Konkola’s Nchanga Tailings Leach Plant Set to Become Africa’s Largest

Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) is advancing plans to develop what is expected to become Africa’s largest tailings leach plant, with a US$498 million investment aimed at recovering copper from historical mining waste at its Nchanga operations in Zambia.

The project received approval from ZCCM Investments Holdings (ZCCM-IH) in September 2026, followed by the signing of an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) agreement with China NERIN Engineering on September 17.

The proposed facility is expected to produce approximately 70,000 tonnes of London Metal Exchange (LME) Grade A copper cathode annually at full capacity, adding significant output without requiring new mining.

Recovering copper from 546 million tonnes of tailings

The plant will reprocess an estimated 546 million tonnes of historical tailings stored in Nchanga’s TD5 dam, which contain an average copper grade of 0.54%.

Studies indicate that the material could deliver a commercial recovery rate of approximately 74% using solvent extraction and electrowinning (SX-EW) technology.

The facility is designed to process 53,500 tonnes of tailings daily, equivalent to approximately 17.7 million tonnes annually. The recovered copper will be converted into LME Grade A cathodes for the market.

The new plant will operate alongside KCM’s existing tailings leach facility at Nchanga, expanding the mine’s ability to recover copper from previously processed material.

China NERIN secures US$498 million EPC contract

Under the EPC agreement, China NERIN Engineering will deliver the project on a turnkey basis, drawing on its earlier design work.

Its responsibilities will include construction, commissioning, performance testing and training. Implementation is expected to take 24 months, with production projected to reach the full annual capacity of around 70,000 tonnes from the fourth year of operation.

China NERIN Chairman and President Wu Runhua said the company would bring its experience in copper processing and project execution to support the development.

KCM Deputy Chief Executive Officer Satish Kumar described the project as an important milestone in the company’s growth plans and Zambia’s ambition to increase national copper production.

Project funding and ownership structure

The plant will be funded by KCM and sits outside Vedanta Resources’ initial US$1 billion investment programme for the mining company.

ZCCM-IH holds a 20.6% equity stake in KCM, while CopperTech Metals, a US-domiciled company controlled by Vedanta Resources, holds the remaining 79.4%.

Importantly, ZCCM-IH will not be required to contribute additional capital to the project. KCM’s equity contribution is expected to be financed through internally generated resources.

ZCCM-IH Chief Executive Officer Kakenenwa Muyangwa said the development would unlock value from one of Africa’s largest secondary copper resources, supporting the country’s ambition to increase production without extracting additional ore.

Supporting Zambia’s three-million-tonne copper ambition

The Nchanga project is expected to strengthen KCM’s production capacity and contribute to Zambia’s national target of producing three million tonnes of copper annually by 2031.

KCM has also set an ambition to increase its own annual production to 300,000 tonnes.

By recovering copper from existing tailings, the development could increase output, generate additional export earnings and improve the utilisation of resources accumulated through decades of mining.

The project also highlights the growing role of mine-waste reprocessing in the copper industry, where advances in processing technology can make previously uneconomic materials commercially viable.

For Zambia, the investment represents an opportunity to expand copper production while extracting greater value from existing mining assets.