By HELEN ZULU –
ZAMBIA’S Copper production rose by four per cent during the first four months of this year as compared to the same period in 2015.
The increase was due to high production at   Kalumbila, Kansanshi and Lumwana mines.
However production at some   mines declined during the period under review.
Ministry of Mines and Minerals Development director of mines, Mooya Lumamba said Zambia’s copper production had risen to 224,589 tonnes as at April 2016 from 216, 602 tonnes in the same period in 2015.
He was speaking when he presented a paper titled “The mining industry in Zambia, the Government Perspective” at the just-ended sixth edition of the Zambia International Mining and Energy Conference (ZIMEC 2016) in Lusaka at the weekend.
Of the 224,589 tonnes of copper produced this year, Kansanshi produced 77, 385 tonnes, Lumwana 46, 431 tonnes while, Kalumbila mine produced 34, 748 tonnes.
Mopani Copper Mine (MCM) produced 14, 754 tones, Konkola Copper Mine (KCM) 22,145 tonnes, Chibulama produced 3, 630, China Non-ferrous metal -Luanshya Copper Mines (CNMC-CLM) 10,339 tonnes, Lubambe 6,720 tonnes,  with Non-Ferrous Corporation Africa (NFCA) producing 7,143 tonnes of copper.
Other companies included Sino Metals which produced 1,291 tonnes.
Mr Lumamba said the Zambian mining industry had a bright future as copper production continued to increase despite the many challenges it had been faced with in the past two years.
“In 2015, our copper production was at 710, 860.18 tonnes compared to708, 254.58 tonnes in 2014, the future for the industry is bright, the time to acquire assets and invest   as the power crisis is almost over,” Mr Lumamba said.
He further said Government was undertaking the Mineral Production Monitoring Support Project (MPMSP) which was aimed at strengthening the ability of the Ministry of Mines to effectively monitor mining activities and mineral production.
“We are also implementing the Mineral Value Chain Monitoring Project (MVCMP) which is designed to monitor mineral production, movement of ores, concentrates and finished products electronically and to link this data to export permits and weigh bridges among others,” he said.