ZCCM-IH approves $498 million KCM tailings plant

ZCCM Investments Holdings Plc (ZCCM-IH) has approved a US$498 million tailings leach plant at Konkola Copper Mines (KCM)’s Nchanga operations, a project expected to become Africa’s largest facility of its kind and produce about 70,000 tonnes of copper cathode annually at full capacity.

The plant will use solvent extraction and electrowinning (SX-EW) technology to reprocess about 546 million tonnes of historical tailings containing an estimated 0.54% copper, allowing KCM to recover additional metal without mining new ore.

According to a statement issued on Wednesday, KCM signed a US$498 million engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) agreement with China NERIN Engineering Company Limited on Sept. 17, 2026.

Read more: Controversy trails govt’s claim on Kafue River pollution, as KCM demands evidence-based probe

ZCCM-IH, which holds a 20.6% stake in KCM, said the project would be fully funded by KCM and would not require any capital contribution from the investment company.

KCM’s equity contribution will be financed from internally generated resources, while the project falls outside Vedanta Resources’ initial US$1 billion investment programme for KCM.

ZCCM-IH Chief Executive Officer, Kakenenwa Muyangwa, said the project would unlock value from one of Africa’s largest secondary copper resources.

“Nchanga’s tailings are one of the largest secondary copper resources in Africa. Using the latest technology, this plant turns them into around 70,000 tonnes of LME Grade A cathode a year without mining a single new tonne of ore,” Muyangwa said.

Studies have established a commercial recovery rate of about 74% using SX-EW technology.

The plant will process approximately 53,500 tonnes of tailings per day, equivalent to about 17.7 million tonnes annually.

Under the EPC agreement, China NERIN will deliver the plant on a turnkey basis, building on its previous design work, and provide support for commissioning, performance testing and training.

Construction is expected to take 24 months, with production projected to reach full capacity of about 70,000 tonnes annually from the fourth year of operation.

ZCCM-IH said the project would increase copper output from KCM’s existing asset base, improve resource recovery and contribute to Zambia’s export earnings.

The development is also expected to support Zambia’s target of producing three million tonnes of copper annually by 2031 and KCM’s ambition of reaching annual production of 300,000 tonnes.

WARNING! All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express permission from ZAMBIA MONITOR.