Antofagasta Region in the context of "Ollagüe"

Antofagasta (Spanish pronunciation: [antofaˈɣasta] ) is a port city in northern Chile, about 1,100 kilometres (700 mi) north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2015 census, the city has a population of 402,669.

Once claimed by Bolivia following the Spanish American wars of independence, Antofagasta was captured by Chile on 14 February 1879, triggering the War of the Pacific (1879–83). Chilean sovereignty was officially recognised by Bolivia under the terms of the 1904 Treaty of Peace and Friendship.

Taltal is a Chilean commune and city in Antofagasta Province, Antofagasta Region. According to the 2012 census, the commune has a population of 11,132 and has an area of 20,405.1 km (7,878 sq mi).The commune is home to Paranal Observatory and includes the northern portion of Pan de Azúcar National Park.

The commune of Taltal hosts multiple copper mines including Franke, Altamira and Las Luces; all operated and owned by Grupo Minero Las Cenizas.

Antofagasta Province (Spanish: Provincia de Antofagasta) is one of three provinces in the northern Chilean region of Antofagasta (II). The capital is the port city of Antofagasta. Located within the Atacama Desert, it borders the El Loa and Tocopilla provinces to the north, the Pacific Ocean to the West and the Atacama Region to the south.

Llano de Chajnantor Observatory is the name for a group of astronomical observatories located at an altitude of over 4,800 m (15,700 ft) in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The site is in the Antofagasta Region approximately 50 kilometres (31 mi) east of the town of San Pedro de Atacama. The exceptionally arid climate of the area is inhospitable to humans, but creates an excellent location for millimeter, submillimeter, and mid-infrared astronomy. This is because water vapour absorbs and attenuates submillimetre radiation. Llano de Chajnantor is home to the largest and most expensive astronomical telescope project in the world, the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA). Llano de Chajnantor and the surrounding area has been designated as the Chajnantor Science Reserve (Spanish: Reserva Científica de Chajnantor) by the government of Chile.

Since at least 2010 Chile's has each year produced 0.6% to 0.7% of all iron mined in the world. Production has risen from 6.8 million metric tonnes in 2010 to more than 10 million metric tonnes each year beginning 2021. As of 2023 about 15% of the value of Chilean iron exports comes from iron ore pellets and the remaining from bulk ore. The northern regions of Atacama and Coquimbo hosts all iron mining in Chile. Until 2014 Antofagasta Region was also active in iron mining. In the 2014–2023 period iron ore has stood each year for 0.9 to 2.6% of the total value of Chilean exports. Most iron ore mined in Chile is exported to China and far behind South Korea and Bahrain are important markets.

Mining of iron ore deposits along the Chilean Iron Belt have been facilitated by their proximity to the ports of export at the coast, and this had in particular had an impact for the economic viability of small iron ore deposits. Compañía Minera del Pacífico (CMP) is the largest iron mining company in Chile and is through its parent company Compañía de Acero del Pacífico (CAP) the sole iron-mining member of Consejo Minero. Compañia Minera del Pacífico has three main mines each with its own port for export. Near Copiapó the company owns Cerro Negro Norte mine which uses the port of Punta Totoralillo, further south the company is in ownership of Los Colorados mine which uses the port of Guacolda II, and near the city of La Serena El Romeral mine is operated using the port of Guayacán in Coquimbo.