KOLWEZI -
In May, the mining team set its fifth consecutive monthly development record of 1,868 metres of underground advancement 535 metres ahead of plan for the month.
Major development at the
Approximately 100 truck loads of equipment for the processing plant are en route to the
Aerial view of the
Underground development at the
Development of the
Development also is well advanced on the eastern perimeter drives and the room-and-pillar mining area. Development from the southern portal has reached south access drives 1 and 2, with mining crews working to establish the connection of these drives with mine access drives 1 and 2 from the north side of the orebody. Approximately 1,000 metres of development is required before the northern and southern access drives are joined, which is scheduled to occur in
A second crew comprised of young Congolese miners was added to the Kakula mining team in March bringing the total number of underground mining crews to nine. The mine will continue to add additional crews over the next year to further accelerate development.
Underground mining also is occurring at the
Kakula's main belt and sacrificial belts have been installed for the conveyor system that will transport ore from underground to surface. Initial commissioning for the conveyor system is scheduled to occur in the next two weeks, with final commissioning for the full system (including the fire suppression system and all safety components) scheduled for mid-July.
Team members from DRC-based
The reaming of Ventilation Shaft 3 has been completed. A high-capacity, surface fan will be moved from its current location at Ventilation Shaft 1 to Ventilation Shaft 3. Ventilation Shaft 1 will then become downcast (drawing fresh air into the mine) and Ventilation Shaft 3 will be upcast. Reaming of Ventilation Shaft 4 is expected to commence this month and should be completed by the end of July.
In parallel with the construction of Kamoa-Kakula's phase 1
Kakula's development team members hold samples of the gray-coloured, high-grade chalcocite ore to the surface stockpiles. Chalocite - Kakula's predominant type of ore - is nearly 80% copper by weight.
(L-R)
A 63-tonne Sandvik truck delivers another load of high-grade chalcocite ore to the surface stockpiles. The high-grade stockpile is projected to significantly expand in the coming months as the majority of Kakula's underground development will be in mining zones grading +5% copper.
Construction progress on the processing plant and other surface infrastructure remains on track for initial production in Q3 2021
Manufacturing and delivery to site of all long lead items for Kakula's 3.8 million-tonne-per-annum (Mtpa) concentrator plant facility is well advanced with some items already having been delivered. Plant earthworks is complete, and plant civil works are advancing rapidly. SMPP (structural, mechanical, piping and platework) fabrication is progressing well with some steel already on route to site, and mobilization of the erection crews have started. The contract for the EC&I (Electrical, Control and Instrumentation) has been awarded.
The capital cost related to the construction of the mining infrastructure (underground and surface), processing plant and surface infrastructure has been estimated to a basic engineering level of accuracy and is being used as the control budget estimate for the project.
The current estimate of the project's initial capital costs is approximately
Pictured below are a ball mill shell and the girth gear for the Kakula processing plant that were recently completed at
Construction activities at the Mwadingusha hydro-electric power plant, where all six turbines are being replaced, is progressing well, as is the associated 220-kilovolt (Kva) infrastructure to supply the mine with clean hydro-power. The mine is scheduled to be energized with permanent 220kV hydro-generated power by
Other critical infrastructure that has recently been completed include: construction of a permanent road between the mine site and the
More than 3,500 employees and contractors are currently working on site, of which approximately 90% are Congolese nationals. To date, there have been no recorded COVID-19 cases in
Kakula's new ICU ward that was constructed to treat potential COVID-19 patients. To date, there have been no cases of COVID-19 at Kamoa-Kakula or in the
Kamoa-Kakula on track to produce the world's 'greenest copper'
Together with its joint-venture partners, Ivanhoe is committed to building modern, safe, mechanized mines that will showcase responsible, 'green' mine development.
Kamoa-Kakula is unique as it combines ultra-high copper grades in thick, shallow and relatively flat-lying deposits - allowing for large-scale, highly-productive, mechanized underground mining operations. The ultra-high copper grades and underground mines mean that Kamoa-Kakula will have a small surface footprint and use a fraction of the power, water and consumables - and produce far less tailings - than comparable large, low-grade, open-pit porphyry copper mines currently in operation, or under development, elsewhere in the world.
In addition, approximately 55% of the Kakula's tailings will be mixed with cement and pumped back underground to fill voids and help support the underground mine. The remaining 45% of the tailings will be pumped to a tailings storage facility.
'We are committed to building the
Clean, sustainable hydro-electric power for Kamoa-Kakula
Ivanhoe also is committed to powering its mines with clean, sustainable hydro-electricity. Ongoing upgrading work at the Mwadingusha hydro-power plant in the DRC has significantly progressed with major equipment being delivered to site. The progressive re-commissioning of the turbines, fully refurbished and modernized with state-of-the-art control and instrumentation, is underway and is expected to be completed in Q1 2021. The refurbished plant is expected to deliver approximately 72 megawatts (MW) of power to the national power grid.
The work at Mwadingusha is being conducted by engineering firm Stucky, of Lausanne,
'Clean, renewable hydropower is the best energy solution to support our development priorities as we continue to look for ways to reduce our impact on the environment and produce the copper our world requires,' added
Installation of the 120-kilovolt / 11 kilovolt electrical substation at the
Contact:
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Forward-looking statements
Certain statements in this release constitute 'forward-looking statements' or 'forward-looking information' within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the company, its projects, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. Such statements can be identified by the use of words such as 'may', 'would', 'could', 'will', 'intend', 'expect', 'believe', 'plan', 'anticipate', 'estimate', 'scheduled', 'forecast', 'predict' and other similar terminology, or state that certain actions, events or results 'may', 'could', 'would', 'might' or 'will' be taken, occur or be achieved. These statements reflect the company's current expectations regarding future events, performance and results and speak only as of the date of this release.
Such statements include without limitation, the timing and results of: (i) statements regarding the high-grade stockpile is projected to significantly expand in the coming months as the majority of Kakula's underground development will be in mining zones grading +5% copper; (ii) statements regarding the expected shipping and arrival dates of the ball mill shipments; (iii) statements regarding Kakula's northern and southern access drives are expected to join in
As well, all of the results of the pre-feasibility study for the Kakula copper mine and the updated and expanded
Forward-looking statements and information involve significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indicators of whether or not such results will be achieved. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements or information, including, but not limited to, the factors discussed below and under 'Risk Factors', and elsewhere in this release, as well as unexpected changes in laws, rules or regulations, or their enforcement by applicable authorities; the failure of parties to contracts with the company to perform as agreed; social or labour unrest; changes in commodity prices and the failure of exploration programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that would justify and support continued exploration, studies, development or operations.
Although the forward-looking statements contained in this release are based upon what management of the company believes are reasonable assumptions, the company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this release and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Subject to applicable securities laws, the company does not assume any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this release.
The company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of the factors set forth below in the 'Risk Factors' section in the company's Q1 2020 MD&A and its current annual information form.
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