El Algarrobo

El Algarrobo is a closed iron mine in north-central Chile. Desigs to open a mine in El Algarrobo date to the early 20th century when there was a drive to establish a steel industry in Chile. The mine was however established in 1959 and mined by Compañía de Acero del Pacífico with a rairoad established by the mid-1960s that connected it to the port of Huasco. In 1978 El Algarrobo begun to feed ore to the Planta de Pellets in Huasco. In 1982 Compañía de Acero del Pacífico transformed into a holding and the subsidiary Compañía Minera del Pacífico operated the mine until its closure in 1998. Durings its operative life the mine was an important pillar in the economy of the nearby city of Vallenar.

Geologically El Algarrobo is an iron oxide-apatite (IOA) type of deposit. El Algarrobo is part of a wider province of iron ores known as the Chilean Iron Belt.