President Hichilema Addresses Mining Indaba, Hails New Investments in Zambia
In his address to the Investing in African Mining Indaba in Cape Town today, President Hichilema outlined the fruits of widespread international investment in Zambia’s mineral resources since the government’s call to invest in the country at the Indaba last year.
The largest producer of nickel in Africa, Enterprise Nickel Mine has started production after receiving $100 million dollars from Canadian-based First Quantum Minerals, Hichilema said. The company has also invested $1 billion in its expansion of its Kanshanshi copper and gold mine in Zambia’s North-Western Province, which is expected to boost copper production to more than 250,000 tons once the project is complete.
The UK-incorporated Moxico Resources began production in March 2023 at Mimbula Mining Project, producing 6,000 tons of copper within nine months of operations.
President Hichilema also noted that California-based startup KoBold Metals has made significant progress at its Mingomba project, with the company assuring its $150 million investment. Initial projections by the company saw the mine becoming fully operational within ten years, however this is now being brought forward due to increased demand for metals.
The company, which counts tech billionaires Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos among its backers, earlier announced that copper deposits at Mingomba were the largest discovered in Zambia for more than a century.
A further $2 billion has been invested by the Canadian Barrick Gold Corporation in order to expand its mine in Lumwana into a ‘super-pit’—an open-pit mine visible from space—capable of producing 240,000 tons of copper per year upon its estimated completion in 2028.
With projections that global copper demand will grow by 9 million tons per year by 2040, President Hichilema highlighted Zambia’s crucial role in contributing to the necessary production of the metal, with the country containing some of the world’s largest and highest quality deposits of copper.
The President has previously set the target of increasing Zambia’s copper output to 3 million tons annually by 2032.
In the east, China’s Nonferrous Mining Corporation has pledged a $1.3 billion investment, with $600 million going toward the reopening of shaft 28 at Luanshya Copper Mines, located in Zambia’s Copperbelt.
Continuing his speech, President Hichilema shared plans for additional infrastructure projects, including the Zambia-Lobito rail line, which will help mining firms bring their products to market, as well as helping develop and diversify Zambia’s economy through job creation and enhancing the skills of the populace.
President Hichilema underscored the stable and predictable state of mining in the country, making Zambia a reliable and lucrative investment for foreign companies in the continent. The President also stated that there has been substantial progress made by the UNPD government at resolving the legacy issues inherited from previous leadership at the Mopani and Konkola mines.
In addition to mining investments, the President acknowledged the imminent green industrial revolution, and outlined Zambia’s investment in and commitment to green energy sources. The Zambian Copperbelt Energy Company has issued a $200 million green bond in order to finance solar, wind, and other renewable energy projects within the country. A further $3 billion has been opened in private sector and government funding for green energy projects across the country through the UK-Zambia Green Growth Compact.
Ending his address, President Hichilema called upon technology firms, financiers, and energy companies to continue the momentum of investment to Zambia by contributing to infrastructure, continuing geological mapping for mineral acquisition, and to fund ambitious projects to power the future of Zambia and the African continent.