Engineering, construction and asset management firm Lycopodium has been awarded a feasibility study and basic engineering contract for the expansion of the Lumwana copper mine, in Zambia.
The contract value is about A$19-million, with the project having a total cost investment of almost $2-billion.
Lycopodium says the feasibility study will be completed by the end of 2024.
The expansion of Barrick Gold’s Lumwana operation will increase production from 150 000 t of copper at a 26-million- to 29-million-tonne-a-year process plant production rate, to an estimated 240 000 t of copper at a 50-million-tonne-a-year production rate, with an estimated 36-year mine life.
“The expansion of Lumwana within Zambia’s world-class copper region supports the country’s commitment to its copper industry, and we are very pleased to have the opportunity to continue our partnership with Barrick and be part of this significant development that will have a material impact on the Zambian economy,” said Lycopodium MD Peter De Leo.
This engagement follows the award earlier this year of the feasibility study and basic engineering contract for Barrick’s Reko Diq copper/gold project, in Pakistan.