Canada's Kinross starts permit process for $1.5 billion Chile mine

SANTIAGO, April 1 (Reuters) - Canadian miner Kinross Gold Corp. begun the process of obtaining the environmental permit to develop its Lobo Marte gold project in northern Chile, which is expected to involve an investment of $1.5 billion, the government said on Wednesday.

• The permit application, submitted to the government's Environmental Assessment Service, seeks approval for the production of gold dore, a semi-pure alloy, with a processing capacity of 35,000 tons per day.

• The project features an average gold content of 1.29 grams per ton and a 22-year operating life.

• The Lobo Marte project will cover about 2,300 hectares in the northern Atacama region.

• "The project aims to produce gold dore through the open-pit and sequential mining of the Marte and Lobo pits,” the company said in its application.

• Other recent applications totaling $15.7 billion have been filed in recent days by copper miners BHP and Freeport McMoRan, and by lithium producer Albemarle.

• “We need a robust institutional framework, clear rules, and a permitting and regulatory ecosystem that, while protecting the environment and ensuring compliance with the law, does not hinder investors who are betting on Chile,” said Mining Minister Daniel Mas in a statement.