Mopani Copper Mines PLC (also known as Mopani) is a Zambian company owned by ZCCM Investment Holdings.
Corporate overview
Mopani Copper Mines was previously owned by Carlisa Investments Corporation (a joint venture company comprising Glencore International AG (73.1%) and First Quantum Minerals Ltd (16.9%)) and ZCCM-IH (10%). Minority shareholders are spread throughout the world, in various locations.
Mopani Mines produces and sells copper and cobalt to the international market, being one of the biggest mines and exporters in the world.
Operations
The company has mine sites at Mufulira and Nkana, which are located on the Copperbelt in central Zambia. The head office is located in Kitwe near Nkana assets. Nkana has been in operation since 1931 and Mufulira, which has been in operation since 1933 lies north of Kitwe.
The company operates the Mufulira mine, smelter, concentrator and copper refinery and the Nkana mine, concentrator and cobalt plant. The name "Mopani" was chosen by vote amongst employees after the local Mopani tree.
History
Mopani Copper Mines Plc was originally part of Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines Limited (ZCCM), and was state-owned until its privatisation in 2000. On 1 April 2000, Mopani purchased the ZCCM assets at Mufulira and Nkana, consisting of the underground mine, concentrator, smelter, refinery and cobalt plant, from the government.
Following privatisation the Zambian Government retained a stake in the mining industry through ZCCM Investments Holdings Plc (ZCCM-IH) which is an investments holdings company, quoted on the Lusaka, London, and Euronext stock exchanges. The majority of its investments are held in the copper mining sector of Zambia.
It was important to find a name that retained the acronym "MCM" after privatization, because MCM is the London Metal Exchange listed name for copper produced at Mufulira Refinery. Mufulira copper is considered amongst the purest copper in the world.
MCM produced of copper and of cobalt in 2003. At that time, MCM invested in a number of oxide copper projects at several of its properties, including an in-situ leaching project at Mufulira and leaching at Nkana, and has achieved significant production increases at its underground mining operations in Kitwe and Mufulira. Copper production from internal sources was supplemented by the purchase of some of copper in high-grade oxide concentrate bought from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and 185,325 tonnes of copper concentrate toll treated from Copper-miner Equinox in 2007.
The company installed ISA smelt furnace, Matte Settling Electric Furnace, oxygen plant, at the Mufulira smelter during 2004 and 2005, at a total cost of US$213 million.
The Mopani Copper Mine has generated over $560 million in tax payments to the Zambian government since privatization in 2000 through royalties, import/customs duties and income taxes. However, the fraudulent dissimulation of thousands of million dollars by MCM is under investigation. and the President of the European Investment Bank (EIB) has instructed the services to decline any further financing request from this company or its subsidiaries.
In January 2021. the Zambian Government, through the ZCCM-IH, took on US$ 1.5 billion in debt to and acquired the 90% shares of Mopani Copper Mines Plc from Carlisa Investments Corporation and became the sole owner of Mopani Copper Mines Plc.
With a new government installed in August 2021, indications of a policy shift on ownership were floated with the leadership advising they intend to create an enabling environment that will attract both local and international investments.
In March 2022, the Canadian High Commissioner to Zambia Pamela O’Donnell, indicated that Canada, through Barrick Gold and First Quantum Minerals expressed interest to invest in the Mine.
In July 2022, ZCCM-Investment Holdings agreed to offer corporate guarantees of up to US$ 15.0 million to Atlas Mara Bank Zambia Limited to provide working capital to Mopani Copper Mines (MCM) to inject liquidity for its operations.
Environmental and health impact
Serious concerns have been raised by local residents and activists about high levels of air and water pollution directly caused by the mining operations at the Mopani Copper Mine. In the award-winning documentary "Zambia: Good Copper, Bad Copper", by investigative journalists Audrey Gallet and Alice Odiot, the large impact of high emissions of sulfur dioxide and dust into the air and water pollution due to the mining operations is shown. In this documentary local residents complain of frequent breathing problems, chest pain and eye irritation due to exposure to the emissions.