Kamoa Copper has placed an order with Swedish company Epiroc for the supply of mining equipment for its Kamoa-Kakula copper mining complex in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The order includes machines such as Minetruck MT65 S haulers, Scooptram ST18 S loaders, Boomer 282 face drilling rigs and Simba E70 S production drilling rigs.

These machines incorporate features including Epiroc’s telematics system, which supports intelligent monitoring of machine performance and productivity in real time. Their deliveries are expected to start next year.

Valued at nearly €58.8m (Skr700m), the order booked in Q3 2023 is said to be Epiroc’s largest order for expanding the copper mining complex.

This mining complex is claimed to be among the lowest greenhouse gas-emitting copper mines per unit of metal produced globally.

As per one of its owners, Ivanhoe Mines, the complex is also expected to become one of the largest copper mines in the world with a more favourable environmental footprint compared with major copper mines.

Epiroc president and CEO Helena Hedblom said: “The customer’s focus on sustainability and productivity, coupled with the large size of the mine, makes it especially exciting to contribute to its success.

Kamoa Copper engineering executive Jan Johannes Hough said: “Kamoa Copper chose Epiroc to be one of our strategic partners for the supply of trackless mobile mining equipment due to its proven and matured industry track record.

“The equipment selected proved to be reliable and feasible in various applications in the mining industry. It will play a critical role in achieving production targets in line with the expansion programme of Kamoa Copper and the resulting guidance given to the market.”