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LUSAKA, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Zambian government has projected copper output to hit 800,000 tonnes next year, state media reported on Monday.
The Ministry of Mines and Minerals Development said output will increase due to new mining projects and stability in copper prices on the international market, according to the Times of Zambia.
Africa's second biggest producer of the red metal recorded 575,780 tonnes of copper production in the first nine months of 2016, according to figures released by the Ministry of Finance, while the Zambia Chamber of Mines, a consortium of mining firms, projected that production would this year close about 750,000 tonnes.
Fred Banda, a mining engineer at the ministry said most of the new projects will become operational next year, a move that is likely to push production up.
Copper prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rose last week by 0.5 percent to 5,808 U.S. dollars a tonne, with projections that the price may continue in an upward trend. Enditem
