Zambia seeking global investors to help triple copper output by 2031

Reuters | March 10, 2026 | 7:04 am Critical Minerals Africa USA Copper

Tertiary Minerals, FQM team up to boost Zambian exploration

The Sentinel open-pit copper mine in Zambia. (Image courtesy of First Quantum Minerals.)

Zambia is courting global investors, including from the United States, as it aims to more than triple its copper output to 3 million metric tons by 2031, its mines minister said on Tuesday.

Africa’s second-largest copper producer after Democratic Republic of Congo is seen as one of the countries Washington is keen to partner with as the US escalates efforts to loosen China’s grip on materials crucial to advanced manufacturing.

Zambia produced 890,346 tons of copper last year, missing an annual target of 1 million tons. The red metal is a key material in electric vehicles and renewable energy infrastructure vital for the transition to a low-carbon economy.

Zambian Mines Minister Paul Kabuswe said investment talks extend to various countries as part of a broader strategy to meet the 2031 target.

“The US is part of it,” he said, without providing details of specific discussions.

Negotiations between Lusaka and Washington are also underway for a more than $1 billion health aid deal that health advocates have warned links the money to mining access and has data-sharing risks.

Zambia’s record copper production meets a red-hot market

A win-win situation

“There is nothing linked to anything,” Kabuswe told Reuters when asked whether US health funding will be linked to mining collaboration, adding: “Zambia is very mindful when seated on the table to do negotiations over any matter.”

Kabuswe emphasized the importance of fair deals, adding that “investors must also take their share”. “It has to be a win-win situation for Zambia and for the investors,” he said.

In addition to copper, Zambia is also rich in cobalt, nickel, manganese, graphite, lithium and rare earth elements.

Mining firms operating in Zambia include China’s JCHX Mining, Canada’s Barrick Gold and First Quantum Minerals, India’s Vedanta Resources, United Arab Emirates’ International Resources Holding, and KoBold Metals, which is backed by US investors.

(By Chris Mfula, Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo and Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo; Editing by Alexander Smith)