Codelco, a Chilean state copper producer, saw a 16% increase in production to 1.70Mt last year from 1.47Mt in 2008, CEO José Pablo Arellano said at a press conference Thursday to disclose the company's annual results.

"Codelco was the only mining company operating in Chile which registered growth in output last year," Arellano said, adding total Chilean copper production fell by 5% in 2009.

"With this rise in production, Codelco increased its stake among Chilean copper producers to 33% in 2009 from 27% the previous year," a company spokesperson told BNamericas on the sidelines of the press conference.

Production at the company's largest division, Codelco Norte, was up to 875,000t from 755,000t in 2008, while El Teniente, the second largest branch, churned out 404,000t versus 381,000t in 2008.

The Andina division's output fell to 210,000t last year from 220,000t. The Salvador branch increased output to 65,000t in 2009 from 43,000t.

The company's Gabriela Mistral mine churned out 148,000t in its first full year of operation, up from 68,000t in 2008, while Codelco's 49% of the El Abra mine – controlled by Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold (NYSE: FCX) – amounted to output of 80,000t.

Total investment carried out last year by Codelco, the world's largest copper producer, was almost US$2.13bn, a record for the company and up from US$1.99bn in 2008.

The company saw a decline in its pre-tax profits last year to US$4.07bn from US$4.97bn in 2008 mainly due to lower copper prices, as Codelco managed to produce more copper at lower costs and higher ore grades, Arellano said.

He added the huge drop registered in molybdenum prices last year also caused earnings to fall in 2009, as the byproduct's output increased to 22,000t from 21,000t in 2008, but revenues for the metal were down by US$1bn to around US$500mn.

However, the company's overall revenues rose to US$8.88bn from US$8.74bn the previous year.

As a state company that gives all its earnings to Chile's treasury, Codelco emphasizes pre-tax earnings, but for comparison purposes the company also calculates what its profits would amount to if it were subject to the same situation as a publicly traded company.

The comparable net income amounted to US$3.24bn in 2009, down from US$3.95bn in 2008, Codelco said.

Meanwhile total costs fell to US$1.58/lb last year from US$1.78/lb in 2008. Cash costs following byproduct credits and other deductions rose to US$0.93/lb in 2009 from US$0.70/lb in 2008.