Por: Manuel Gonzalez Ossa, ingeniero de minas.

Abstract

This document seeks to present to the reader a perspective on Mining Engineering, currently supported by the application of Artificial Intelligence in data refinement and predictive modeling for responsible decision-making, offering an alternative not considered by the radical positions of environmental skepticism toward territorial energy development, and with the potential to be enforceable upon the project developer and title holder, thereby providing technical operational safety and a determining threshold in territorial environmental sensitivity.

The global energy transition is generating increasing demand for strategic minerals such as copper, lithium, and nickel. According to estimates by the World Bank, global production of critical minerals could increase by between 300% and 500% by 2050 to meet the needs of low-carbon technologies, including electric vehicles, smart grids, energy storage systems, and renewable energy sources¹.

In this context, Latin America plays a strategic role in the global supply of critical minerals. Countries such as Chile and Peru account for nearly 40% of global copper production, while Colombia has significant areas with geological potential for this metal, including porphyry-type deposits in the Andean-Amazonian region².