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(Kitco News) - Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN) announced today that the Kamoa-Kakula copper complex in the Democratic Republic of Congo achieved a monthly production record of 35,856 tonnes of copper in concentrate during May.
The company said that copper production during April was 34,826 tonnes of copper in concentrate, bringing quarter-to-date production to 70,682 tonnes.
According to a press release, a new daily milling record of 29,366 tonnes of ore was also achieved by the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators. This is equivalent to an annual milling rate of 9.8 million tonnes per annum (after accounting for availability).
“This record far exceeds the increased milling capacity of 9.2 million tonnes per annum following the debottlenecking program of the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators, which was completed in February 2023,” Ivanhoe added. “Average copper recoveries for the month were 87%, above the Phase 1 and 2 concentrator nameplate recovery rates.”
Importantly, the company also reported that construction activities for the Phase 3 expansion, including the largest copper smelter in Africa, with a capacity of 500,000 tonnes of 99+%-pure copper anodes, are advancing on schedule for first production in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Ivanhoe indicated that Kakula is projected to be the world's highest-grade major copper mine, adding that based on independent benchmarking, the project's phased expansion scenario to 19 Mtpa would position Kamoa-Kakula as the world's second-largest copper mining complex, with peak annual copper production of more than 800,000 tonnes.
The Kamoa-Kakula mining complex is operated by Kamoa Copper, a joint venture between Ivanhoe Mines (39.6%), Zijin Mining Group (39.6%), Crystal River Global (0.8%) and the DRC government (20%).
Ivanhoe Mines is a Canadian mining company focused on the expansion of the Kamoa-Kakula mining complex in the DRC; the construction of the tier-one Platreef palladium-rhodium-platinum-nickel-copper-gold project in South Africa; and the restart of the historic ultra-high-grade Kipushi zinc-copper-germanium-silver mine, also in the DRC.
