NICKEL PRODUCTION ON CARDS
A NICKEL Production Project Enter prise which will be producing approxi mately 28, 000 tonnes of the commodi ty per year is soon expected to come to fruition, placing Zambia in an enviable position to capitalise on the growing market for battery metals.
Nickel’s recent price spikes amid heightened geopolitical tensions will very likely create a bigger appetite for mining and refining operations in coun tries that are perceived to be “safe,” with minimal risk of sanctions, and more sta ble regulatory and trade regimes.
Therefore, First Quantum Minerals’ four million tonne per year Enterprise plant once fully operational positions the country at a better place to attract more investments in the mining industry.
Completed in 2016, the enterprise has to date been used to process copper ore from the Sentinel Copper Mine.
It is however expected that once fully operational, the enterprise could pro duce approximately 2, 300 tonnes of nickel concentrate per month and 28, 000 tonnes per year over an estimated 11-year mine life.
This is according to the Zambia Chamber of Mines (ZCM) in its News letter dubbed “Zambian Mining - Open for Red Hot Copper Business and Much More.”
“Enterprise has long been conceptu alised, but has not yet been developed, thanks to a combination of lower prices from 2015 and a mining regime in recent years that ended all prospects of investment.
“Now that demand and nickel prices appear to be favourable, it remains to be seen whether a new mining regime could bring Enterprise to life,” ZCM stated.
According to ZCM, the enterprise would be the largest mining project un dertaken in the country since the com missioning of Sentinel mine in 2015, and the largest ever non-copper mining project.
The chamber indicated that the enter prise would be a major coup and a signal to the mining world if the government and First Quantum could bring this off.
“With sufficient and timely invest ment into new and upcoming nickel projects and a healthy exploration pipe line to ensure that the next nickel mine comes online in the not-too-distant future.
“Zambia will be in an enviable posi tion to capitalise on the growing market for battery metals, and see nickel mining join copper mining as a flywheel for eco nomic diversification,” ZCM stated.