The decision is essentially a short-term relief valve for Zambia’s copper sector, but it also signals structural stress in the local processing chain. In the immediate term, it benefits miners directly. Companies like First Quantum Minerals, Barrick Mining (through Lumwana), and other producers can now move stockpiled copper concentrate that would otherwise sit idle. That improves cash flow, reduces storage pressure, and helps maintain export revenues while smelters are offline or operating below capacity. For the broader industry, however, it highlights a bottleneck in Zambia’s ambition to move up the value chain. The country has long aimed to process more copper domestically rather than export raw concentrate, but repeated maintenance issues and technical constraints at smelters are forcing a return to exporting unprocessed material. That weakens the policy push for beneficiation and keeps the economy more exposed to global price swings in raw copper.
Zambia has extended a temporary suspension of its 10% export tax on copper concentrates until Sept. 30, allowing miners to ship stockpiled material while domestic smelting facilities undergo maintenance and repairs, authorities said.
The waiver covers up to 271,742 metric tons of copper concentrate and is intended to ease bottlenecks caused by reduced processing capacity at local smelters, which have faced technical disruptions in recent months. The policy extension follows an initial suspension introduced in August 2025.
Major mining firms allocated export quotas under the exemption include Mopani Copper Mines, Lumwana Mining Company, First Quantum Minerals, Nkana Mining and Minerals Processing, Lubambe Copper Mine and Konkola Copper Mines.
Mopani Copper Mines received the largest allocation of up to 100,000 metric tons. The company is jointly owned by International Resources Holding of Abu Dhabi and Zambia’s state mining investment arm, ZCCM-IH.
Lumwana Mining Company, a subsidiary of Barrick Mining Corp, was allocated 56,986 metric tons, while First Quantum Minerals and Chinese-owned Nkana Mining and Minerals Processing each received about 43,000 metric tons.
Lubambe Copper Mine, majority-owned by China’s JCHX Mining, was granted 15,000 metric tons, and Vedanta Resources’ Konkola Copper Mines was allocated 12,541 metric tons.
Zambia, Africa’s second-largest copper producer, exported 890,346 metric tons of copper in 2025 and has set a long-term target of increasing annual output to 3 million metric tons by 2031.
The government has in recent years sought to balance export earnings with domestic beneficiation, though periodic smelter constraints have forced temporary policy shifts to allow greater exports of unprocessed concentrate.
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Faustine Ngila is the AI Editor at Impact Newswire, based in Nairobi, Kenya. He is an award-winning journalist specializing in artificial intelligence, blockchain, and emerging technologies.
He previously worked as a global technology reporter at Quartz in New York and Digital Frontier in London, where he covered innovation, startups, and the global digital economy.
With years of experience reporting on cutting-edge technologies, Faustine focuses on AI developments, industry trends, and the impact of technology on society.
Omar Victor Diop (Senegal)
Most Famous Photo: Images from his series “Project Diaspora” or “Portrait Session,” which re-imagine historical portraits of notable Africans and Black figures in Western art history.
Short Bio: Born in 1980, Omar Victor Diop is a Senegalese photographer known for his vibrant, meticulously staged portraits that blend African aesthetics with contemporary fashion and historical references. His work often reclaims and reinterprets narratives of Black representation, challenging conventional perspectives.
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