:: Codelco Awards Basic Engineering of Gaby Project to Aker Kvaerner and SNC-Lavalin

Codelco-Chile, the world's largest producer of copper, has awarded a contract to Aker Kvaerner Chile and SNC-Lavalin Chile for basic engineering of the Gaby copper oxide project. The joint contract is valued at approximately USD 2.3 million and is scheduled for completion in early December 2004. Codelco's total capital cost for the project is approximately USD 530 million.

The Gaby project will include an open pit mine and processing facilities to produce 150,000 tonnes of pure copper per year in the form of cathodes. The basic engineering scope includes processing facilities for primary, secondary and tertiary crushing of ore, ore stockpiling, excavation and deposition of ripios (previously processed material that contains residual copper), acidification, leaching, solvent extraction and electrowinning as well as all associated infrastructure. The Gaby project is located 120 kilometres south of the city of Calama in Chile's northern Region II.