Zambia’s Chamber of Mines warns copper output could fall as much as 100,000 tonnes in 2019 as operators ‘cannot afford to continue producing as before’
Relations between the Zambian government and its copper-mining sector have just taken a turn for the worse.President Edgar Lungu has swiftly followed through on his threat with a move to liquidate Konkola Copper Mines , the local operating unit of India's Vedanta and one of the country's biggest producers.
There is a running dispute about tax payments, while allegations of environmental damage are currently being heard by England's supreme court. What appears to have triggered the move to intervene more directly, however, is KCM's decision to reduce output at its Nchanga operations. The move on Vedanta should"send a strong signal to other mining companies", according to Joseph Chewe, president of the Mine Workers Union of Zambia. He specifically called on Glencore to reverse its decision to close two mine shafts at its Mopani Copper subsidiary.
KCM's cost of production in the period was 275.5 US cents per pound, or about $6,700 per tonne excluding royalties. Chambishi has been mothballed, while KCM's Nchanga smelter has reduced output to compensate for the loss of custom feed. That, in turn, has generated a knock-on effect on KCM's mining operations, which use the sulphuric acid generated by the smelter to leach copper.
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