The Minister of Public Works, together with the Minister of Justice and Human Rights, unveiled the design of the new "El Arenal" Penitentiary Complex in Copiapó, Atacama region, Chile. 

This project involves the construction of more than 76,000 square meters of modern and secure infrastructure, with capacity for 2,160 inmates and nearly 600 officials from the Chilean Gendarmerie. “El Arenal” will have 15 cellblocks, providing services such as food, healthcare, and support for social reintegration. The facility will also include a prison health unit, a school for inmates, industrial workshops, sports areas, a food production center, a photovoltaic power generation and water treatment system, sustainable solutions such as solar energy, administrative areas, and suitable spaces for the prison guards who will work there. In its design, in addition to featuring important innovations in sustainability in the middle of the Atacama Desert, the new prison facility incorporates the necessary conditions for people deprived of their liberty to rebuild their future. 

The construction and operation of the new prison facility will represent an investment of US$300 million. Construction will begin in 2028 and operation will begin in 2031.