Ivanhoe Mines Reports Q2 2024 Production Results for the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex

Kamoa-Kakula produced 100,812 tonnes of copper in concentrate in Q2 2024

First concentrate from the Phase 3 concentrator achieved on June 10, 2024, ramp up to steady state expected in Q3 2024

DRC power grid infrastructure upgrades continue, as well as phased roll-out of on-site, backup generation capacity

Ivanhoe Mines to issue Q2 2024 financial results and host conference call for investors on July 31

Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN) (OTCQX: IVPAF) Executive Co-Chair Robert Friedland and President Marna Cloete announced today that the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) produced 100,812 tonnes of copper in concentrate during the second quarter of 2024 and 186,925 tonnes of copper in the first half of 2024.

Kamoa-Kakula’s Phase 3 concentrator is expected to ramp up to steady-state production in the third quarter, increasing annualized copper production capacity to over 600,000 tonnes.

Ivanhoe Mines maintains its 2024 annual production guidance for Kamoa-Kakula at between 440,000 to 490,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate.

Kamoa-Kakula’s Phase 1 and 2 concentrators milled approximately 2.3 million tonnes of ore during the second quarter at an average feed grade of 5.3% copper.

Copper production from the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators was 99,706 tonnes during the quarter, at an average flotation recovery rate of 87.0%, exceeding the Phase 1 and 2 concentrator design recovery rate of 86.0%.

Kamoa-Kakula’s Phase 3 concentrator, which was recently completed months ahead of schedule, produced its first concentrate on June 10, 2024, and is undergoing the completion of hot commissioning. Since June 10, the Phase 3 concentrator has produced 1,100 tonnes of copper in concentrate.

As of June 30, 2024, a total of 4.82 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 3.26% copper is stored in surface run-of-mine (ROM) stockpiles at Kamoa-Kakula.

This includes 2.31 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 3.72% at Kakula and 2.51 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 2.85% at Kamoa and Kansoko.

The stockpiled ore, from the Kamoa and Kansoko mines, contains over 70,000 tonnes of copper and is being used for the hot commissioning and ramp-up of the new Phase 3 concentrator.

Stabilizing grid power improving mining rates and head grade

As mentioned in the company’s 2024 first quarter results on April 30, 2024, Kamoa Copper continues to work closely with the DRC’s state-owned power company, La Société Nationale d’Electricité (SNEL), to deliver solutions for the identified causes of instability experienced across the southern DRC’s grid infrastructure since late 2022.

The project work, funded by Kamoa Copper, commenced in March 2024 and is expected to be completed by late 2025. The funding is assigned to increasing transmission capacity and improving the reliability of the grid.

Compared with previous quarters, production and mining head grades notably increased in the second quarter due to the improved stability of grid-supplied power.

Improved grid stability allowed the underground crews to mine the higher-grade areas of the Kakula Mine, which are less accessible when power is unstable due to reduced underground water pumping availability.

Since mid-March, grid power to Kamoa-Kakula has been supplemented by imported power via the Zambian interconnector. Currently, 55 megawatts (MW) of power is being imported from Zambia and Mozambique.

Subject to capacity availability, Kamoa-Kakula’s executive team are targeting up to 100 MW to be imported by year-end.

As a redundancy measure, Kamoa Copper’s engineering team continues to expand on-site backup generation capacity to ensure there will be full on-site backup for the Phase 1, 2 and 3 operations.

On-site backup-power generation capacity is on schedule to increase to over 200 MW by the end of 2024. An additional 72 MW of new generation capacity has recently been delivered to site.

Installation and commissioning of the new generators is expected to be complete in early August, increasing the total on-site generation capacity to 135 MW.

Ivanhoe Mines will report its Q2 2024 financial results, and a detailed update on its operations, before the market opens on Wednesday, July 31, 2024.

The company will hold an investor conference call to discuss the Q2 2024 financial results on the same day. Details of the call will be shared closer to the date.