Ivanhoe Doubles Copper Resource at Makoko District in DRC’s Western Forelands
Ivanhoe Mines has announced an updated and independently verified Mineral Resource estimate for the Makoko District within its Western Forelands Exploration Project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
The Western Forelands Exploration Project spans 2,393 square kilometres adjacent to the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex—an area roughly six times larger than the Kamoa-Kakula footprint. Ivanhoe holds ownership stakes ranging from 54% to 100% in this project.
Since the initial Mineral Resource estimate for Makoko and Kiala in November 2023, over 86,000 metres of diamond drilling have been completed, bringing the total to 147,000 metres across 311 holes.
The Makoko District, which includes the Makoko, Makoko West, and Kitoko discoveries, now stretches 13 kilometres in strike length—an increase of 2 kilometres—with contained copper approximately doubling over the same period.
Ivanhoe Mines Founder and Executive Co-Chairman Robert Friedland praised the geological team for their achievement and highlighted the district’s strong potential for further growth.
“The Makoko District remains open in multiple directions, offering significant opportunities for further expansion.
The DRC stands unmatched as the premier destination for building new copper mines,” said Friedland.
He emphasized the DRC’s advantages over other regions with lower-grade deposits and more challenging environments, citing capital efficiency, flat topography, and established infrastructure.
Ivanhoe’s Chief Operating Officer, Mark Farren, noted that the infrastructure built for Kamoa-Kakula—such as power supply and transportation networks—will significantly benefit future development at Western Forelands.
“This is a greenfield discovery with brownfield advantages. The scale of the Western Forelands unlocks efficiencies that few jurisdictions can match,” said Farren.
Resource Estimate Highlights (Effective May 1, 2025)
Prepared by Ivanhoe Mines with the MSA Group of Johannesburg in compliance with the 2014 CIM Definition Standards:
Indicated Resources:
27.7 million tonnes at 2.79% copper, containing 773,000 tonnes (1.7 billion pounds) of copper at a 1% cut-off.
At a 1.5% cut-off: 25.3 million tonnes at 2.93% copper, containing 741,000 tonnes (1.6 billion pounds).
Inferred Resources:
494 million tonnes at 1.70% copper, containing 8.38 million tonnes (18.4 billion pounds) at a 1% cut-off.
At a 1.5% cut-off: 221 million tonnes at 2.23% copper, containing 4.93 million tonnes (10.9 billion pounds).
The Makoko District features stratiform copper mineralization across a 13-kilometre corridor, between 1.7 and 5.8 kilometres wide.
Mineralization starts near the surface in the west and dips southeastward to depths exceeding 1,200 metres in the Kitoko area.
Drilling since 2023 has focused on expanding mineralized zones westward and down-dip, leading to the discoveries of Makoko West and Kitoko. Kitoko, a deep target identified through magnetics and structural interpretation, contains some of the district’s highest copper grades, including an interval of 5.2 metres at 11.6% copper from 1,134 metres depth.
At Makoko West, a near-surface, higher-grade zone classified as Indicated has been delineated. Below it, a broader mineralized horizon extends to 700 metres, currently being drilled to test continuity with Kitoko.
Kitoko East and Kitoko West, hosted in deeper stratigraphic layers, are both open for further expansion. A recent step-out hole located two kilometres south of Kitoko intersected mineralization similar in style, pointing to substantial untapped potential.
Ivanhoe’s 2025 exploration program includes infill drilling to upgrade resources and step-out drilling to test the district’s limits.
Ivanhoe Mines has now delineated over 20 billion pounds of copper in the Western Forelands outside Kamoa-Kakula.
With the Makoko District ranked as the fifth-largest copper discovery since Kakula in 2015, Ivanhoe is positioning itself at the forefront of the copper supply race amid rising global demand.
The company’s ongoing drilling and development efforts reflect its commitment to building the next generation of high-grade, low-cost copper mines in the DRC.
