The Kakula copper project is ahead of schedule and is expected to be put into production in the third quarter of 2021.

Published: Jul 7, 2020 14:29

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SMM7: Canadian mining company Ivanhoe said on Monday that the underground development of its Kakula copper mine has exceeded expectations and has now completed 5.1km ahead of schedule, totaling more than 17km. The Kakula copper mine is expected to be put into production in the third quarter of 2021.

In June, the mining team completed an underground development of 1729 meters, 575m ahead of schedule for the month.

Ivanhoe also said that Kakula's 2000-ton ore conveyor system began operation in June, which will further increase the speed of underground development of the mine.

Underground development in the next few months will soon transition to high-grade mining areas.

The project is the first mine in a number of planned Kamoa-Kakula projects in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The Kamoa-Kakula copper project is a joint venture between Ivanhoe Mining (39.6%), Zijin Mining Group (39.6%), Crystal River Global Limited (0.8%) and the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (20%).

The latest resource estimate for the large project, which was delivered in February, shows that it holds 1.4 billion tonnes of copper with a grade of 2.74 per cent (83.7 billion pounds) and another 339 million tonnes of inferred ore with a grade of 1.68 per cent and a copper content of 12.5 billion pounds (1 per cent).

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