Copper futures reached a ten-week high on Wednesday following the announcement by Panama’s government to shut down a controversial $10 billion copper mine owned by First Quantum Minerals Ltd. The decision came after the Supreme Court of the Central American country declared the 20-year concession given to the Canadian mining operator was unconstitutional.

“We have decided to unanimously declare unconstitutional the entire law 406 [granted mining concessions to First Quantum Minerals] of October 20, 2023,” Supreme Court President Maria Eugenia Lopez said on Tuesday.

Later that evening, President Laurentino Cortizo posted on social media platform X that the “transition process for the orderly and safe closure of the mine” had already begun. Production at Cobre mine has already been disrupted due to environmentalist protesters and labor unions.

The closure of the mine has severe consequences for Panama’s fiscal outlook because the government relies on it for taxes.

And maybe billionaire mining investor Robert Friedland’s apocalyptic warning in a Bloomberg TV interview earlier this year that “copper prices might explode ten times” could be correct if supply quickly transitions into a shortage following the closure of the Panama mine.

https://www.zerohedge.com/commodities/panama-forcing-copper-close-mega-copper-mine-significant-event