Democratic Republic of Congo's Katanga province is expected to produce 500,000 tonnes of copper this year up 13% from 2010 despite power cuts that may threaten future investment and output in the mining sector.

A government official said that Katanga has some of the largest copper and cobalt deposits in the world, and it has enjoyed a post war flood in investment but a lack of infrastructure following decades of dictatorship and mismanagement continues to dog mining companies.

Ms Therese Lukenge Kapwibwe mines minister of Katanga said that “In 2010, the province produced 444,000 tonnes of copper and 94,000 tonnes of cobalt. By mid August 2011 production had hit 300,000 tonnes of copper and 63,000 tonnes of cobalt we project for copper, 500,000 tonnes. Cobalt production would be 95,000 tonnes.

Congo's copper and cobalt production is ramping up after being crippled by years of mismanagement and two wars, the last of which only ended in 2003. Katanga is the only province in the country that produces significant volumes of the metal.

Ms Lukenge said that predicting future production is difficult due to serious power cuts which are being felt across the country and have been blamed on poorly maintained facilities and low water levels at hydroelectric dams. Officials are seeking help from companies with mining operations in the country to fund improvements in power availability.

She said that in 2012, the major concern is electricity the quantity of power is insufficient. Lots of companies are being obliged to reduce their capacity of production. The lack of electricity will block the arrival of other investors.

She added that Congo has already signed deals with several mining companies including Tenke Fungurume Mining to improve power supply. Only 6% of Katanga's 1,700 mining titles are currently in production and it will be difficult for more projects to come online with the current power shortages.

(Sourced from Reuters)