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DRC
Kipushi Project

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 Location:
27 km W from Lubumbashi, DRC

  Project Contacts:
82 on Maude, Second Floor 82 Maude Street Sandton
Johannesburg
South Africa
2146
Phone  ...  Subscription required
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  • Overview
  • Owners
  • Geology
  • Mining
  • Processing
  • Production
  • Reserves
  • Costs & Financials
  • Fleet
  • Personnel
  • Filings & News

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Overview

StagePermitting
Mine TypeUnderground
Commodities
  • Zinc
  • Copper
  • Lead
  • Silver
  • Cobalt
  • Germanium
Mining Method
  • Pillar mining
  • Sub-level open stoping (SLOS)
  • Cemented backfill
Processing
  • Filter press plant
  • Dewatering
  • Flotation
  • Dense media separation
  • Sodium carbonate (reagent)
Mine Life13.8 years (as of Jan 1, 2022)
Kipushi Project is the world’s highest-grade major zink project.
Latest NewsIvanhoe Mines Files a New NI 43-101 Technical Report for the Ultra-High-Grade Kipushi Mine in the DRC     March 4, 2022


Owners

Source: p. 28
CompanyInterestOwnership
Gécamines S.A 32 % Indirect
Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. 68 % Indirect
Ivanhoe and Gécamines respectively own 68% and 32% of the Kipushi Project through Kipushi Corporation SA (KICO), the mining rights holder of the Kipushi Project.

Deposit Type

  • Replacement
  • Carbonate hosted
  • Vein / narrow vein


Summary:

The mineral deposits at Kipushi are an example of carbonate-hosted copper-zinc-lead mineralisation hosted in pipe-like replacement and tabular zones. This deposit type tends to form irregular, discordant mineralised bodies within carbonate or calcareous sediments, forming massive pods, breccia/fault-like fillings and stockworks (Trueman, 1998). They often form pipe-like to tabular deposits strongly elongate in one direction. Zinc-lead rich zones can project from the main zone of mineralisation as replacement bodies parallel to bedding, as is the case at Kipushi.

This deposit type is associated with intracratonic platform and rifted continental margin sedimentary sequences which are typically folded and locally faulted (Cox and Bernstein, 1986). The host carbonate sediments were deposited in shallow marine, inter-tidal, salt flat, lagoonal or lacustrine environments and are often overlain unconformably by oxidised sandstone-siltstone-shale units. The largest deposits are Neoproterozoic in age and occur within thick sedimentary sequences.

The Katanga Supergroup hosts a number of epigenetic zinc-copper-lead deposits developed within deformed platform carbonate sequences. While many of these are relatively small (e.g. Kengere and Lombe in the DRC; Bob Zinc, Lukusashi, Millberg, Mufukushi, Sebembere, and Star Zinc in Zambia), Kipushi and Kabwe in the DRC and Zambia respectively represent world class deposits with predominantly massive sulphide mineralisation contained within dolomitic limestone (Kampunzu, et al., 2009). These deposits are polymetallic with a typical Zn-Pb-Cu-Ag-Cd-V association and contain variable concentrations of As, Co, Mo, Rh, Ge, and Ga.

Mineralisation at Kipushi is spatially associated with the intersection of Nguba Group stratigraphy with the Kipushi Fault and occurs in several distinct settings:
• Kipushi Fault Zone (copper, zinc, and mixed copper-zinc mineralisation both as massive sulphides and as veins);
• Série Récurrente:
- Disseminated to veinlet-style copper sulphide mineralisation);
- A high-grade pod (massive copper and zinc sulphides);
• Copper Nord Riche (mainly copper but also mixed copper-zinc sulphide mineralisation, both massive and vein-style);
• Big Zinc (massive zinc sulphide with local copper sulphide mineralisation), and
• Southern Zinc (poly-metallic massive sulphide) mineralisation and replacement.

