Hot Chili Arranges A$40 Million Funding to Accelerate La Verde into Expanded Feasibility for the Costa Fuego Cu-Au Project, Coastal Chile
High-grade La Verde discovery attracts institutional capital to bridge the massive US$1.27 billion development gap.
On February 4, 2026, Hot Chili announced a significant A$40 million private placement at A$1.65 per share. The financing was supported by strategic giants Glencore, Blue Spec, and GS Group. The funds are earmarked for the acceleration of the La Verde Cu-Au discovery into an expanded Feasibility Study for the flagship Costa Fuego Project. Key uses of proceeds include extensional and resource definition drilling at La Verde, completion of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), and development of the Huasco Water Project. This follows a string of high-grade drill results from La Verde throughout late 2025 and January 2026, including wide intercepts like 529m at 0.41% Cu and 0.21 g/t Au.
The A$40 million raise is a major de-risking event but highlights the company’s heavy capital requirements. - Validation: Raising capital at A$1.65—a 175% premium to the September 2025 rights issue price of A$0.60—demonstrates a massive market re-rating based on the La Verde discovery. - Strategic Shift: The primary material impact is the pivot toward a "higher-grade starter pit" strategy. The March 2025 PFS showed a marginal 19% IRR based on 0.37% Cu; if La Verde (averaging ~0.4-0.5% Cu in core zones) is successfully integrated, it could materially improve the front-end economics and capital payback period. - Institutional Backing: Continued support from Glencore is a strong signal of project viability for a major mining company take-over or partnership, which is Hot Chili's stated goal. - Dilution: The issuance of ~24.2 million shares represents roughly 14% dilution to existing shareholders, a standard trade-off for such a large capital injection.
Hot Chili Limited is developing the Costa Fuego Copper-Gold Hub in the coastal range of Atacama, Chile. The project is at the Feasibility stage. - Flagship Project: Costa Fuego (comprising Cortadera and Productora deposits). - Secondary Project: La Verde (30km south), now being integrated as a potential high-grade starter pit. - Infrastructure Advantage: Low altitude (740m), 60km from port, near grid power and the regional center of Vallenar. - Water: Owns 80% of Huasco Water, which has a maritime concession for seawater extraction—a massive hurdle for most Chilean projects.