Sunday’s accident at the Sudbury mine is particularly jarring for a company still trying to reinvent itself as a responsible corporate citizen.

Any credible prognosis shows that copper faces a structural deficit of 5-7 million tonnes starting in the next 3 or 4 years, Hudbay CFO says.

The company is currently figuring out ways to extract up to ten so-called critical minerals from copper waste at its mining facility in Utah.

Prices for the bellwether commodity this year will average more than $4 a pound, said Diego Hernandez, head of Chilean mining society Sonami.

Company will stick with its policy of paying out 60% of core earnings in dividends for 2021.

Vale CEO Eduardo Bartolomeo said an investigation would be launched into what happened.

Seven claimants are demanding around half a million euros in damages from the company.