Mineralisation at the Kipushi Project is generally copper-dominant or zinc-dominant with minor areas of mixed copper-zinc mineralisation. Pyrite is present in some peripheral zones and forms massive lenses, particularly in the Fault Zone. Copper-dominant mineralisation in the form of chalcopyrite, bornite, and tennantite is characteristically associated with dolomitic shales both within the Fault Zone and extending eastwards along, and parallel to, bedding planes within the Série Récurrente and adjacent Upper Kakontwe Formations.

Zinc-dominant mineralisation in the Kakontwe formations occurs as massive, irregular, discordant pipe-like bodies completely replacing the dolomite host. These bodies exhibit a steep southerly plunge from the Fault Zone and Série Récurrente contacts where they begin, to their terminations at depth within the Kakontwe Formation. This southerly orientation, observed across all the mineralised zones, is oblique to the north-west plunging intersection of the Kakontwe Formations with the Fault Zone, inferring a persistent structural control at the Kipushi deposit.


Mining Methods

  • Pillar mining
  • Sub-level open stoping (SLOS)
  • Cemented backfill


Summary:

Mining zones included in the current Kipushi Mine plans occur at depths ranging from approximately 1,200 mL and 1,590 mL with 0 mL being the surface. Access to the mine will be via multiple vertical existing shafts and internal decline. Mining will be performed using highly productive mechanised methods and CRF utilised or backfilling of open stopes. Depending on the required composition and available material, excess waste rock, and dense media separation (DMS) tailings will be used in the CRF mix as required.

Mining is planned to be a combination of Transverse Sublevel Open Stoping and Pillar Retreat mining methods. The Big Zinc area stopes are planned to be mined as Sublevel Open Stopes to be extracted in a Primary and Secondary sequence and filled with CRF. The sill pillars are to be mined on retreat once the stopes below and above have been mined.

The primary and secondary stopes are each 15 m W x 30 m H, with panels of two sublevels separated by a 15 m high sill pillar every 75 m vertically. Stope lengths vary from 5–60 m (maximum). Ore drives are developed perpendicular to the strike of the orebody, at a spacing of 15 m centre to centre. Drill drive dimensions are 6.0 m W x 6.0 m H and extraction drives are 5.5 m W x 5.0 m H, both with an arched profile.

On the sill pillar levels stopes are 15 m W x 15 m H, with stope lengths varying from 5–60 m. Drill drive dimensions are 6.0 m W x 6.0 m H, with drill drives located in permanent pillars designed at 8.0 m W x 6.0 m H, to maximise ore extraction.

The Southern Zinc area is predominantly planned to be extracted by the same Transverse Sublevel Open Stope method. Additionally, a thinner area at the base of the Southern Zinc zone is planned to be mined by longitudinal open stoping on retreat, bottom-up with unconsolidated fill.

Stopes within the Big Zinc and Southern Zinc areas are required to be backfilled to maintain the structural integrity of the mine and allow for maximum recovery of the ore. Backfill has been specified as either Cemented Rock Fill or Rock fill depending on the strength required in that stope.


Crushing and Grinding
Flow Sheet: Source
Crusher / Mill TypeModelSizePowerQuantity
Jaw crusher ....................... Subscription required 110 kW 1
Cone crusher 220 kW 1
Ball mill 3.6m x 5.5m 1100 kW 1

Summary:

Ore and waste are crushed underground to a product top particle size at P100 of 280 mm and hoisted to surface using the refurbished P5 Shaft system.

Both crushed ore and development waste will be intermittently (and separately) hoisted to surface, depositing into a single bin on surface, within the P5 Shaft headframe. Material is reclaimed from the bin via a vibrating feeder, which discharge onto a single existing 900 m overland conveyor T5A connecting Shaft 5, via a series of four overland transfer conveyors (T5, T6, T7 and T8), to the waste and ore stockpiles area at the Old Kipushi Concentrator (OKC).

Crushing plant
The crushing and screening circuit receives ROM ore onto the ore stockpile, via a series of overland transfer conveyors, as primary crusher product, from the Kipushi underground mine.

