Chile's SMA environmental regulator said it had fined Quebrada Blanca $1.2 million for the violations, which related to the handling of mining waste and internal environmental controls.

The fines come as Quebrada Blanca pushes forward with plans to vastly boost production from the northern Chilean deposit.

Teck in late 2018 teamed up with the Japanese Sumitomo Metal Mining Co Ltd and Sumitomo Corp to boost the production of its ageing Quebrada Blanca deposit to 300,000 tonnes of copper annually from 23,400 tonnes in 2017.

(Reporting by Fabian Cambero; writing by Dave Sherwood; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

By Fabian Cambero