Adani Enterprises subsidiary Kutch Copper Ltd and Chile’s state-owned copper producer Corporacion Nacional del Cobre de Chile, or Codelco, have signed a memorandum of understanding to explore a potential partnership for the Kaburkaala copper project in northern Chile. The agreement links a proposed overseas mining and exploration partnership with Adani’s copper smelting complex at Mundra in Gujarat.
The MoU sets out the key terms of cooperation for a proposed strategic exploration partnership at Kaburkaala, which is located in the Calama copper belt in Chile’s Antofagasta region. The belt is one of the country’s major copper-producing districts, according to the company’s official release.
The agreement was signed recently at LME Week 2026 in London in the presence of Jeet Adani, director of Kutch Copper; Vinay Prakash, CEO of Adani Natural Resources; and Bernardo Fontaine, chairman of Codelco. The companies have not disclosed the proposed investment size, exploration schedule, production capacity or a final development decision for the project.
Under the proposed arrangement, Adani would contribute capital, technology-led exploration capabilities and large-scale project execution expertise. Codelco would bring geological knowledge and international experience in copper exploration, the release said.
For Kutch Copper, the partnership is intended to provide access to an upstream copper resource that could be linked to its integrated smelting operations at Mundra. Copper is used in electrification, renewable energy systems, infrastructure and advanced manufacturing, making reliable access to the metal important for industrial supply chains.
“Critical resources, led by copper, are at the very heart of our future transformation. More than just a mining asset, we view this strategic partnership as a long-term investment in India’s future,” Jeet Adani said in the statement.
He added that access to global copper resources would support supply-chain resilience for industries connected with renewable energy, advanced manufacturing, infrastructure and technology.
Codelco said the proposed collaboration formed part of its strategy to unlock value from its exploration portfolio through partnerships with private-sector companies. The state-owned producer said such partnerships could allow risks to be shared and projects with potential to be developed more quickly.
“This MoU represents an important step in the work we have carried out with Adani over the past year,” Bernardo Fontaine said. He added that the process demonstrated Codelco’s ability to attract private-sector partners and create value from its exploration portfolio while safeguarding the long-term interests of the company and the State of Chile.
The proposed partnership comes as India seeks to secure supplies of critical minerals and diversify sources of raw materials required for energy transition infrastructure and industrial expansion. The current agreement is exploratory, and further project development will depend on the outcome of the proposed cooperation and subsequent decisions by the two companies.
