Dominga: $255 Million in ‘Reports’ Copied; Andes Iron Denies Wrongdoing in Payments to Lagos, Vargas, and Silber

Original article: Dominga: $255 millones en “informes” copiados y Andes Iron niega irregularidades en pagos a Lagos, Vargas y Silber

Andes Iron, the parent company of the Dominga mining project, has denied any wrongdoing regarding the $255.5 million payments made in 2023 to the law firm of lawyers Eduardo Lagos and Mario Vargas, who are currently in preventive detention after being indicted by the Public Ministry for bribery, corruption, and money laundering in the so-called «Belarusian Doll» case.

This revelation surfaced through a Reportea investigation, which uncovered transfers made from March to December 2023 labeled as «minutes» and «judicial lobbying» to the law firm that also involved former Congressman Gabriel Silber.

However, a review of the documents justifying these payments reveals they consisted mostly of reports that were limited to copying and pasting publicly available information from the internet regarding the project’s litigations, failing to meet the specific goals outlined in the contract and without the knowledge of the attorney handling the cases in court of this parallel consultancy.

This discovery prompted a strong response from Andes Iron, now owned by Chilean business families Délano and Garcés. In a statement, the company asserted that the payments «did not correspond to ‘judicial representation work, nor lobbying efforts, undue influence, or any actions of a nature different from those expressly agreed upon.'»

The company was firm in dismissing «any type of irregularity» in its relationship with the legal advisory firm.

The Contract and the ‘Copied’ Reports

The services were formalized in a contract dated March 14, 2023. Azerta, the communications and lobbying agency advising Andes Iron, sent a copy of this agreement to Reportea. It specifies five objectives:

– Preparation of reports regarding the ruling of the Committee of Ministers, which rejected the project in January 2023.

– Proposals for appealing to the Environmental Court of Antofagasta.

– Development of legal precedents.

Proposals for legal strategy regarding various scenarios.

– Content for the legal defense of the project.

Concurrently, Azerta provided nine reports that were supposed to justify the payments. However, Reportea’s review revealed that these documents merely reproduced publicly available information from two litigations faced by Dominga throughout 2023. None of the objectives stated in the contract were met with the compiled information, which consisted of process updates without analysis, strategy, or proposals.

The first report, dated April 28, 2023, spans 14 pages and summarizes events dating back to 2021 when environmental organizations lodged claims with the Committee of Ministers. All information is public and part of Dominga’s environmental assessment file available online. Even the report dedicates several pages to summarizing submissions made by Andes Iron itself.

«The document, signed by Lagos, Vargas, and Silber, does not provide any recommendations,» the cited media reported.

The same pattern persists in the following monthly reports. Most were produced by copying and pasting from the previous document, with minimal updates added about what appeared on the judicial or Environmental Assessment Service (SEA) websites.

Upon analyzing the reports from August 23 and September 22, 2023, it is evident they are virtually identical. The only difference is a page and a half added in September with updates from the public file.

As confirmed by the bank statements of the law firm, in August Andes Iron transferred $22.5 million and in September another $22.6 million.

When asked whether there were other documents justifying the payments, José Antonio Edwards, Andes Iron’s communications and external affairs manager, responded: “In our previous statement, we extensively referred to the nature of the contract with that office, and what services were contracted, which are very clear and do not include any type of relational or lobbying work. The reports mentioned were part of the services provided, and we also attached all the information.”

The Litigating Attorney Was Unaware of the Advisory

A key detail raises doubts about the actual role of this advisory. The attorney who effectively represented Andes Iron in the court litigations between 2023 and 2024, Patricio Leyton from the Ferrada Nehme firm, told Reportea that he «had no knowledge that those lawyers had been hired by Andes Iron, as they had no role in the judicial actions we conducted on behalf of the company.»

The Omitted Ruling and the Link to a Supreme Court Minister

In its December 16 statement, Andes Iron noted that during the contract’s duration with Lagos, Vargas, and Silber, there were no judicial rulings benefiting the project, and that such a ruling only occurred in December 2024. This assertion is inaccurate.

The company omitted a litigation that was resolved during the contract term: a motion by environmentalist Nancy Duman seeking to annul Dominga’s environmental evaluation. This case was resolved in the Supreme Court, which in August 2023 assigned Minister Jean Pierre Matus to draft the ruling. Curiously, the reports from Lagos and Vargas indicate a detailed follow-up on this case.

Eduardo Lagos and Mario Vargas are on the list of disqualifications concerning Minister Matus, as his wife, María Cecilia Ramírez, has worked alongside them. In fact, the bank statements from the firm list transfers to Ramírez amounting to $18 million between 2023 and 2024.

It is unclear whether Minister Matus was aware that Lagos and Vargas were advising Andes Iron when he drafted the ruling that benefited the project. Matus did not respond to Reportea’s inquiries but self-reported to the full Supreme Court, which has initiated an investigation to clarify his involvement in cases related to Dominga.

Lobbyists and Shadow Advisors

The bank statements from the Lagos, Vargas, and Silber firm show that part of Andes Iron’s payments were directed to other players.

Aldo Cornejo (former DC congressman): The contract included services provided by this lobbyist, who has also worked for Belaz Movitec. Cornejo confirmed to Reportea that he was requested to provide legal advisory and public positioning services, but avoided details due to confidentiality. Andes Iron did not mention his work in its communications and did not respond to specific questions about him.

Carlos Correa (Qualiz consultancy): Another portion of the contract was used for payments to this communications and lobbying consultancy. Correa indicated that he was asked for «corporate communication» and «stakeholder mapping» services for a client of the firm. Andes Iron confirmed a limited advisory from Correa in December 2022, but did not link it to the contract with the lawyers.

Antonio Saavedra and Erik López: Two other advisors associated with the Lagos and Vargas firm providing advisory to Dominga and who also worked for Belaz Movitec. Saavedra, a lobbyist, stated he began advising Andes Iron on fishing issues before the pandemic, while the company claims it started in 2023. López, a journalist, provided communication advice for unions of fishermen related to the project.

Details of the Reports and Payments

The nine reports reviewed (from April to December 2023) focus on two processes: the environmental claims before the Committee of Ministers and the nullification litigation by Nancy Duman, representative in Chile of the environmental organization Sphenisco, aimed at canceling the entire environmental evaluation process for Dominga.

According to Reportea, the methodology was consistent: copying most of the pages from the previous report and adding brief updates from public portals. The December 2023 report, for instance, spans 50 pages, of which 25 are copied from the November report and another 12 are directly procured from the Environmental Court file.

Andes Iron began payments to the firm on March 30, 2023 ($17.7 million), followed by a larger amount on April 18 ($56.9 million), and then regularized to amounts close to $22 million monthly. The total reached $255,556,000.

Response from Andes Iron

In response to specific inquiries regarding the nature of the reports, payments to lobbyists, and possible connections with Minister Matus, Andes Iron provided a response on December 17, asserting, «All of our company’s relationships with suppliers are properly formalized, supported, and adhere to real and serious services. Our suppliers must also comply with the requirements of our Crime Prevention Model.»

As the Dominga project continues its legal and environmental battle, these new revelations add another layer of controversy to its history, linking it with key players in a judicial scandal that has already left two lawyers in prison and is investigating the conduct of a Supreme Court minister.