Black & Veatch built and are currently expanding the largest desalination plant in Latin America at BHP Billiton’s Escondida mine in Chile where desalination is becoming fundamental for mining.
After five months in Lima and more than 130 interviews, the conversations with C-executives along the Peruvian mining value chain touched on various topics. These included production targets, drilling results, the benefits of new technologies like the so-called “digital twins” to replicate reality in a virtual environment, and even the use of cartridge valves. However, a recurring theme in almost every interview, and perhaps the most significant one in relevance, is Peru's loss of its position as the second-largest copper producer to the Democratic Republic of Congo.