DRC: Kamoa-Kakula in 1st position in the Top 10 of the best copper projects in the world
Kamoa-Kakula Surface Construction Team, November 2020. Image by Ivanhoe Mines.
For decades, the global demand for copper has steadily increased, having tripled in the past half century, according to the International Copper Study Group. Demand for copper – a key metal in the green energy transition – is expected to continue to increase over the next few years, as emerging economies led by China continue to expand their industrial activity.
According to the USGS (United States Geological Survey), around 700 million tonnes of copper have been produced worldwide so far, while the identified deposits contain around 2.1 billion tonnes of additional copper which have not still been exploited.
To provide an overview of the copper supply chain of tomorrow, MINING.COM and its sister company MiningIntelligence have compiled a list of the 10 largest copper deposits currently in development and ranked them based on copper resources in categories measured and indicated.
The Kamoa-Kakula underground project is being developed by an Ivanhoe-Zijin joint venture in the Kolwezi district of Lualaba, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Initial production at Kakula, the first of many high-grade mining areas, is expected to start in July 2021. With an expected production rate of 18 million tonnes per year, the project is expected to become the second largest copper mine in the world, with an estimated production of 700,000 tonnes of copper per year.
Second, the proposed Pebble mine, located in the Bristol Bay region of southwest Alaska, whose status is still “on hold” after the project’s main permit was rejected by the authorities. US federal regulations in November. This decision is scope in appeal by the owner of Northern Dynasty Minerals project.
The third largest copper project is the Udokan deposit in Russia’s Zabaikalye region, which, despite its early discovery in 1949, has remained mostly inactive due to technical issues until recent years. Like Kamoa-Kakula, the Udokan project is also under construction, with commercial production expected in early 2022.
Next is the Reko Diq project in Pakistan, which has been in limbo for almost a decade as the government of Balochistan has said it considers the mining lease application incomplete and unsatisfactory.
This is followed by the Tampakan deposit found on the Philippine island of Mindanao. Sagittarius Mines, a joint venture involving Glencore, is currently seeking local and national approval for the proposed mine. If approved, it is expected to produce an average of 375,000 tonnes of copper per year over a 17-year lifespan.
To complete the list of the top 10, we find: the Resolution project of Rio Tinto-BHP in Arizona, the Cascabel project majority owned by SolGold in Ecuador, the Taca Taca deposit in Argentina owned by First Quantum Minerals, the Frieda River project supported by the Chinese State and Pala Investments and El Pachon de Glencore in Argentina.
