Zambia Secures Biggest Copper Investment in a Decade with Kansanshi S3

Canadian miner First Quantum Minerals has commissioned the US$1.25 billion expansion at its Kansanshi copper mine in Zambia, the country’s largest mining investment in nearly a decade. Known as the S3 project, the expansion adds a new processing plant that nearly doubles ore-milling capacity, boosts smelter throughput by 25%, and opens a new pit for extraction. With commissioning launched on August 19, 2025, Kansanshi is expected to deliver an average of 250,000 tons of copper annually through 2044, up sharply from 171,000 tons in 2024. The project represents a major boost to Zambia’s mining industry at a time when President Hakainde Hichilema is targeting a tripling of national copper output by the early 2030s. It also comes as Barrick pursues a US$2 billion expansion at Lumwana, signaling renewed momentum in the mineral-rich North- Western Province. Together, Kansanshi and Sentinel—the two mines First Quantum operates in Zambia— account for more than half of the country’s copper production, which itself provides over 70% of Zambia’s export earnings. For First Quantum, the S3 expansion is also a critical lifeline after the closure of its flagship Cobre Panamá mine in 2023, which has cost the company about US$20 million per month in care and maintenance. With Cobre Panamá offline, Zambia now makes up more than 90% of the company’s output. Alongside the commissioning, First Quantum has been active in bond markets, repurchasing nearly US$714 million of its 2027 senior notes and issuing a new US$1 billion bond due 2034, moves designed to manage debt as it navigates one of the most challenging transitions in its corporate history.