Overview
Zambia possesses one of the world’s highest-grade deposits of copper and is ranked the seventh largest copper producer in the world. In addition, Zambia is home to small, exploitable deposits of cobalt, nickel, and manganese. Copper contributes over 70 percent of the country’s foreign export earnings. Zambia produces about 20 percent of the world’s emeralds.
The mining sector is governed and regulated by the Mines and Minerals Development Act No. 11 of 2015, which covers types of mining rights, acquisition of mining rights, rights/obligations conferred on the mining right holder, transferability of mining rights, safety, health, and environment requirements, and provides for the environmental protection fund, mineral royalties, fees and charges, and export of minerals.
Geology and Mineral Resources - Copper
Zambia’s vast potential for mineral resources is due to its unique geographic location. Though a wide range of minerals occur in the country, the mining industry has been dominated by copper mining which has overshadowed the exploitation of other potential mineral resources.
During the period 1920 to 1950 and the regional geological exploration that accompanied the establishment of the Copperbelt, talc was often found in the copper-ore bearing horizons of the Upper Roan Formation. Talc deposits were found to occur at many of the well-known copper mining localities including Bwana Mkubwa, Nkana, Nchanga and Mufulira. Despite extensive technical evaluations the only recorded extraction of talc occurs at Mishishi („Mushishi‟), a western suburb of Ndola where it was worked on a small-scale by Talc Zambia Limited. The grades produced by selective mining were as follows; yellow, off-white and white
Copper Cobalt
The copper‐cobalt mineralization is embedded in the NeoProterozoic rocks of the Katanga Supergroup. Copper resources have also been found in the thrust zones of North‐Western Zambia which represents zones of detachment between the Basement and Katanga sequence.
Talc
Talc occurrences have been recorded in the Lusaka, Central, Copperbelt, North-Western and Eastern Provinces of Zambia. The talc deposits can be classified into two broad genetic groups. The first (which covers the majority of occurrences) were formed by the regional metamorphism of siliceous dolomites of Katangan age and the second were formed by the hydrothemal alteration of basic intrusions associated with dolomites.
The Lilayi talc deposit occurs 5km to the south of Lusaka and consists of lenses of massive talc (steatite) up to 6m in thickness within a dolomite host. The steatitic talc consists of white, relatively pure material (containing 90% talc with traces of dolomite and chlorite) and has been extracted on a small- scale by Crushed Stone Sales Limited (a subsidiary of Indeco) for many years. Another talc deposit was discovered 25km to the southeast of Lusaka at Chipapa, which after subsequent evaluation was found to consist of equal proportions of pyrophyllite and talc (Muibeya, 2000).
Our Analyses and goals for the proper distribution of wealth
To meet growing global demand, natural resources are under increasing pressure. New sources have entered global markets – many of them in developing or emerging economies. Valuable resources such as oil, copper, tungsten, gold and timber can be found in many poor or fragile states, sometimes in very remote areas. Africa, a continent that has recently embarked on an important economical transition, is one of these resource-rich continent.
Over the past decade, LEESPA Investment Groups has recognized that natural resources, when properly managed, hold great potential to contribute to social and economic development. Mounting evidence from resource-rich countries, such as Botswana, South Africa, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Congo, Liberia and Cameroon, points to the positive outcomes for local communities and countries when natural resources are developed. Elements such as equitable redistribution of revenues, strong public institutions, investment in local capacity, environmental planning and transparency measures contribute to the virtuous circle of natural resource management, bringing wealth and prosperity to citizens and companies alike which is our premedical goal for Africa.