Reuters reported that Zambia's Konkola Copper Mines plans to extend the life at its Nchanga operation one of its biggest mines by more than 25 years.

Mr Jayekumar Janakaraj CEO of Konkola said that the company, owned by London listed Vedanta Resources Plc, would invest in modern methods to access copper from an upper ore body beyond 2013 when mining at the site would otherwise have ended.

Mr Janakaraj said that right now, as we speak, we have accessed that and we are doing trial mining. We hope that by November this year we will start production. The total cost of the project expected to add 35,000 tonnes of copper per annum to KCM's output is USD 180 million and KCM has so far spent about USD 70 million.

He said that KCM produced 200,000 tonnes of copper in total in 2011 to 2012 and has broader plans to raise production to 400,000 tonnes annually in the next four to 5 years. Those plans include completion of its flagship Konkola Deep Mining Project by December this year, ramping up copper production there to 200,000 tonnes from the current 15,000 tonnes. The company has spent close to USD 1 billion on that project.

Mr Janakaraj said that the group had delayed plans for an initial public offering in London because the market was extremely volatile but that KCM had not abandoned the plan.

He said that we have to be careful about this. There is no desperate need for money to be broadened as KCM is able to sustain its operations right now.

Source - Reuters

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