First Quantum to speed up production at Kansanshi

The Kansanshi copper mine in northwestern Zambia will go into production at a higher rate, under a plan unveiled by operator First Quantum Minerals (FM-T), which hopes to catch a period of high copper prices in doing so.

Kansanshi, which is scheduled to start commercial production in March, is now expected to recover 43,000 tonnes copper as cathode, and a further 48,000 tonnes copper in concentrate in 2005. That production would come from 4 million tonnes of oxide ore, providing leachable copper for the solvent extraction and electrowinning plant, and 4 million tonnes of sulphide ore, feeding the concentrate mill.

In 2006, the first full year of production, Kansanshi is slated to produce 71,000 tonnes cathode and 77,000 tonnes copper in concentrate. Planned mining in that year (and annually out to 2009) is 4 million tonnes oxide and 8 million tonnes sulphide, but an expansion now under consideration could increase the sulphide throughput to 12 million tonnes from 2008 onward.

Cash production costs are expected to go up as a result of the changes to the production plan, to US$990 per tonne (US45 per lb.) from US$840 per tonne (US38). The increase results mainly from a larger proportion of the copper being produced as concentrate.

First Quantum holds an 80% interest in the project, with Zambia Consolidated Copper Mining holding the rest.