Peru miners with temporary mining permits have suspended protests that have disrupted a significant copper transit route for two weeks in July 2025, as reported by Reuters, citing one of the protest leaders, Luis Huaman.
The decision to halt the demonstrations comes as the miners continue to push for an extension of their temporary permits – a contentious issue that has led to widespread unrest in the sector.
The protests, which began in late June, have been a significant point of contention, with miners blocking a road in the Cusco region critical for major mining companies such as MMG, Glencore and Hudbay Minerals.
These companies operate some of the top ten copper-producing mines in Peru, the world’s third-largest copper producer.
MMG and Hudbay recently communicated to top government officials the potential adverse effects on their production if the protests persisted.
Luis Huaman has informed Reuters that the suspension of the protests would last at least until Friday, 18 July, when a committee of informal miners and government representatives is set to meet in Lima to negotiate a resolution.
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By GlobalDataDuring this time, discussions with the government are expected to continue. “It’s a truce,” Huaman stated, highlighting the temporary nature of the pause.
Huaman emphasised the miners’ demands from the government to ensure a way to continue informal operations. He warned that the protests would restart if an agreement was not reached.
The Ministry of Energy and Mines is working to align 31,000 informal miners with regulatory standards by the end of 2025.
This comes after the removal of more than 50,000 miners from the programme early in July, with at least 45,000 of these having not registered any activity in the past four years.
