Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN) Executive Co-Chair Robert Friedland and President Marna Cloete are pleased to report that the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) achieved a record copper production of 103,947 tonnes in concentrate during the third quarter of 2023.
Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 1 and 2 concentrators have consistently operated at a steady-state throughput rate of 9.2 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) following the ahead-of-schedule completion of the debottlenecking program during the first quarter. They have regularly exceeded this throughput rate in the second and third quarters, producing 35,267 tonnes of copper in concentrate for August and 33,044 tonnes in the shorter month of September.
In the third quarter, Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 1 and 2 concentrators processed approximately 2.24 million tonnes of ore at an average feed grade of 5.55% copper. This includes high-grade, run-of-mine ore from the Kakula Mine, supplemented with ore from surface stockpiles to achieve a throughput exceeding the original design capacity. Robust copper recoveries continued, averaging 87.2% for the quarter.
Year-to-date, Kamoa-Kakula's production is at 301,336 tonnes of copper in concentrate, which accounts for the debottlenecking initiatives launched since February 2023. The 2023 annual production guidance for Kamoa-Kakula remains between 390,000 and 430,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate.
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