Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN; USOTC: IVPAF) says crews in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have restarted the Kipushi mine which aims to be the world’s fourth-largest zinc producer.
Kipushi’s construction and cocentrate delivery were ahead of schedule, Ivanhoe said on Tuesday. It set the mine’s 2024 production guidance at between 100,000 and 140,000 tonnes of zinc in concentrate. Annually, it’s expected to average 278,000 tonnes over the first five years.
The restart comes 100 years after the mine first began operations and 31 years after it was placed on care and maintenance. The joint venture – two-thirds Ivanhoe, one-third State-owned partner Gécamines – also produces copper, lead and germanium.
“Kipushi will be one of the world’s leading producers of high-grade, low-emissions zinc and associated metals,” Ivanhoe Mines’ founder and executive co-chairperson Robert Friedland said in a release. “The rebirth of the mine is a major and state-of-the-art achievement for our operations team, the people of the DRC and the local community in Kipushi town.”
The first ore was delivered to the Kipushi concentrator on May 31 and the first concentrate produced on June 14, the company said.
Off-take agreements for Kipushi’s high-grade zinc concentrate have been signed with CITIC Metal of Hong Kong and Trafigura Asia Trading of Singapore, Ivanhoe said. Further off-take agreements are expected to be signed in the coming months.
In addition, financing facilities totaling US$170 million provided by CITIC Metal, Trafigura and First Bank DRC of Kinshasa, DRC have been arranged, with US$50 million drawn to date.
Shars in Invanhoe Mines closed 10¢ higher on Tuesday at $17.75 apiece in Toronto, valuing the company at $22.9 billion. They’ve traded in a 52-week range of $9.89 to $21.32
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