At current prices, gross fixed capital formation in Antofagasta reached approximately 14.79 trillion pesos during 2025, up from 11.42 trillion pesos in 2024. Using the Central Bank’s chained-volume methodology that strips out price effects, the region advanced from roughly 7.56 trillion pesos in 2024 to 9.47 trillion pesos in 2025, demonstrating an acceleration compared with prior years.
Machinery and equipment accounted for the largest component of the increase, with electrical and electronic gear purchases for energy projects representing the principal driver. Construction and other works also contributed positively, led by engineering infrastructure tied to mining developments. The magnitude reflects the convergence of major copper projects, solar installations, energy storage systems and associated infrastructure across a region hosting extensive mining operations.
Coquimbo registered the second-highest northern expansion at 16.7%, with industrial machinery purchases for mining projects constituting the primary factor. Engineering works associated with the mining sector provided additional support. At current prices, the region’s gross fixed capital formation totaled around 3.55 trillion pesos in 2025, compared with 2.89 trillion pesos the previous year. Chained-volume figures rose from approximately 1.92 trillion pesos in 2024 to 2.24 trillion pesos in 2025, illustrating simultaneous increases in both equipment procurement and infrastructure execution.
Atacama presented a contrasting profile with 4.5% growth sustained chiefly by machinery and equipment, including transport equipment and electrical gear, while construction and other works declined in connection with the conclusion of mining projects. The result underscores a characteristic the Central Bank’s new statistics are designed to capture: regions can maintain elevated equipment investment even as physical works fall when large initiatives transition from construction to operation.
Tarapacá recorded the steepest national decline at 12.9%, attributed to reduced construction and other works linked to the termination of mining projects. Although machinery and equipment purchases for energy projects rose, they failed to offset the drop. At the national level, machinery and equipment climbed 16.3% due to higher purchases of electrical, electronic and transport items, primarily trucks and buses. Construction and other works advanced a more modest 1.3%, supported mainly by engineering projects.
The newly published annual series for 2013-2025 separates gross fixed capital formation into machinery and equipment versus construction and other works for each region, enabling comparable tracking of investment evolution. Thirteen of Chile’s 16 regions posted positive results in 2025, with all macro-zones contributing to the national increase. The northern zone and the Metropolitan Region provided the largest contributions.
This article was curated and published as part of our South American energy market coverage.
