Find a new Mopani copper mine investor

Zambian mining investment company ZCCM-IH and its largest shareholder Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) told Reuters that the company expects to find new investors for the Mopani copper mine before the end of the year.

ZCCM-IH agreed on Tuesday to acquire Glencore’s majority stake in Mopani and assume $1.5 billion in debt for this.

IDC told Reuters: "We expect to identify a strategic equity partner before the end of 2021."

Mabvuto Chipata, CEO of ZCCM-IH, said he agrees with this goal.

Mopani was at the core of Glencore's plan to reverse its African copper business, which has been plagued by problems in recent years. The company spent billions of dollars to dig new shafts, but this asset is difficult to achieve profitability. Nevertheless, once fully operational, the annual copper output of these mines should be around 140,000 tons, while the output in 2019 was only 51,000 tons.

After Zambia threatened to revoke the mining license in April last year, Glencore shelved plans to protect and maintain the company's business. The government's strategy is based on the need to protect site work.

Minister of Mines Richard Musukwa said on Tuesday that the plan to close the mine would result in the layoff of 15,000 workers. President Edgar Lungu hopes that by taking over the mine, he will win the support of unions and workers before elections later this year.