Expansion Projects
Since Vedanta Resources Plc became the majority shareholder in Konkola Copper Mines in November 2004, a number of projects have been implemented with the ultimate aim of expanding the production capacity of the operations, improving efficiencies as well as extending the life of mine.

Nchanga Acid Plant
The new sulphur based Acid Plant at Nchanga, with a production capacity of 500 tonnes of sulphuric acid a day, has been completed and has started production.

The plant supplies sulphuric acid to the Tailings Leach Plant. Importation of sulphuric acid into Zambia has significantly reduced as a result of the commissioning of this new plant.

Refurbishment of Tankhouses
The Nchanga Tailings Leach Plant Tankhouses, which produce cathode copper, have undergone refurbishment to improve operational efficiencies and enhance the quality of copper.

Konkola Deep Mining Project (KDMP)
This project is aimed at expanding the production of copper ore at Konkola Mine from two million tonnes per annum to 7.5 million tonnes per annum by accessing the rich ore body that lies beneath what the current operations have been exploiting.  This project will extend the life of Konkola Mine by 23 years.  This involves the sinking of a new mine shaft to the depth of 1 490 metres, the deepest new shaft sinking project in Africa. In addition, the project involves the deepening of existing, sinking of three new ventilation shafts, one dewatering shaft and the construction of a new pump chamber.

Alongside the KDMP, a modern concentrator is being built to handle the additional ore that will be produced at Konkola. The concentrator will treat 6 000 000 tonnes of ore per annum.

Nchanga Smelter
A state-of-the-art smelter has been commissioned at Nchanga which will smelt low energy Nchanga and Konkola concentrates to produce 300 000 tonnes of copper per annum. Using the Flash Smelting Direct to Blister Technology from Outokumpu of Finland, this smelter is environment friendly as a new Sulphuric Acid Plant which is has been built alongside it captures all the sulphur gases to produce sulphuric acid which is used at the Tailings Leach Plant within Nchanga Mine. The Sulphuric Acid Plant has a production capacity of  1 850 tonnes of acid per day.