Quellaveco

Moquegua, Peru

We are developing an 87-kilometer pipeline that will transport water from the Titire River to the Quellaveco mining plant, located in one of the largest copper deposits in the world.

  • +1,300

    workers at peak construction.

  • 24” & 28”

    diameter pipeline carrying fresh water.

  • 2 M

    construction labor hours.

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Quellaveco Mining Project

The mine is expected to produce an average of 300,000 tons of copper per year.

Customer Anglo American
Scope of work Construction

Segment

Mining

Techint Engineering & Construction laid an 87-km pipeline to transport river water to the Quellaveco mining plant, which is set to achieve output levels of 300,000 tons of copper per year. The water scheme for the Quellaveco operation has been designed to draw water from the Titire River, which is not suitable for consumption by the neighboring communities.

The main challenges at the Quellaveco project were the climate and its particular geography. Developed in the Andean area of Moquegua, at 3,600 meters above sea level, temperatures can sometimes drop to -20° C, as the mine lies among high mountains with extremely steep slopes.  For this reason, Techint E&C built and operated a fully equipped high mountain camp, in the middle of a desert area, to house around 850 people.

Challenges at high altitude

Learn more about this complex high mountain construction site

Location

Quellaveco, one of the largest copper reserves in Peru, is located in the Moquegua region, in the south of the country. The mine is found up in the higher reaches of the Andes, at an average altitude of 3,600 meters above sea level, where the copper deposits lie some 400 meters underground.

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