SANTIAGO, April 7 (Reuters) -

Codelco, Chile's state-owned copper producer, boosted production in the first three months of 2025 and was still bullish about long-term prospects for global demand despite an

escalating trade war

between the U.S. and China, Chairman Maximo Pacheco said on Monday.

The world's biggest copper producer registered slightly higher output in the first quarter of the year than in the same period in 2024, and is maintaining production guidance even after a national power outage in February crimped output.

"We will have a first quarter that will be slightly higher than the first quarter of last year," Pacheco said in an interview ahead of the CESCO and CRU copper industry conferences in Santiago.

Codelco is targeting production between 1.37 million and 1.4 million tons of copper this year as it aims for a second year of increased output following a quarter-century low in 2023.

Pacheco said he remained confident about long-term copper demand due to the needs of the global energy transition, despite short-term volatility in commodities markets following sweeping tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

"I am convinced that the long-term fundamentals are very solid, very difficult to change," Pacheco said. "I can understand the nervousness, the markets, and the people experiencing all this turbulence, but we operate in a different circuit."

He added that Codelco was seeking to maintain flexibility as global needs fluctuate. The company last week said it had been sending more spot sales to the U.S., as buyers aimed to stockpile copper ahead of potential tariffs.

"We have to have a flexible, diversified vision, and with good service to our clientele," he said.

Codelco is also seeking to deepen ties with India, following a visit to the country led by President Gabriel Boric last week, and a supply deal with Adani Group.

"We will continue to increase our business in India," Pacheco said.

The company is also in talks with Saudi Arabia, which Pacheco described as very interested in copper and lithium, both critical for electric car manufacturing.

"They have a lot of interest in Chile and within Chile, a lot of interest in Codelco."

Chile's several-hour blackout in February, which led to mining stoppages countrywide, cost Codelco about 5,000 to 7,000 tons of production, but the miner managed to recover the shortfall, he said.

"It will not mean that the production of the quarter will fall in relation to last year," he said. (Reporting by Daina Beth Solomon and Fabian Cambero; Editing by David Gregorio)