By Chris Mfula
LUSAKA (Reuters) -First Quantum Minerals’ recent investment in Prospect Resources is key to the extension of mine life at Zambia’s Sentinel mine, FQM’s country director Anthony Mukutuma said on Friday.
The Canada-based company made a 15% investment in Prospect in April, becoming the biggest shareholder in the Australia-listed exploration company.
Prospect is exploring the Mumbezhi copper project, which is about 30 kilometres (19 miles) from FQM’s Sentinel mine. FQM has become a key technical partner in the Mumbezhi exploration.
Sentinel mine currently has a mine life of about 12 years remaining and FQM is studying options to extend that, Mukutuma told Reuters.
Initial exploration at Mumbezhi has shown positive results, Mukutuma said, adding that the project had a similar deposit to Sentinel in terms of copper grades.
“It could have a significant impact on the mine life of Sentinel,” he said.
Prospect this week said exploration conducted to date had “strongly positioned Mumbezhi amongst the leading copper exploration assets in Zambia”.
Sentinel mine produced 231,000 metric tons of copper in 2024, more than half of FQM’s total output of 431,000 tons for the year.
FQM has recently completed a $1.25 billion expansion project at its Kansanshi copper mine and Enterprise nickel operations. The expansion will extend Kansanshi’s life to 2046 and raise its output to as high as 280,000 tons annually from current levels around 170,000 tons.
Zambia, Africa’s second biggest copper producer after the Democratic Republic of Congo, plans to lift production of the red metal to 3 million tons annually by 2031, to take advantage of growing global demand from renewable energy plants and electric vehicles. The country produced 821,000 tons of copper in 2024, a 12% increase from the previous year.
Other mines such as Barrick Mining Corp’s Lumwana, Vedanta’s Konkola and Mopani, recently acquired by the UAE’s International Resources Holding, are all looking to ramp up output.
(Reporting by Chris Mfula. Editing by Nelson Banya and Mark Potter)
