Kombat ships first copper consignment

Kombat mine - co-owned by Canada’s Trigon Metals, Namibian businessman Knowledge Katti’s Texel Mining and Exploration and state-owned Epangelo Mining - recently shipped its first copper concentrate product, marking the beginning of cash flow from the operation.

During September, mining operations continued to perform well, providing a consistent plant feed averaging 1.2% copper in line with the mine plan, Trigon said in a statement.

“The Kombat mill operated 23 days in September at an average daily throughput of 718 tonnes per day, corresponding to 72% capacity. By the end of September, production ramped up to strong with steady operation consistently above 95% capacity from 16 September onwards,” it said.

“The company is on track to declare commercial production in the second week of October.”

It further revealed that copper recoveries have averaged 80.5% for the month. As production settled into steady operation from mid-September, the mill has achieved recoveries of 84.8%, in line with projected recoveries of 85%.

“A total of 470 tonnes of concentrate was produced in September, with an average concentrate grade of 35.3% copper and 345 g/t of silver. To date, 101 tonnes have been shipped and shipments continue as finished concentrate has begun to overwhelm on-site storage facilities,” the statement read.

According to Trigon president and CEO Jed Richardson, this is “another tremendous milestone for the team at Kombat, as cash flow begins”.

“Mining and milling operations are performing optimally. All credit to the fantastic team on-site.”

Benefits for years

Katti owns 10% of Kombat through his company Havana Investments – under which Texel falls - while state-owned Epangelo Mining, the only other local shareholder, also holds 10%.

Havana Investments initially acquired 100% ownership of the mine from South African company Grove Mining – reportedly for N$50 million – but later sold 80% of its stake to Canada’s Trigon, retaining 20%.

Katti previously said he donated 10% of his shares to the local community through Epangelo.

Approached for comment by Namibian Sun this week, he remarked: “The Kombat mine is a very important project for Namibia, especially the children from the Kombat community.

“Once in full production, Trigon Namibia will deliver sustainable benefits for years to come, including a minimum of 500 to 1 000 jobs. The supporting shareholders are all working together as a partnership to deliver positive outcomes for all stakeholders”.

He added: “We want to see more collaboration with farmers and government in the area in order to jointly contribute to the economic and social development of the poor communities in the area - enhancing social stability and funding community projects. This has always been my vision”.

Director Jeremy Hangula also chipped in, saying: “This production and export is testament to the strength of our commitment to our workforce, local communities, the Otjozondjupa Region and the ministry of mines and energy”.

“This first production and export of copper concentrate marks a new beginning for the Kombat mine, especially the fact that it’s happening just a few years after the pandemic that slowed down progress.”