The feasibility study for Barrick’s Lumwana mine expansion in Zambia is expected to be completed by the end of the year, with construction set to begin in 2025.
Barrick CEO Mark Bristow announced during a webinar that the expansion could transform Lumwana into a top-tier copper producer.
Bristow said the expansion unlocks the potential to transform the Lumwana mine into a long-life, high yielding, Top 25 copper producer and a Tier One copper mine, capable of contending with the volatility of the copper demand cycles.
The expansion involves first doubling throughput by twinning the existing process circuit and then by significantly increasing mining volumes. Plant throughput will grow from the current 27Mt to 52Mt, doubling the mine’s annual copper production from 120kt to a life-of-mine average of 240kt per annum.
The feasibility study for Barrick’s Lumwana mine expansion in Zambia is expected to be completed by the end of the year, with construction set to begin in 2025.
Barrick CEO Mark Bristow announced during a webinar that the expansion could transform Lumwana into a top-tier copper producer.
Bristow said the expansion unlocks the potential to transform the Lumwana mine into a long-life, high yielding, Top 25 copper producer and a Tier One copper mine, capable of contending with the volatility of the copper demand cycles.
The expansion involves first doubling throughput by twinning the existing process circuit and then by significantly increasing mining volumes. Plant throughput will grow from the current 27Mt to 52Mt, doubling the mine’s annual copper production from 120kt to a life-of-mine average of 240kt per annum.
At a flat long-term average copper price consensus of $4.13/lb, Barrick estimates that the project will deliver an incremental IRR (Internal Rate of Return) of 20% and a total mine IRR of more than 50%6, paying back the initial expansion capital in approximately two years after completion of the expansion. Post-expansion, cost of sales and C1 cash costs are estimated at approximately $2.36/lb and $1.85/lb, respectively, placing Lumwana in the first quartile of the industry, excluding the benefit of any byproducts.
According to Mineral Resource Management and Evaluation Executive Simon Bottoms, the process plant engineering has matured to a point that has allowed Barrick to select major equipment vendors and place orders for long-lead equipment, including both mills and crushers.
“We are starting detailed engineering works this quarter and expanding our onsite accommodation while building partnerships with key suppliers and contractors ahead of the pre-construction ground preparation works, which are scheduled to start next year,” said Bottoms.
Commissioning of the new process plant is planned to start in the second half of 2027. Once the new process circuit is commissioned, the existing circuit will undergo a series of planned shutdowns, allowing Barrick to install upgrades while ensuring uninterrupted copper delivery throughout the expansion.
The permitting process for the expansion is well underway, with the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment already submitted to the Zambian authorities and approval expected by the end of this year.