Ore is withdrawn from the ore stockpile using a FEL to feed a two-stage crushing plant at a nominal solids feed rate of 140 t/h. The crusher circuit design has been set up to minimise the production of fines (–1 mm). To this end, an open circuit secondary jaw crusher is used in conjunction with a closed-circuit tertiary cone crusher.

Screened crushed ore product, at –12 mm size fraction, is transferred and discharged into a DMS feed bin from where the DMS plant is fed.

Milling Circuit
DMS concentrate from the sinks screen oversize is transferred to the mill feed bin. The mill is fed from the bin at a controlled rate, with steel balls added manually onto the mill feed conveyor. DMS effluent, together with –1 mm fines, is pumped into the mill discharge sump.

The milling circuit is designed as a closed-circuit variable speed ball mill with a classification cyclone cluster. The milling circuit comprises a single 1,1 MW ball mill. The milling circuit is designed to achieve a P80 of 106 µm. The cyclone overflow gravitates to the flotation feed tank via a trash linear screen.


Processing

  • Filter press plant
  • Dewatering
  • Flotation
  • Dense media separation
  • Sodium carbonate (reagent)

Flow Sheet: Subscription required

Summary:

The concentrator plant is designed to process a nominal 800 ktpa of run-of-mine (ROM) ore, from a high-grade zinc zone orebody of the KICO underground Zinc-Copper Mine in the Central African Copperbelt in the DRC, to produce a saleable zinc flotation concentrate.

The metallurgical test results indicate that the Kipushi mineralisation is amenable to a process involving pre-concentration by dense media separation (DMS) and bulk flotation to produce suitable saleable zinc sulfide concentrate. ROM ore and waste material from underground mining facility are hoisted through the existing P5 shaft system and transferred to the stockpiles area. Ore is withdrawn from the stockpile to feed the process plant, whilst reclaimed waste material is loaded into trucks for disposal.

The new process plant, consisting of crushing and screening, DMS, milling, flotation, tailings and concentrate handling circuits, is located at the existing Kipushi Mine facility with limited free space ........

Recoveries & Grades:

CommodityParameterAvg. LOM
Zinc Recovery Rate, % 95.6
Zinc Head Grade, % 31.9
Zinc Concentrate Grade, % 54.8

Projected Production:

CommodityProductUnitsAvg. AnnualLOM
Zinc Concentrate kt 4376,013
Zinc Metal in concentrate M lbs 5297,263

Operational Metrics:

Metrics
Waste tonnes, LOM  ......  Subscription required
Ore tonnes mined, LOM  ......  Subscription required
Tonnes processed, LOM  ......  Subscription required
Annual processing rate  ......  Subscription required
Annual processing capacity  ......  Subscription required
Annual ore mining rate  ......  Subscription required
* According to 2022 study.
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Reserves at February 14, 2022:
For the zinc-rich zones the Mineral Resource is reported at a base case cut-off grade of 7.0% Zn.

