Hudbay Minerals Inc

Hudbay Minerals operates the Constancia copper mine in Peru and the former Fenix nickel project in Guatemala, both of which have been the subject of documented environmental destruction and associated legal claims. In Guatemala, the Fenix project (formerly owned by Hudbay subsidiary HMI Nickel) is the subject of the landmark lawsuit *Choc v. Hudbay Minerals Inc.*, filed in Ontario in 2011. The suit alleges that security personnel employed by the company’s subsidiary shot and killed Adolfo Ich Chaman, a local community leader, and caused severe injuries to German Chub Choc during a forced eviction related to the mine’s expansion. The claims, which include allegations of environmental negligence leading to water contamination, represent a precedent-setting case where a Canadian parent company was sued in its home courts for harms alleged at a foreign subsidiary.

In Peru, Hudbay’s Constancia copper mine has been linked to serious environmental offenses and human rights violations. A 2023 report on German copper imports specifically cited the Peruvian copper sector, in which Hudbay operates, for being “accompanied by serious human rights violations and environmental offenses.” A 2019 ruling by a Peruvian court found that a security contract between Hudbay’s local operations and the national police resulted in biased state action against local communities. Furthermore, a 2014 warning from a Canadian mining watchdog highlighted Hudbay’s record of “toxic emissions” and impacts on Indigenous rights and protected areas. Public campaigns have explicitly linked the company to toxic waste and biodiversity destruction, with advocates stating “the company is now as toxic as its mining” and calling for divestment unless operations respect no-go zones for uncontacted Indigenous peoples.