Kolwezi, Democratic Republic of the Congo — January 2, 2026 — Leads & Copy — Ivanhoe Mines has announced that its Kamoa-Kakula copper smelter, the largest in Africa, has produced its first copper anodes. The smelter has a capacity of 500,000 tonnes of copper per year.
The first copper anodes were produced on December 29, 2025, about five weeks after the smelter’s heat-up began and one week after the first concentrate feed. The smelter is expected to produce 500,000 tonnes of 99.7%-pure copper anode annually once fully operational.
Robert Friedland, Executive Co-Chairman of Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN) (OTCQX: IVPAF), called the first production of copper anodes a “defining moment” for Kamoa-Kakula. He thanked the Kamoa Copper team, contractors, and partners for their work on the facility.
Marna Cloete, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ivanhoe Mines, also commented on the milestone.
The smelter’s ramp-up will continue throughout 2026 and is expected to be completed by year-end. Kamoa-Kakula’s copper production for 2026 is estimated to be between 380,000 and 420,000 tonnes.
Kamoa-Kakula will prioritize processing concentrates from its Phase 1, 2, and 3 concentrators at the on-site smelter. Excess concentrate will be toll-treated at the Lualaba Copper Smelter (LCS) near Kolwezi.
The smelter furnace reached its operating temperature of 1,250 degrees centigrade before the first concentrate feed.
The company expects 2026 copper sales to exceed production by approximately 20,000 tonnes as it smelts and sells 99.7%-pure copper anodes from its stockpiled copper concentrate.
An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) facility was installed before the first concentrate feed. The 60-megawatt UPS is designed to provide up to two hours of backup power to protect the smelter from voltage fluctuations. Construction of a 60 MW on-site solar (PV) facility is also progressing. The solar site, with battery storage, is expected to be operational from Q2 2026.
The smelter’s copper recovery is expected to be 98.5% once fully ramped up.
Kamoa-Kakula expects its operating margins to expand due to reduced logistics costs and sales of by-product sulphuric acid.
The smelter is expected to produce up to 700,000 tonnes per annum of high-strength sulphuric acid, which will be sold locally. The first sale of acid by Kamoa-Kakula has already taken place, with the first delivery expected in the coming weeks.
During the smelter’s construction, the project team recorded only one lost time injury (LTI) during 18 million hours worked. The lost-time injury frequency rate (LTIFR) was approximately 0.054 per million hours worked.
Stage Two dewatering activities at the Kakula Mine are complete, and selective mining on the eastern side commenced ahead of schedule in late December.
Stage Three dewatering activities will continue into Q2 2026 and are not expected to be on the critical path for Kakula’s mining operations.
The western side of the Kakula Mine has been dewatered, enabling the mining of higher-grade areas. Head grades from mining areas on the western side of Kakula are expected to increase from 3.5% copper in January to approximately 4.0% copper by the end of Q1 2026.
Steve Amos, Ivanhoe Mines’ Executive Vice President, Projects, has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical disclosures in the news release.
Ivanhoe Mines is a Canadian mining company focused on advancing its three principal operations in Southern Africa.
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Source: Ivanhoe Mines
