Zambian copper import tax will ‘kill the domestic industry’, sources

05 December 2016

Copper smelting production in Zambia could receive a hit when its government introduces a 7.5% import tax on copper concentrates on January 1, affecting raw material feed from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), industry sources.

The import tax is intended to encourage development of copper mining in Zambia, as it “will promote local mineral processing”, Zambian Minister of Finance Felix Mutati told the National Assembly as part of the government’s budget announcement on November 11.

Following a tradition for Zambian finance ministers, Mutati delivered his plans for the country’s economy via a copper briefcase – underlying the importance of the commodity to the African country; low prices for copper this year will mean that the economy will grow by just over 3% in 2016 from a target of 5%, he said. Zambia will produce 740,000 tonnes of copper in all forms this year, according to the Chamber of Mines, making it the second largest producer in Africa after the DRC. It has 690 million tonnes of copper reserves as of a 2012 US Geological Survey, giving it around 3.5% of total world reserves.

Source – MB