With its well-established copper mining sector and the bulk of the country’s mineral wealth unexplored, Zambia is poised for a period of substantial growth and expansion its mining industry.
This growth trajectory is reinforced by strong Zambian government support, which is committed to enabling the sector, starting with the introduction of a new online and transparent mining cadastre. Legislation guiding the opening of new businesses makes Zambia one of the most attractive investment destinations currently in Africa. The country’s central location—connected to the planned upgrade of the Lobito Corridor to Angola and a new rail corridor to the east coast—further enhances its role as a future export hub for critical minerals to global markets.
At the same time, current government set a target to secure of reliable energy for households and industry by 2032, as unreliable power remains a significant constraint for large mining and manufacturing operations. Solar projects are planned for domestic consumers and energy independence among large-scale industries is being encouraged though both renewable sources, imported energy potential and extension of the current grid.
Mapping Unexplored Regions
Even as the country looks to push copper production, growing annual output of refined copper from 900,000 to three million tonnes by 2032, and expanding into a ‘new’ copper belt in the North-Western Province, diversification is part of Zambia’s mining growth strategy.
Plans to map the unexplored regions for critical and transitional minerals, including copper, cobalt, lithium, nickel and rare earth minerals, are in place supported by a nationwide detailed geophysical campaign covering over half of Zambia’s land cover to date. The countries ambitious exploration programme is supported and funded by both national government and private companies. Comprehensive mapping of under explored areas is important in convincing would-be investors of the value of investing billions of mining dollars, as without adequate data and information about what lies underground, it is difficult to make the costly commitment required to start new exploration projects.
