SANTIAGO, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Canadian miner Lundin

must permanently close its Alcaparrosa copper mine in

Chile, the South American nation's environmental regulator said

on Thursday, after a massive sinkhole cracked open near the

small mine in 2022.

Lundin had paused work at the site after a sinkhole more

than 60 meters deep opened in the Tierra Amarilla village in

northern Chile, but had pushed to restart mining at Alcaparrosa.

Chile's SMA regulator said in a statement that it had

ruled Lundin was responsible for the sinkhole, that it must

shutter the mine and pay a fine of 3.36 billion pesos ($3.41

million).

Lundin "operated in unauthorized sectors, up until the

Copiapo River aquifer, which allowed more water to infiltrate in

and subsequently weaken the rock mass," regulator head Marie

Claude Plumer said in a statement.

"The company caused irreparable environmental damage,"

she added.

The miner's local unit, Ojos del Salado, said in a statement

that it would review the ruling and determine its nexts steps.

($1 = 984.0500 Chilean pesos)