China Nonferrous Metal Mining (Group) Co Ltd (CNMC) will invest $600 million in mining projects in Zambia, said an executive of the company.
Luo Tao, president of CNMC, said half of the planned investment will go to Luanshya copper mines and the rest will finance Chambishi copper mines and smelter, as well as the construction of an industrial zone.
The Chinese miner also agreed to invest $5 million on Mufulira tailing dams exploration and set up a joint venture with Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines to develop the mines if a due diligence report shows feasibility.
Further investment will be made to recycle mineral slag and restore local environment.
CNMC set its footprint in Zambia in 1998 by investing in the Chambishi copper mines. The Chinese miner took over Luanshya copper mines in June 2009, when the troubled mines halted operations as commodity prices plunged in the global credit crunch.
Zambia, the world's fourth-largest copper producer, recorded 667,000 tons of copper output in 2009. The Zambian government plans to expand annual copper output to one million tons in the next five years.
Statistics of the Chinese embassy in Zambia show more than 300 Chinese enterprises are investing in the South African country in mining, construction and agriculture, with accumulated investment of $1.5 billion.
CNMC is a leading diversified miner and a major foreign investor in Zambia. With $1.1 billion accumulated investment, the company has created more than 6,500 employment opportunities in the country.
