The Economic Association of Zambia (EAZ) says Vedanta Resources’ renewed investment plans at Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) could significantly accelerate Zambia’s value-addition agenda, noting that the company’s shift towards processing and refining copper locally marks a strategic shift in the country’s mining ecosystem.
EAZ National Secretary, Dr Nicholas Mainza, told journalist in an interview in Lusaka that Vedanta’s proposed US$1.5 billion capital injection reflects growing investor appetite for the sector and aligns with Zambia’s push to strengthen its mining value chain through local beneficiation.
“We are seeing Vedanta trying to expand their territory and absorb issues around KCM. If we are having more investments in the mining sector, for me it is a good move. For the country it is a good move, and for the investor it is a big advantage,” Mainza said.
He stressed that the benefits of large-scale mining investments must be balanced and shared:
“At the end of the day, investments must yield positive results for the country as well as for the investor. It must be a win-win situation, a 50–50 situation,” Mainza said.
He highlighted that Vedanta’s plans go beyond mining. The company intends to introduce smelting and processing activities—an approach aligned with the government’s long-standing emphasis on value addition. “The goodness with this model is that Vedanta does not just want to push in US$1.5 billion, mine and export. They want to start melting and processing the copper. This is what the country has been calling for,” Mainza said.
He added that the investment would support Zambia’s ambition to reach three million metric tonnes of annual copper production by increasing output and positioning the country as a regional processing hub.
According to Mainza, Vedanta’s presence in Zambia and its familiarity with the local operating environment make the proposed investment a timely opportunity for economic expansion.
Beyond production and value addition, he said the economic spillovers—such as job creation, revived local economic activity, and stronger supply-chain participation—will boost Zambia’s broader economic performance.
“There will be positive injections into the economy. Mining, agriculture and industrial manufacturing are key sectors we must support. For us, this is a good move and we must try by all means to support it,” he said.
On Tuesday, Vedanta Resources Limited announced the launch of Copper Tech Metals Inc., a new U.S.-based company that will own and operate Konkola Copper Mines KCM in Zambia. It stated that the company plans to raise US$1.5 billion in the U.S. market, which will be used to fund operational expansion, modernization, and deployment of AI-driven exploration and extraction technologies at KCM.
