Diggers News reported that Zambia has recorded a marginal increase in its copper production for 2018 to around 861,946 metric tonnes from 799,329 tonnes recorded in 2017, boosted by First Quantum Minerals‘ (FQM) operations in Kalumbila District. But last year’s increased copper output still means that Zambia remains Africa’s second biggest producer of the red metal, with the Democratic Republic of Congo expected to hit over 1.2 million metric tonnes.
According to official Ministry of Mines data, Zambia’s total copper production last year marginally rose to an estimated 861,946 tonnes from 799,329 tonnes recorded in 2017. The total copper production included all of the country’s 10 large scale mining operations as well as small-scale mining operations, which accounted for at least 10,859 metric tonnes from the total tonnage.
Data reveals that although FQM’s Kansanshi Mining Pic recorded a marginal drop of 249,532 tonnes last year from 250,803 tonnes in 2017, its output in 2018 was the highest among all 10 mining companies in the country for a third successive year.
