en.Wedoany.com Reported - ZCCM Investment Holdings of Zambia has revealed that Vedanta plans to list its copper business unit, CopperTech Metals, in the United States, a move that could accelerate the $2.7 billion expansion project of their joint venture.
CopperTech Metals, a US-based integrated copper and cobalt producer, will operate the Konkola Copper Mines, in which Vedanta holds a 79% stake, located in Zambia's Copperbelt province. ZCCM holds the remaining shares. Zambia, Africa's second-largest copper producer, aims to increase copper output from last year's 890,346 tonnes to 3 million tonnes by 2031, capitalizing on growing demand driven by the global transition to renewable energy.
Vedanta regained control of Konkola Copper Mines in 2023, after the asset was seized in 2019 by the government of former Zambian President Edgar Lungu. The company's Konkola Deep Mine Programme (KDMP) aims to boost Konkola's copper production from 80,215 tonnes last year to 300,000 tonnes by 2031.
ZCCM Board Chairman Phesto Musonda told investors that the listing would shorten the project's launch timeline by three years. "Vedanta's commitment was to invest $1.1 billion in KDMP over the next five years, but now with the listing, we have adjusted the timeline. We are saying that this cash is now available, and we have brought the investment forward to 2028. The development of KDMP will be completed before five years," Musonda said during ZCCM's Capital Markets Day in Paris. Vedanta did not respond to requests for comment.
The expansion project includes one of Zambia's deepest shafts, reaching a depth of 1,500 meters to access high-grade ore, as well as drainage and processing infrastructure. ZCCM, listed in Lusaka, London, and on Euronext, said it is considering a share buyback to support its stock price, which it claims is significantly undervalued on European exchanges.
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