In a region where complex projects often struggle to find long-term capital, one deal has set a new benchmark. With a $2 billion financing package that married financial ingenuity with sustainability and scale, Antofagasta Minerals secured the future of its Los Pelambres mine while reshaping how natural resource companies access global capital.
Los Pelambres, which generates more than half of Antofagasta’s earnings, is one of Chile’s most important copper mines. Its long-term future hinges on a reliable water supply — a challenge in the drought-stricken Atacama Desert. The financing, which wins awards for Infrastructure Financing of the Year not only for Latin America and the Southern Cone, will double desalination capacity to 800 liters per second and add a second transport and pumping system to deliver 630 liters per second of water to the mine, extending its life to 2053 and underpinning global copper supply for the energy transition.
“Project Mallupai,” as lenders called it, shows how innovative structuring can deliver financial resilience, operational security, and ESG impact all at once. For Antofagasta, it ensures the mine’s future. For Latin American finance, it sets a precedent for what the next generation of project financings could look like.
Rather than rely on traditional bank loans, Antofagasta created a new subsidiary, DSWS SpA, to hold the mine’s water assets and raise debt secured by a 20-year Water Services Agreement. Under this “hell-or-high-water” contract, Los Pelambres pays a fixed tariff for water supply regardless of operating conditions. By unbundling water infrastructure from mining operations, Antofagasta insulated revenues from commodity price swings and opened the door to long-term infrastructure investors.
The result was a financing package anchored by a $1.55 billion US private placement — the largest ever by a Latin American issuer. Rated BBB+ by Fitch, the 19-year fully amortizing bonds priced at 7.07% and were oversubscribed by more than 70 institutional investors, including Allianz, MetLife, Apollo, and New York Life. For several, it was their first investment in Chile.
A complementary $450 million syndicated loan rounded out the deal, diversifying funding sources and optimizing duration. Robust credit protections — including a debt service reserve account, DSCR triggers, step-up tariffs, and make-whole provisions — gave investors confidence to back what was effectively a new asset class in the region.
“The most innovative element is that a mining company was able to finance its water supply with infrastructure-oriented capital,” says Eduardo Tagle, corporate finance manager at Antofagasta Minerals. “That gave us longer maturities and more competitive terms than we could have achieved in the mining market.”
The transaction is already being studied as a model for other resource companies seeking to unlock value from infrastructure. By treating water assets as standalone infrastructure, Antofagasta secured an investment-grade rating and tapped into a deep pool of global institutional capital — while strengthening environmental stewardship and social license to operate.
The financing’s importance extends beyond balance sheet flexibility. Once completed, more than 90% of Los Pelambres’ water will come from seawater or recycling, eliminating reliance on the Choapa River, which has suffered through 15 years of drought. The plant will run on renewable energy and deploy reverse osmosis technology with marine intake and discharge facilities designed to minimize ecological impact.
The project also carries meaningful social dividends. Antofagasta has committed to protecting 27,000 hectares of natural land, including four sanctuaries in the Coquimbo region. Construction created 21,000 jobs, with a workforce that is 29% female — well above the mining industry average — and overwhelmingly local, with seven in ten employees drawn from nearby communities.
Infrastructure Financing of the Year: Latin America & Southern Cone
Minera Los Pelambres Water Infrastructure Project
$2bn project financing: $450m senior term loan; $1.55bn private placement
Sponsors: Minera Los Pelambres (Antofagasta Minerals S.A (60%) and Nippon LP Investment & MM LP Holding BV (40%))
Mandated Lead Arrangers: Bank of China; BBVA; Goldman Sachs; Mizuho; MUFG; Natixis; Scotiabank
Financial Advisor & Sole Bookruner: Goldman Sachs
Private Placement Purchasers: Allianz, Apollo, Cigna, HPS Investment Partners, Metlife, New York Life, Voya
Counsel to Sponsors: Carey, Sullivan & Cromwell
Counsel to Lenders: Milbank, Philippi Prietocarrizosa Ferrero DU & Uría
