Mining Intelligence and News
Zambia

Nchanga Mine

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Summary

Mine TypeOpen Pit
StatusActive
Commodities
  • Copper
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
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Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotThe Nchanga Mine is part of the Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) operations.

Nchanga operation include a number of open-pit mines, a large underground mine (care and maintenance), Tailings Leach Plant (TLP) with the associated solvent extraction electro winning (“SX-EW”) facility, a smelter with a cobalt recovery furnace, and a sulphuric acid plant and copper concentrators comprising two main processing units and a refractory ore stockpile.

The Nchanga smelter processes concentrates received from its integrated mines, Nchanga and Konkola, as well as custom concentrates received from other mines in Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The FY 2024-25 was the first year since the mine was handed back to Vedanta following provisional liquidation. The mine was on care and maintenance prior to restart in August 2024.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
ZCCM Investments Holdings Plc. 20.6 % Indirect
Vedanta Resources plc. 79.4 % Indirect
Konkola Copper Mines plc (operator) 100 % Direct
Vedanta Resources Limited (VRL) through its wholly owned subsidiary, Vedanta Resources Holdings Limited (VRHL) holds 79.4% equity stake in KCM. ZCCM Investments Holdings Plc (ZCCM-IH), which owns 20.6% of the shares in KCM had obtained an ex parte order from the High Court of Zambia appointing a provisional liquidator (PL) for KCM in May 2019. The appointment of PL had caused loss of its control over KCM.

Various legal proceedings were initiated and carried out during 2019–2023.

On 06 November 2023, VRL, ZCCM-IH and KCM signed a new shareholder agreement for KCM as well as an Implementation Agreement that sets out the terms for VRHL’s re-entry and new investment into KCM. Post the completion of scheme of arrangement, the provisional liquidator was removed in late July 2024 and the Board of KCM was re-instated on 31 July 2024.

Contractors

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Deposit type

  • Sediment-hosted

Summary:

Copper mineralisation is zoned, with shallower oxidation and supergene mineralisation (chalcocite, malachite and cuprite and less common native copper, chrysocolla and azurite) giving way to primary chalcopyrite, bornite, and chalcocite with pyrite developed below. In most orebodies average grades are fairly consistent over large areas. In the so-called Chingola Refractory Ore (CRO), low-grade copper oxide mineralisation occurs within the crystal lattice of micas and between the mica plates.

Primary mineralisation is hosted within two stratigraphic horizons:
the Lower Ore Body (LOB)
the Upper Ore Body (UOB)

The LOB ranges from a few metres to up to 40 m in thickness and is essentially unfolded and is separated from the UOB by a bedding parallel thrust plane. It can be traced in the NOP over distances in excess of 6km and dips 25° northward for most of its strike length. In the area of the current underground workings, it has been identified to a vertical depth of 900 m. However, it rapidly thins down-dip due to the development of arenaceous facies within the LOB, which limits the future potential of the mine. The LOB is hosted primarily in the Lower Banded Shale and Transition Arkose and has an assay footwall, which may extend into the stratigraphic unit below. Mineralisation in the Transition Arkose is nuggety making grade estimations challenging. Overall the LOB contains average in situ grades from 3% to 5%TCu.

The UOB is some 30 m to 40 m stratigraphically above the LOB and lies within the Feldspathic Quartzite and to a lesser extent in the Upper Banded Shale. It is 10 m to 40 m thick on average and in places is deformed by tight isoclinal folding. The UOB contains from 2%TCu to 3%TCu and has been traced for over 5 km along strike to a depth of 600 m. Cobalt mineralisation with grades of up to 0.7%TCo occurs within the UOB primarily in the Feldspathic Quartzite (TFQ) with an assay hanging wall that extends into the overlying Upper Banded Shale.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Heavy Mobile Equipment

Fleet data has not been reported.

Comminution

Crushers and Mills

Milling equipment has not been reported.

Processing

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Commodity Production

The mine was on care and maintenance prior to restart in August 2024.
CommodityProductUnits2025202420192018201720162015
Copper Metal in concentrate M lbs  ....  Subscribe  ....  Subscribe201**27264054
Copper Concentrate kt 187**11272102104
** Combined production for Konkola Mine and Nchanga Mine

Operational metrics

Metrics202020192018201720162015
Annual milling capacity  ....  Subscribe9.5 Mt
Ore tonnes mined  ....  Subscribe4,007,474 t11,469,134 t11,237,492 t10,299,672 t10,676,035 t

Production Costs

Commodity production costs have not been reported.

Personnel

Mine Management

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Workforce

Aerial view:

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