Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), Vedanta's Zambian copper operation, could cut its copper output by up to 150,000 tonnes next year due to rising procurement costs following a proposed import duty on copper concentrates, Fastmarkets has learned.
KCM is looking to halve its Zambian primary smelting capacity- which now stands at 311,000 tonnes per year, a company source said on Wednesday October 24. To gather more income from the mining sector, the Zambian government proposes to impose a 5% tariff on imported copper and cobalt concentrates, according to its 2019 budget released in late September. "Procurement costs will greatly increase as almost half of the feed are from countries like DRC [Democratic Republic of Congo] and Botswana. We can't source all feed from our local mines,...