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Bwana Mkubwa: John Chadwick visited the cheapest copper producer on the Copperbelt; one continuing to find more resources.

Article Excerpt
The Bwana Mkubwa project was the first significant investment by a private company in Zambia's mining industry following the election of President Frederick Chiluba in 1991, Bwana Mkubwa Mining Ltd (BMML) is a wholly, owned subsidiary of First Quantum Minerals (FQM). The original project, established in just 11 months, is leaching copper oxides from the tailings of ZCCM's old Bwana Mkubwa open pit (shut down in 1984), about 6 km outside Ndola. BMML established an SX-EW plant and an acid plant, both built by Genrec, with operations starting up in 1998 with a planned five-year life based on reserves of 9.2 Mt at 0.78% Cu. However, the life of the Bwana Mkubwa operation has now been significantly increased through the new Lonshi mine just across the border, 3.5 km into the Katanga Province of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This will allow copper production to be raised to 30-40,000 t/y, with a mine life of five to ten years.

Or maybe Bwana will become an even bigger operation. In October, FQM announced a 390% increase in the copper resource at its effective 85% owned Lonshi deposit. The open pit resource has grown from 60,000 t to 295,000 of contained copper. Based upon the substantial Lonshi resource upgrade, an expansion of the SX/EW facilities at Bwana Mkubwa to a production capacity of 30,000 t/y of LME grade copper cathode is being considered. Construction would take approximately 12 months to complete.

As of October 1, 2001, the Lonshi resource stands at 2,391,716 t grading 6.73% Cu (160,915 t of contained copper), measured. The indicated resource is 2,739,767 t grading 4.89% for 133,975 t contained and the total is 5,131,483 grading 5.75% Cu for 294,890 t contained. The mineralisation is hosted within an average 15 m thick package of weathered Roan clastics and distal units which outcrop on surface and dip to the east at 380. The deposit remains open along strike and to depth. The initial drill programme established an oxide copper open pit resource of approximately 1 Mt grading 6% Cu...

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