You are here :
Home Top 10 Largest Open Pit Mines in the World
|
Last Updated:: 18/09/2015
Top 10 Largest Open Pit Mines in the World
Open-pit mining is one of the most commonly used techniques to extract minerals from the Earth. The process, which is also known as “opencast mining,” “open-cut mining” and “strip mining,” is used when deposits are located close to the surface, and entails digging or blasting from the ground level to extract ore.
Located in the vast landscape of the Atacama Desert in Chile, the Escondida Copper Mine is one of the largest open pit mines in the world. Consisting of two open mines - Escondida Pit and Escondida Norta - the mine is 3.9 kilometer long, 2.7 kilometers wide and 645 meters deep. The mine ranks as the third deepest open-pit operation.
Owners of the Escondida mine include BHP Billiton, which owns a 57.5 percent stake, and Rio Tinto, which owns a 30 percent interest.