Vedanta Resources and the Zambian government have finalised an agreement which will restore the ownership and management of Konkola Copper Mines to the conglomerate.

The agreement was signed on Monday between state firm ZCCM-IH and Vedanta’s head of base metals Chris Griffith in Lusaka, according to Reuters. Zambia seized the Konkola mine from Vedanta in 2019.

The agreement will pave the way for the re-appointment of the KCM board and the withdrawal of all legal challenges in court.

The provisional liquidator who was in charge of the assets will also be withdrawn, Zambia’s mines minister Paul Kabuswe Kabuswe.

The Konkola mine has reserves and resources of 16 million tonnes (mt) of contained copper.

According to Vedanta Resources, the mine has a copper grade of 2.3 per cent which compares very favourably with the global average of 0.4 per cent.

The Anil Agarwal-company expects the mine to play a critical role in the vertical integration of its operations in copper,
which is critical to the energy transition needs of a decarbonising world.

Vedanta had also said Zambia’s decision to hand back the ownership of the mine — Vedanta holds a 79.4 per cent stake in the asset — is a significant step for India at a time the country’s demand for copper is growing at an annual rate of 25 per cent.

The company expects to be optimally positioned to deliver India’s energy transition needs in a fully integrated manner that combines Konkola’s strong upstream production with the downstream operations in India.

It said that while copper of several million tonnes is needed for both the generation and transmission of renewable energy, its supply is projected to fall short of demand.

That present production from copper minesis estimated at around 22mt, with demand set to reach 50mt by 2035.

The company is optimistic the reinstatement of the KCM operations will support the global supply of copper and facilitate electrification.

Currently, India is over 90 per cent dependent on imports for copper concentrate.