During this day, and before a broad support of the communities of La Higuera, La Serena and Coquimbo, Andes Iron made its presentation within the framework of the arguments before the First Environmental Court of Antofagasta (1TA), occasion in which it requested that the resolution of the Committee of Ministers chaired by the Minister of the Environment Maisa Rojas, be declared illegal, by virtue of which Dominga was stripped of her environmental permit.

Patricio Leyton, lawyer representing Andes Iron, emphasized: “We ask the Court to declare illegal both the resolution complained of and the agreement on which it is based. It is imperative that the approval of the Dominga project, as set out in RCA 161/2021, is maintained.” Leyton also highlighted Andes Iron’s exhaustive compliance in the environmental assessment procedure, underlining that the company has exceeded even the highest standards of the Chilean legal system, including social and community aspects, as well as environmental ones.

The company argued that there are no solid technical grounds for the rejection of the project and that the contested resolution of the Committee of Ministers is illegal, since it openly contradicts what was resolved by the 1TA on two occasions. “The Committee of Ministers not only ignored the judgment of this Illustrious Court, but also acted against it. This decision challenges the binding nature of the 1TA ruling, which is binding on the Committee of Ministers”, Leyton said.

Andes Iron’s lawyer added that the Committee of Ministers ignored and contradicted the ruling of the 1TA, adopting a refoundational approach in its review and resolution of the case, “as if it could start from scratch in the analysis and bypass the previous technical and judicial stages.”