Codelco Chairman Máximo Pacheco has issued a letter to the director of El Mercurio to explain his recent absence from the Chamber of Deputies' Mining Committee.
Pacheco clarified that his failure to attend the session on Wednesday, April 22, was due to a change in the scheduled time and logistical travel difficulties.
According to reports from biobiochile.cl, the Codelco executive detailed that the session was originally slated to take place between 3:00 PM and 5:00 PM.
The executive noted that he attempted to arrange an early return from La Serena—where he was attending the Annual Congress of the Copper Workers Federation—to meet the summons.
However, the shift in timing, combined with travel time to Valparaíso and prior commitments in Santiago, made his attendance impossible. "It made my appearance materially impossible, which is why the corresponding excuse was sent," Pacheco stated in his letter.
Attendance Record
To demonstrate his commitment to parliamentary work, Pacheco provided figures regarding his activity before the National Congress. The executive stated that he has been summoned 42 times over the last four years.
Of those summons, the Codelco Chairman attended 25 sessions of the committee. He emphasized that he has always maintained a "full willingness to collaborate with their work" within the legislative body.
The letter follows criticism sparked by a private meeting between the executive and former President Gabriel Boric. This encounter raised questions regarding the reasons behind his absence from the legislative session.
The meeting with the former president took place just days after a tense shareholders' meeting for the state-owned company. During that meeting, Finance Minister Jorge Quiroz had called on Pacheco to perform a self-assessment of his management.
During the meeting with Boric, Pacheco presented the company's 2025 Annual Report. According to biobiochile.cl, the two also discussed matters regarding the defense of the company and the National Lithium Strategy.
