LONDON (Reuters) -Ivanhoe Mines on Friday disputed a statement by its Chinese partner about problems at their co-owned Kakula copper mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo after seismic activity.
“The press release by Zijin Mining refers to ‘..multiple roof-falling and rib-spalling in the eastern section of the [Kakula] mine,’ Ivanhoe said.
“Ivanhoe Mines does not agree with this statement”, it said.
“Preliminary indications suggest that seismic activity… resulted in a redistribution of forces underground and caused ‘scaling’, or rock falls, from the sidewalls of certain mining areas.”
Ivanhoe had said on Tuesday that some mining operations had been suspended at the Kakula underground mine on Sunday.
The Kamoa-Kakula mining complex is Africa’s biggest copper producer and one of the world’s largest.
In Friday’s update it added: “The operational teams are currently focused on safely repairing damage caused to the cables and pipework that support the underground pumping infrastructure.”
Zijin Mining Group Ltd warned in a statement released earlier on Friday that the problems may have an “adverse impact” on meeting annual production guidance of 520,000 to 580,000 metric tons in 2025 for the Kamoa-Kakula mine complex.
The mine produced 437,000 tons last year.
Ivanhoe also disputed that, saying it would only be able to know whether production guidance would need to be changed after an investigation was completed.
(Reporting by Eric Onstad; Editing by Toby Chopra and Louise Heavens)
