Sentinel rebounds as First Quantum's Zambian mines hold 2026 guidance

First Quantum Minerals' two Zambian copper mines kept their full-year targets intact in the second quarter, the company reported on 28 July, with a stronger showing at Sentinel offsetting a maintenance-driven dip at Kansanshi.

Sentinel recovers

Sentinel, at the Trident complex in Kalumbila, produced 50,335t of copper, 5,083t more than in the first quarter, as higher grades and recoveries outweighed lower throughput during the annual plant shutdown completed in June. Its C1 cash cost fell by $0.60 to $2.84/lb. The company is still managing fatigue in ball mill flange bolts and plans a permanent fix in 2027, when part of the mill's discharge end will be replaced with a new design. Guidance stays at 190,000–220,000t, with grades expected to improve in the second half as mining advances in Stage 2 and Stage 3.

Kansanshi's S3 above design

Kansanshi produced 43,997t, 1,348t less than in the first quarter, because the S3 and mixed circuits were taken down for planned maintenance. The S3 expansion, which declared commercial production on 1 December 2025, nonetheless achieved its highest monthly processed tonnage in May. Costs rose to $2.16/lb on fuel, consumables and lower gold credits. Harder, higher-grade fresh ore from the South East Dome will be introduced gradually in the second half, and guidance is unchanged at 175,000–205,000t.

The Kansanshi smelter continues to move towards 1.6 million tonnes a year of throughput. Acid sales totalled around 36,000t in the quarter and generated about $12m from third-party buyers as regional acid prices climbed.

Power: still mostly off-grid

Zambia's power system continued to recover, with Lake Kariba at about 48% usable storage in late June, against about 23% a year earlier. Even so, ZESCO's force majeure remained in effect and First Quantum sourced roughly 80% of its Zambian electricity from imports and domestic independent power producers, with 20% from the state utility. It expects these arrangements to run until mid-2027. Equipment for a STATCOM grid-stability project at Kansanshi has been ordered, with installation due from early 2027, and a planned wind and solar project from which the company will buy power remains on track.

Costs and outlook

The company again flagged possible upward pressure of about $0.25/lb on C1 costs from fuel prices and the kwacha. With its hedging programme now concluded, First Quantum said it is fully exposed to copper prices for the rest of the year, and chief executive Tristan Pascall said the business was well placed for stronger output in the second half.

Sources

• First Quantum Minerals: First Quantum Minerals Reports Second Quarter 2026 Results, 28 Jul 2026
• Investing.com: First Quantum Q2 2026 slides: copper output rises, Panama restarts, 29 Jul 2026

Photo: Mining area at Kansanshi in North-Western Province, Zambia. No machine-readable author provided. Paule1981 assumed (based on copyright claims)., Wikimedia Commons, Public domain.