Ivanhoe Mines Reports 76,401 Tonnes of Copper Produced by Kamoa-Kakula for Q3 2026

Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. (IVN) released a quarterly production and operations update, noting that financial results, including revenue, cost, margin, and cash-flow data, are deferred to November 3, 2026, with a call scheduled for November 4.

Kamoa-Kakula produced 76,401 tonnes of copper in saleable products in Q3 2026, an 18.8% increase from 64,328 tonnes in Q2 2026 and a 7.0% rise from 71,417 tonnes in Q1 2026. The composition of this output includes 61,506 tonnes of copper in anode from the on-site smelter, 2,347 tonnes of toll-treated blister at Lualaba Copper Smelter (LCS), 5,645 tonnes of copper in slag concentrate, and 6,904 tonnes of high-grade copper fines that were previously stockpiled and unable to be smelted, which have now been assayed and tendered for sale.

Concentrators milled 3,493 kt at a combined 2.22% Cu feed grade and 87.6% recovery, producing 68,188 tonnes of copper in concentrate. The Phase 1 and 2 concentrators milled 1,820 kt at 2.36% Cu with an 88.9% recovery, a record figure, yielding 38,523 tonnes of copper in concentrate. The Phase 3 concentrators milled 1,673 kt at 2.07% Cu with an 86.0% recovery, producing 29,664 tonnes of copper in concentrate. The 500,000 tpa smelter remains at approximately 60% of design capacity.

Sulphuric acid production hit a record 118,638 tonnes, with the average net realized price approximately doubling quarter-on-quarter to about US$900/t, including roughly US$950/t in September. Mining rates across Kamoa and Kansoko increased 30% to over 700,000 tonnes per month (approximately 8.5 Mtpa), driven by additional crews, the new Kahala box cut, and the start of stoping. Copper inventory moved from approximately 40,000 tonnes at the start of Q3 to approximately 43,000 tonnes at the end of Q3, with the 6,904 tonnes of fines added to inventory.

The 2026 copper guidance remains unchanged at 290,000-310,000 tonnes of copper in saleable products, though the company states production is trending towards the lower end of guidance. The 60 MW on-site hybrid solar PV plus battery facility was fully ramped by September 23; on-site generator diesel consumption fell approximately 40% in September versus July. Power purchase agreements (PPAs) are signed to double capacity to 120 MW within 18 months.

Kipushi produced a record 77,147 tonnes of zinc in concentrate, a 10% quarter-on-quarter increase, on a record 41.58% Zn feed grade and a record 96.02% recovery, marking the seventh consecutive quarterly increase. Guidance of 240,000-290,000 tonnes is now tracking to the upper end.

Platreef Phase 1 milled 99,391 dry metric tonnes (DMT) at 2.30 g/t with 62.4% recovery, producing 4,552 oz of 3PE+Au. The plant continues to be campaign/batch operated on lower-grade development ore and has not reached commercial production. Platreef Phase 2, featuring a 3.3 Mtpa concentrator and dry-stack tailings storage facility (TSF), is advancing on schedule for completion by end-2027. Shaft #2 widening from 3.1 m to 10 m is progressing as planned.

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Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. (IVN) reported production figures that largely align with prior expectations, with the company’s copper output falling within the guided range of 290,000 to 310,000 tonnes. The majority of the operational updates, including the completion of the solar facility by the end of Q3, the on-schedule progress of Platreef Phase 2 for Q4 2027, and the widening of Shaft #2, were already known to the market. Additionally, realized copper prices in Q3 of approximately US$900/t were in line with investor presentation forecasts, which had flagged Q3 contracts at ~US$840/t and Q4 at >US$960/t.

The company highlighted several operational improvements, noting that mining rates have increased by 30% to exceed 700,000 tonnes per month. At the Kipushi mine, recovery reached a record 96.02% on a record feed grade of 41.58%. Diesel consumption was reduced by 40%, surpassing the company’s previous target of 25-30%. Sulphuric acid production hit a record 118,638 tonnes, sold at roughly double the prior quarter’s realized price.

However, the release also presented several headwinds. Copper guidance explicitly skewed toward the low end of the previously cut range, and copper inventory built to approximately 43,000 tonnes, contrary to a stated plan to destock. Feed grade declined in Phase 3 to 2.07%, down from 2.22% in Q2 and 2.44% a year ago. Recovery rates in Phases 1 and 2 stood at 88.9%, falling short of the ~95% Project 95 target. The company confirmed that elevated silica levels and higher slag concentrate production would persist for the foreseeable future.

The headline production figure of 76,401 tonnes includes 6,904 tonnes of legacy stockpiled fines reclassified into a sellable product and added to inventory, representing about 9% of the total. A further 5,645 tonnes consisted of slag concentrate, a lower-value stream. The definition of "saleable products" in this report is broader than the copper anode guidance originally provided to the market, which marginally flatters the production print.

Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. is a Canadian-domiciled producer with three principal operations in Southern Africa and a large exploration portfolio. Its Kamoa-Kakula copper asset in the Democratic Republic of Congo is an equity-accounted joint venture with Ivanhoe holding 39.6%, Zijin Mining 39.6%, the Government of the DRC 20%, and Crystal River Global 0.8%. The operation features three concentrators with combined capacity heading to 17 Mtpa, plus a 500,000 tpa on-site smelter producing 99.7% pure anodes and high-strength sulphuric acid. Guidance calls for 290,000-310,000 t of copper in saleable products in 2026 and 380,000-420,000 t in 2027, with a long-term target of over 500,000 tpa from 2028 at roughly $2.00/lb C1.

The Kipushi zinc-copper-germanium-silver mine in the DRC is a joint venture with Ivanhoe holding 62% and Gécamines 38%. It operates an 800 ktpa concentrator processing ultra-high-grade zinc ore, which reached a feed grade of 41.6% in Q3. The 2026 guidance is for 240,000-290,000 t of zinc in concentrate. The operation also carries germanium (up to 90 g/t) and gallium (up to 70 g/t) in concentrate assays, representing strategic critical minerals.

The Platreef project in South Africa focuses on PGMs, nickel, copper, and gold. Ivanhoe holds 64%, B-BBEE partners 26%, and a Japanese consortium (JOGMEC/ITOCHU) 10%. Phase 1 is operating at 0.8 Mtpa and ramping, while Phase 2 targets 3.3 Mtpa by end-2027, taking output to over 450,000 oz 3PE+Au plus approximately 9,000 t nickel and 6,000 t copper. Phase 3 would roughly double that to over 1 moz 3PE+Au.

Exploration activities span the Western Forelands and Makoko District in the DRC (up to 80% owned), Angola's Moxico and Quando Cubango (100% owned), Zambia, and the Chu-Sarysu Basin in Kazakhstan (20% owned with an earn-in to 80%). Exploration expenditure is expensed rather than capitalized, which depresses reported profit and EBITDA relative to peers who capitalize. The 2026 exploration budget was upsized twice, from $90 million to $127 million.