REUTERS/Marco Aquino Acquire Licensing RightsLIMA, Nov 7 (Reuters) - The head of Peru's mining guild on Tuesday said that while copper mining investment might be slow to recover next year, the Andean country could still see growth in production of the metal if large-scale mines are not affected by social protests. Victor Gobitz, president of SNMP - the top mining guild for the world's No. 2 copper-producing country - said 2024 output could hit 2.7-2.8 million metric tons, up from 2.6-2.7 million tons forecast for this year and 2.45 million tons hit in 2022. Mining output was slammed by stoppages early this year during nationwide protests against the government of President Dina Boluarte after the ouster and arrest of her predecessor, Pedro Castillo. Peru's copper output has reached 1.77 million tons through the first eight months of this year, according to official data.

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Persons: Marco Aquino, Victor Gobitz, Gobitz, Dina Boluarte, Pedro Castillo, Sarah Morland, David Gregorio Our Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, SNMP, BHP, Mitsubishi, El, Thomson Locations: Tapairihua, Peru's Andes, Teck