African Mining February 2022 | Page 13

PROJECTS AND EXPLORATION •

All photos by Ivanhoe Mines

• Location : Democratic Republic of Congo

• Phase : Development

• Resource : Copper

Kamoa Copper awarded China Nerin Engineering Co ., Ltd . ( Nerin ) of Jiangxi , China , the engineering contract for the planned , direct-to-blister flash smelter at the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex on 18 November 2021 . The project will incorporate state-of-the-art smelter technology by Metso Outotec of Espoo , Finland . The 500-ktpa smelter promises to be the largest copper smelter in Africa , and one of the world ' s largest single-line smelters .

The Kamoa-Kakula Copper Project is a joint venture between Ivanhoe Mines ( 39.6 %), Zijin Mining Group ( 39.6 %), Crystal River Global Limited ( 0.8 %) and the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo ( 20 %). A 2020 independent audit of Kamoa-Kakula ' s greenhouse gas intensity metrics performed by Hatch Ltd . of Mississauga , Canada , confirmed that the project will be among the world ' s lowest greenhouse gas emitters per unit of copper produced .

The planned Kamoa-Kakula smelter is to be built adjacent to the Phase 1 and Phase 2 concentrator plants and is designed to use technology to meet the International Finance Corporation ' s ( IFC ) emissions standards . The smelter has been sized to process the majority of the copper concentrate forecast to be produced by Kamoa-Kakula ' s Phase 1 , Phase 2 and Phase 3 concentrators .

Nerin is an international engineering company with more than 60 years of experience in smelter engineering and construction

Kamoa Copper ' s executive team members at the virtual signing ceremony . ( L-R , seated ): Ben Munanga , Chairman ; Mark Farren , CEO ; and Rochelle De Villiers , Co-CFO . ( L-R standing ) Zhilin Li , Deputy General Manager ; Annebel Oosthuizen , Executive , Finance ; Xuelin Cai ( Minty ), Co-CFO ; and Yong Chen , COO .

Wu Runhua , General Manager of Nerin ( seated , centre ) and Xiaobo Zhang , Chairman of Nerin ( standing behind Wu Runhua ), and other members of China Nerin Engineering join members of Ivanhoe Mines ' Chinese representative office at the signing ceremony in Nanchang City , China , with the Kamoa Copper team on the screen in the background .

Aerial view of the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex . The planned smelter is to be built within the area outlined in red , adjacent to the Phase 1 and 2 concentrator plants ( in yellow circle ). The backfill plant is circled in blue .

projects globally . Nerin ' s capabilities in flash-smelting technology , combined with its significant experience in the DRC ( including the Lualaba Copper Smelter near Kolwezi that is treating approximately one-third of Kamoa-Kakula ' s current concentrate output , and Tenke Fungurume ' s copper hydrometallurgical plant ) is said to ensure a smooth execution of the planned smelter at Kamoa-Kakula .

The smelter is expected to be built concurrently with the project ' s Phase 3 mine and concentrator expansion , and the upgrading of turbine 5 at the Inga II hydropower complex . The additional 162 megawatts of renewable electricity from the Inga II upgrading project will be needed to power the Phase 3 expansion and on-site smelter .

The next stages in the smelter project development will be the completion of basic engineering , which is scheduled for mid-June 2022 , and the ordering of the long-lead equipment , followed by earthworks which are expected to commence in Q2 2022 . The awarding of the Engineering , Procurement and Construction Management ( EPCM ) contract should occur shortly after the commencement of the earthworks .

The overall execution timeline will be dictated by the basic engineering but is expected to be approximately three years . The estimated capital cost is in the region of USD700-million ( 100 % -basis ) for the enlarged smelter , to be financed with cash flows from Kamoa-Kakula .

An onsite smelting facility has compelling cost and environmental benefits , says Kamoa-Copper , including a reduction in the volume of copper concentrate shipped from the mine by approximately