonio Kast to clarify his government's plans for the state-owned company. The reaction came after Quiroz stated, in an interview with Bloomberg, that Codelco will need private capital in the long term, beyond the project-by-project exploration partnerships it already uses. "In the longer term, we may have to think about private capital investment in Codelco itself," the minister said, specifying that any such measure would maintain state control and is not part of the Executive's immediate plans.
In a joint statement titled "Codelco Belongs to Chile," the lawmakers declared: "We categorically reject the statements of the Finance Minister, who once again seeks to open the door to possible private participation, by way of a covert privatization." The senators accused the Executive of waging a campaign against the state copper company. "The current government has, from day one, deployed a campaign aimed at discrediting the work of the state copper company before public opinion, with the apparent intention of making it lose value and eventually selling part of it to private parties at a much lower price," they stated.
The lawmakers also addressed the irregularities detected in the 2024 and 2025 production records, which they described as serious and which, in their view, must be investigated to establish responsibilities and recover any damages to the company's assets. However, they warned that these facts do not justify a possible sale of the company. "A control failure is corrected with more control and better corporate governance, not by handing over to private parties what belongs to all Chileans," they said.
In that context, they demanded that Codelco's board adopt a formal agreement ruling out the sale of strategic assets and the transfer of its control, and that this decision be recorded in official minutes and publicly communicated. They also asked the government to guarantee the state company's investment plan for 2027 and to explain how it will finance the operations needed to sustain production and employment.
Regarding the Executive's plans, the legislators stated: "We demand that President José Antonio Kast make clear to the country whether or not it is in his plans to open the ownership of Codelco or its divisions to private investors, which assets or stakes he is considering selling, and which he considers dispensable." In addition, they asked to know whether the government has already held conversations with potential investors and what the effects of such transactions would be on public control and the State's future revenues.
In the document, the senators recalled that Codelco has contributed US$164 billion to the Treasury, expressed in current currency, and rejected the possibility of selling part of its assets to meet fiscal needs, at a time when, they questioned, the Executive is cutting taxes for large companies and granting tax benefits to the largest fortunes.
Finally, they announced that they will request a special session of the Senate floor, which they will seek to convene with government authorities to address the future of the state-owned company.