Anglo American Chile’s CEO resigns, interim chief named

Anglo American Chile’s chief executive, Aaron Puna, has resigned from his position and will be temporarily replaced by the head of the firm’s Los Bronces mine, Patricio Hidalgo, the company said in a statement on Thursday.

Puna will continue to work “with the management team of Chile and Base Metals in a transition period,” the company added.

The resignation comes as the company seeks to reverse the rejection in early May of the environmental permit to continue operating the Los Bronces mine in the center of the country.

Environmentalists and social groups have criticized Los Bronces project, valued at $3.3 billion, for its possible impact on a nearby glacier, as well as over risks to water supply in the area.

At the end of July, Chilean authorities also rejected a project that sought to extend the useful life of Anglo American’s small El Soldado copper mine until 2028.

(By Fabian Andres Cambero; Editing by Anthony Esposito and Leslie Adler)