Chilean mining operates aging structural assets, with more than 25 years of service and multiple modifications carried out without complete traceability. This situation introduces uncertainty regarding reliability, safety, and operational continuity. Given that Chile produces almost 30% of the world's copper, a mineral essential for the global energy transition, understanding these gaps takes on strategic importance beyond the local context. This study diagnoses the shortcomings that hinder structural lifecycle management in mining and outlines the conceptual elements of a risk-based prioritization framework. The methodology includes a review of international standards (ISO55000, ASCE, Eurocodes, ACI) and the Chilean regulatory framework, along with an analysis of publicly known structural failures and actual maintenance practices. These elements are also compared with industries highly advanced in structural integrity, such as oil and gas and aviation, where prognostic frameworks, damage tolerance, and rigorous traceability enable more mature and consistent management strategies. The results show that structural management in mining relies heavily on visual inspections, reactive maintenance, and experience-based criteria. The absence of a technical standard establishing minimum requirements for prioritizing structural maintenance is identified, generating differences between operations and limiting risk-based planning, especially when assets compete for limited resources in a context of increasing dependence on Brownfield investments. The analysis highlights the need to adopt systematic methodologies based on multidimensional risk criteria, considering safety, environmental impact, business continuity, economic losses, regulatory compliance, and reputational damage. Objective and auditable criteria would enable more consistent decision-making and support the future integration of predictive strategies and SHM technologies. This diagnosis shows that structural aging, regulatory gaps, and reactive practices represent critical challenges to safety, sustainability, and operational reliability. The work provides conceptual foundations for future standards to prioritize structural maintenance in Chilean mining and enables progress toward lifecycle management models, structural prognosis, and monitoring.