Fleurette Group: Mutanda Mining SARL Fourth Quarter and 2015 Calendar Year Production Report

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Fleurette Group

11 Feb, 2016, 08:00 GMT

KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of Congo, February 11, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Fleurette Group ("Fleurette") is pleased to announce the fourth quarter and 2015 calendar year operating results for Mutanda Mining SARL ("MUMI").

Highlights 

  • Q4 copper production of 55,100 tonnes
  • Total copper production for 2015 up 10% to 216,100 tonnes (2014: 197,100 tonnes)
  • Cobalt production of 16,500 tonnes, a new record production level for MUMI

Production 

                                             2014                               2015
                    Q1    Q2     Q3    Q4    Year     Q1     Q2     Q3     Q4   Year
      Copper
       metal  Kt  47.1  51.5   52.0  46.5   197.1   51.6   53.9   55.5   55.1  216.1
      Cobalt
   contained  Kt   3.3   3.8    4.1   3.2    14.4    2.6    3.7    4.9    5.3   16.5

During the fourth quarter of 2015 MUMI produced 55,100 tonnes of copper (Q3 2015: 55,500 tonnes) and 5,300 tonnes of cobalt (Q3 2015: 4,900 tonnes), a decrease in copper of 1% and an increase in cobalt of 8% respectively on the third quarter of 2015.

This brings the total MUMI production for the 2015 twelve months to 216,100 tonnes of copper (up 10% from 2014) and 16,500 tonnes of cobalt (up 15% from 2014).

Dan Gertler, Senior Advisor to Fleurette Group commented:

"MUMI continues to operate excellently, exceeding its target capacity of 200,000 tonnes of copper per year in 2015. As part of ongoing operational improvements the cobalt production increased in 2015. Furthermore, MUMI has continued with its extensive programme of social investments, which are transforming the lives of the communities we work alongside."  

Social Investment Update 

  • Sustainable rural livelihoods - ongoing support to 19 local cooperatives (farming and livestock) with donations and training in order to support livelihoods and sustainable community development
  • Education - completion of construction of two elementary schools (extension of Kando school and additional classrooms at Kisenda)
  • In line with our commitment to Local Employment, people from local communities have been contracted as workforce to complete these projects
  • Water - completion of drilling of 5 boreholes in the surrounding villages

MUMI comprises the Mutanda and Kansuki concessions in the Katanga province of the Democratic Republic of Congo which were merged in July 2013. MUMI is jointly owned by Glencore (69% ownership) and Fleurette (31% ownership). MUMI is managed by Glencore who also have a 100% offtake contract for all copper and cobalt production. Fleurette has invested $440 million in acquiring and developing the asset in partnership with Glencore. This has driven production from 100,000 to the current run rate of 200,000 tonnes of copper per annum. The total investment in MUMI is over $1.8 billion. MUMI employs over 3,500 Congolese at the current design capacity, and as further investment is made into the asset, we would expect this number to increase.

About Fleurette - http://www.fleurettegroup.com / LinkedIn  / Twitter

The Fleurette Group of Companies ("Fleurette") is an entrepreneurial business with significant investment in diverse sectors, including natural resources, infrastructure, agriculture and technology. Fleurette has substantial investments and operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The parent company of the group, Fleurette Properties Limited, a Dutch resident company, is owned by Line Trust Corporation Limited strictly and solely as trustees of the Ashdale Settlement, a trust established in 2006 for the benefit of the family of Dan Gertler. Mr Gertler is a citizen and resident of Israel and the DRC (and honorary counsel to the DRC) and is committed to developing the country's natural resources and infrastructure, while investing in the Congolese people and their communities.

Fleurette has a proven track record of successful co-operation with diverse parties, including the DRC State-owned mining company Gécamines, and to date has brought more than USD $7 billion of investment into the DRC, on top of its USD $2 billion in private investment. As a result, Fleurette's subsidiaries and partnerships support around 30,000 jobs in the DRC and are amongst the DRC's leading taxpayers, contributing significant revenues to the State.

Fleurette is also a major contributor to social development in the DRC through the Gertler Family Foundation (GFF) and through direct investment in social infrastructure. The GFF is the largest charitable organization in the DRC, funding more than 50 programs and projects across the DRC, which help tens of thousands of Congolese every year. These include rebuilding key hospitals, notably the Kisangini "Hospital du Cinquantenaire"; supporting the Operation Smile campaign in Lubumbashi and Kinshasa; rebuilding Blaise Pascal School in Lubumbashi; and supporting the Lubumbashi Zoo.