Ivanhoe and partner Zijin Mining said first ore was introduced into the concentrator plant on May 20 to perform initial hot commissioning tests on the ball mills and other processing equipment.
As May 25, 5% to 6% of copper ore is being conveyed directly from Kakula’s underground mining operations to the run-of-mine stockpile and the concentrator, they said.
Operations are set to ramp up this year to reach between 80,000 and 95,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate. After several phases of expansion the mine’s peak annual copper production will be more than 800,000 tonnes.
Ivanhoe’s co-chairperson Robert Friedland, who made his fortune from the Voisey’s Bay nickel project in Canada in the 1990s, has been working on Kamoa-Kakula for ten years.
The mining veteran believes the project will become the world’s second-largest copper mine and also the one with the highest grades among the major operations. The concentrator is slated to produce concentrate grading around 57% copper.
Kamoa-Kakula is a strategic partnership between Ivanhoe Mines (39.6%), Zijin Mining Group (39.6%), Crystal River Global Limited (0.8%) and the DRC government (20%).
More to come…
