• Ivanhoe reports first copper anodes from Kamoa-Kakula smelter startup
• Mine produced over 71,000 tons of copper in Q1
• Company cut 2026 output forecast, expects recovery from 2027

Canadian miner Ivanhoe Mines reported its first-quarter 2026 operational results on Monday, April 13, including its first reported copper production in anode form from its Kamoa-Kakula mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The company’s on-site copper smelter, which started up in late December 2025, produced 63,671 metric tons of copper anodes during the quarter. Previously, Ivanhoe reported production primarily as copper concentrate from Kamoa-Kakula’s processing plants, most of which was exported for refining at smelters outside the Democratic Republic of Congo, except for volumes processed by a third party at the Lualaba smelter in the DRC. That facility produced 7,746 metric tons of copper in blister form in the first quarter.

Combined, Kamoa-Kakula produced 71,417 metric tons of copper in anode and blister form in the first quarter of 2026.

The results follow a revision to production guidance announced by Ivanhoe on March 31. The company now expects output of between 290,000 and 330,000 metric tons of copper in 2026, down from an initial target of 420,000 metric tons. Production is forecast to recover to between 380,000 and 420,000 metric tons in 2027, before rising to 500,000 metric tons from 2028 onward.

Kamoa-Kakula is owned 39.6% each by Ivanhoe Mines and China’s Zijin Mining Group, with the Congolese state holding a 20% stake.

Emiliano Tossou