CategoryTonnage CommodityGradeContained Metal
Proven 3.33 Mt Zinc 37.4 % 1,246 kt
Probable 7.48 Mt Zinc 29.4 % 2,199 kt
Proven & Probable 10.82 Mt Zinc 31.9 % 3,445 kt
Measured 3.65 Mt Zinc 39.87 % 3,211 M lbs
Measured 3.65 Mt Copper 0.65 % 52.3 M lbs
Measured 3.65 Mt Lead 0.35 % 27.8 M lbs
Measured 3.65 Mt Silver 18 g/t 2.06 M oz
Measured 3.65 Mt Cobalt 18 ppm 0.14 M lbs
Measured 3.65 Mt Germanium 56 g/t 6.6 M oz
Indicated 8.13 Mt Zinc 33.3 % 5,966 M lbs
Indicated 8.13 Mt Copper 0.87 % 156.4 M lbs
Indicated 8.13 Mt Lead 1.36 % 244.4 M lbs
Indicated 8.13 Mt Silver 25 g/t 6.59 M oz
Indicated 8.13 Mt Cobalt 11 ppm 0.2 M lbs
Indicated 8.13 Mt Germanium 68 g/t 17.77 M oz
Measured & Indicated 11.78 Mt Zinc 35.34 % 9,176 M lbs
Measured & Indicated 11.78 Mt Copper 0.8 % 208.6 M lbs
Measured & Indicated 11.78 Mt Lead 1.05 % 272.2 M lbs
Measured & Indicated 11.78 Mt Silver 23 g/t 8.65 M oz
Measured & Indicated 11.78 Mt Cobalt 13 ppm 0.34 M lbs
Measured & Indicated 11.78 Mt Germanium 64 g/t 24.36 M oz
Inferred 1.14 Mt Zinc 33.77 % 850.7 M lbs
Inferred 1.14 Mt Copper 1.24 % 31.3 M lbs
Inferred 1.14 Mt Lead 0.24 % 6.2 M lbs
Inferred 1.14 Mt Silver 12 g/t 0.46 M oz
Inferred 1.14 Mt Cobalt 14 ppm 0.04 M lbs
Inferred 1.14 Mt Germanium 62 g/t 2.28 M oz

2022 Study Costs and Valuation Metrics :

MetricsUnitsLOM Total
Pre-Production capital costs $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Sustaining CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Closure costs $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Total CapEx $M USD  ......  Subscription required
UG OpEx $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Processing OpEx $M USD 248
Refining costs $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Transportation (haulage) costs $M USD 1,757
G&A costs $M USD 201
Total OpEx $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Royalty payments $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Gross revenue (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Net revenue (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Operating margin, %  ......  Subscription required
Operating margin (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Pre-tax Cash Flow (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscription required
After-tax Cash Flow (LOM) $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Pre-tax NPV @ 5% $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Pre-tax NPV @ 10% $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Pre-tax NPV @ 8% $M USD  ......  Subscription required
After-tax NPV @ 5% $M USD  ......  Subscription required
After-tax NPV @ 10% $M USD  ......  Subscription required
After-tax NPV @ 8% $M USD  ......  Subscription required
Pre-tax IRR, %  ......  Subscription required
After-tax IRR, %  ......  Subscription required
Pre-tax payback period, years  ......  Subscription required
After-tax payback period, years  ......  Subscription required
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Proposed Heavy Mobile Equipment as of February 14, 2022:
HME TypeModelQuantity
Drill ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Mine Management:

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 14, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Mar 28, 2019
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 14, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Mar 14, 2022
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Mar 14, 2022
Subscription required - Subscription is required.


Corporate Filings & Presentations:

DocumentYear
Feasibility Study Report 2022
................................... Subscription required 2021
................................... Subscription required 2021
................................... Subscription required 2021
................................... Subscription required 2019
Press Release 2018
Pre-Feasibility Study Report 2017
Preliminary Economic Assessment 2016
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

News:

NewsDate
Ivanhoe Mines Files a New NI 43-101 Technical Report for the Ultra-High-Grade Kipushi Mine in the DRC March 4, 2022
Ivanhoe Mines and Gecamines Sign New Agreement to Return the Ultra-High-Grade Kipushi Mine in the DRC to Production February 14, 2022
Ivanhoe Mines Issues Q1 Financial Results and Review of Mine Construction Progress and Exploration Activities May 13, 2021
Ivanhoe Mines files an updated NI 43-101 technical report for the Kipushi Zinc-Copper Project March 29, 2019
Ivanhoe Mines announces a new Mineral Resource estimate for the Kipushi Mine July 30, 2018
Ivanhoe Mines installs new primary crusher at the historic Kipushi zinc-copper-silver-germanium mine in DRC May 29, 2018
Ivanhoe Mines announces a pre-feasibility study for the historic Kipushi zinc-copper-silver-germanium mine in the DRC December 13, 2017

Aerial view:

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