Coordinates: 36°44′53″S 073°05′55″W / 36.74806°S 73.09861°W / -36.74806; -73.09861

Huachipato, Chile

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Huachipato
district (neighbourhood)
Main entrance to Siderúrgica Huachipato
Main entrance to Siderúrgica Huachipato
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CountryChile
RegionBiobío
ProvinceConcepción
CommuneTalcahuano
Area
 • Total
13.2 km2 (5.1 sq mi)
Elevation
1 m (3.3 ft)
Population
 (2002 Census)[2]
 • Total
9,665
 • Density732/km2 (1,900/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC−4 (CLT)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−3 (CLST)
Area code56 + 41

Huachipato is census district and neighbourhood in Talcahuano Commune, part of the conurbation of Greater Concepción in the Biobío Region of southern Chile.[1] It is the industrialized part of the commune supporting a steel mill and oil refinery.[3]

Etymology

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The word huachipato is a Mapuche word meaning "a trap to catch birds".[4] It may be the result of a mixture of Spanish and Mapuche, where the local name for a snare is huache or huachi.

Demographics

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The district is completely urban and had a population of 9,665 as of the 2002 census with 2,415 housing units.[2]

History

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Because of the high cost of pig iron from the aging steel mill in Corral, the Chilean Development Corporation (CORFO) decided to support building a new steel mill in Huachipato. Compañía de Acero del Pacífico was formed[5] and began construction in 1947. The mill now named "Siderúrgica Huachipato" was completed in 1950.[6][7] From the 1960s to the 1990s the mine of El Romeral provided most of the iron to the mill.[8][9]

The same year that construction of the steel mill started, a football club, Club Deportivo Huachipato, was founded. As their initial fans were employees of the local steel company, they adopted the nickname Acereros ("Steelers").[4]

In 1966 Empresa Nacional del Petróleo (ENAP) opened an oil refinery in Huachipato.[3]

The steel mill the town grew around was shut down on October 22, 2024, largely due to the inability to compete with cheaper Chinese steel prices and growing financial losses.[10]

References

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  1. ^ a b Huachipato (Approved - N) at GEOnet Names Server, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
  2. ^ a b c Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
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  4. ^ a b Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  5. ^ It was created with mixed ownership by CORFO, which retained a 33% interest for the government, the Autonomous Sinking Fund of Public Debt (Caja Autónoma de Amortización de la Deuda Pública) put up 14% and individual private shareholders purchased the remaining 53%. The steel mill is now run by their corporate division "CAP Acero". Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  6. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  7. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  8. ^ Millán 1999, p. 153
  9. ^ Millán 1999, p. 154
  10. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
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