Antofagasta is the heart of Chilean copper mining, but the detail that matters for scrap is a smelter rather than a mine. Glencore's Altonorte, near the port of Antofagasta, is a custom copper smelting operation and an established recycler of high-grade copper scrap.
Scrap metal prices per kg in Antofagasta
| Scrap type | Price (CLP) | Change | Global reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Non-ferrous (per kg) | |||
| Copper Scrap | CLP 11,079 / kg | ▲ +2.30% | $5.78 / lb |
| Aluminum Scrap | CLP 1,553 / kg | ▲ +1.25% | $0.81 / lb |
| Brass Scrap | CLP 6,709 / kg | ▲ +1.45% | $3.50 / lb |
| Stainless Steel Scrap | CLP 1,093 / kg | ▲ +0.00% | $0.57 / lb |
| Lead Scrap | CLP 1,131 / kg | ▲ +0.00% | $0.59 / lb |
| Zinc Scrap | CLP 1,725 / kg | ▲ +0.00% | $0.90 / lb |
| Battery Scrap | CLP 441 / kg | ▲ +0.00% | $0.23 / lb |
| Radiator Scrap | CLP 6,364 / kg | ▲ +2.15% | $3.32 / lb |
| Wire Scrap | CLP 5,348 / kg | ▲ +2.20% | $2.79 / lb |
| Cable Scrap | CLP 3,565 / kg | ▲ +2.20% | $1.86 / lb |
| Electronic Scrap | CLP 1,533 / kg | ▲ +2.56% | $0.80 / lb |
| Ferrous and bulk (per tonne) | |||
| Steel Scrap | CLP 287,516 / tonne | ▲ +0.00% | $300 / ton |
| Iron Scrap | CLP 253,014 / tonne | ▲ +0.00% | $264 / ton |
| Car Scrap | CLP 345,019 / tonne | ▲ +0.00% | $360 / ton |
| Cast Iron | CLP 276,015 / tonne | ▲ +0.00% | $288 / ton |
Indicative dealer prices for clean, sorted scrap in Chile, shown here for Antofagasta. Individual yards quote around this level by grade, volume and condition; the derivation from exchange benchmarks and the exchange rate (1 USD = 987.99 CLP) is described in the methodology section below.
Antofagasta scrap price chart (CLP)
Daily open, high, low and close for the most traded scrap metals in CLP, the same series Antofagasta yards price against. Scroll to zoom and drag to move along the timeline.
Price history could not be loaded.
- Current Price
- Daily Change
- Weekly Change
- Monthly Change
- Yearly Change
The scrap market in Antofagasta
The mining scale here is hard to overstate. Escondida, in the commune of Antofagasta, produced more than 1,277,500 tonnes of copper in 2024 and has for decades been one of the world's most productive copper mines. Chuquicamata, 215 kilometres north-east near Calama, is the largest open pit copper mine in the world by excavated volume, opened in 1882 and 850 metres deep. Antucoya, straddling Maria Elena and Mejillones, produced 77,800 tonnes of cathode in 2023 with around 2,661 workers.
That activity generates industrial scrap of a particular kind: heavy structural steel, pipework, wear parts, cable and electrical material from mines, plants and their contractors. It is contracted volume rather than walk-in trade.
The point that distinguishes Antofagasta from every other mining region on this site is Altonorte. Located near the port, it is a custom copper smelting operation and, in Glencore's own description, an established recycler of high-grade copper scrap. A region famous for digging copper out of the ground also has a route for putting recovered copper back into the refined market.
- Region
- Antofagasta Region
- Currency
- Chilean peso (CLP), quoted per kilogram
- Why it matters
- Altonorte, a custom copper smelter and recycler of high-grade copper scrap
- Escondida
- More than 1,277,500 tonnes of copper in 2024
- Chuquicamata
- Largest open pit copper mine in the world by excavated volume, opened 1882
Where the scrap yards are in Antofagasta
- The port of Antofagasta and the Altonorte smelter beside it.
- Escondida and the mining operations across the Antofagasta commune.
- The Calama corridor toward Chuquicamata, 215 kilometres north-east.
What pays well in Antofagasta
- High-grade copper scrap, which has a smelting route locally rather than needing export.
- Heavy structural steel and pipework from mine maintenance and plant work.
- Cable and electrical material from mining and processing operations.
Selling scrap metal in Antofagasta: rules, ID and payment
Mining region scrap is industrial scrap, and the buyers are set up for contracted volume rather than counter trade. Know your grade before you quote, expect proper weighing and assessment, and if you are generating material regularly from a mine or contractor operation, a standing arrangement is usually worth more than selling load by load. For high-grade copper, ask whether a local smelting route applies before assuming the material has to travel.
Before any sale, check the live board above, sort by grade and get quotes from two or three buyers; the best scrap price guide covers the routine and the calculator turns a weight into a figure at today's price. To judge whether a local quote is competitive, our note on telling a well-paying yard from a headline rate sets out the benchmark test.
Antofagasta scrap price FAQ
What is the scrap copper price in Antofagasta today?
As of the latest update, the indicative price for clean number 1 copper is about CLP 11,079 per kg in CLP. Antofagasta yards typically quote within a few percent of that figure either side, depending on grade, volume and the buyer; the live board above shows all fifteen grades.
Is there a scrap market in Antofagasta or only mining?
Both, and they are connected. Alongside the mines, Glencore's Altonorte near the port is a custom copper smelting operation and an established recycler of high-grade copper scrap, so recovered copper has a local processing route.
How big is Escondida?
It produced more than 1,277,500 tonnes of copper in 2024 and has for decades been among the world's most productive copper mines. It sits at 3,100 metres in the Atacama Desert in the commune of Antofagasta and opened in 1991.
What is Chuquicamata?
The largest open pit copper mine in the world by excavated volume, just outside Calama, 215 kilometres north-east of Antofagasta. It opened in 1882, is 850 metres deep, and is owned by Codelco, with an integrated smelter alongside it.
What kind of scrap does the region generate?
Industrial material: heavy structural steel, pipework, wear parts, cable and electrical material from mines, processing plants and their contractors. It is contracted volume rather than household metal.
Are Antofagasta prices different from the national board?
The board on this page is the Chile indicative level, and Antofagasta yards trade around it rather than exactly on it. Local competition, freight to the nearest consumer and the day's export demand set the spread, which is why two quotes in the same city can differ by several percent on the same morning.
Sources and methodology
The Antofagasta board uses the Chile indicative prices: global exchange benchmarks (COMEX copper, CME aluminum and steel, NYMEX platinum and palladium, IMF monthly lead, zinc and nickel) multiplied by typical yard recovery shares, a local market factor of 0.88 and the day's exchange rate. The full method, the recovery shares and the correction policy are on our editorial policy page; local notes on this page are reviewed against published dealer information and reader corrections sent to info@scrappricetoday.com.
Prices are indicative and for information only; they are not offers to buy or sell. Yard quotes in Antofagasta vary by grade, volume, condition and buyer.
Nearby and related
Scrap metal prices in Chile · All countries · Catalytic converter prices