Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
-based
mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the econom ...
and
metal
A metal (from ancient Greek, Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, e ...
s company whose principal activities include mineral exploration, development and mining. Its main product is
copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pink ...
, which accounts for 80% of revenues as of 2016.
First Quantum's common shares are listed for trading on the
Toronto Stock Exchange
The Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX; french: Bourse de Toronto) is a stock exchange located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the 10th largest exchange in the world and the third largest in North America based on market capitalization. Based in the ...
in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
(symbol "FM"). Until 2016, First Quantum also maintained a secondary listing on the
London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pau ...
(symbol "FQM"), in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
.
History
First Quantum was founded in 1983 under the name Xenium Resources. It changed its name to ''Zeal Capital'' in 1989, ''First Quantum Ventures'' in 1993, and First Quantum Minerals in 1996. Its first significant operation was the
Bwana Mkubwa
Bwana Mkubwa (or Bwana M'kubwa; meaning "big chief"; or "great master") is a settlement and a mine in Copperbelt Province, Zambia. It is the oldest mine in Zambia's Copperbelt region. As a settlement with no municipal status, it became a locale d ...
mine in
Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...
, acquired in 1996. In 2000, First Quantum acquired a partial interest in Mopani Copper Mines, a Zambian copper company. In 2001, it opened the Lonshi Copper Mine in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
. Also in 2001, the company acquired the Kansanshi mine in
Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...
.
In 2006 First Quantum acquired London-based
Adastra Minerals
Adastra Minerals Inc (formerly America Mineral Fields Inc), was a London-based mining companyKevitsa mine in Lapland, northern
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bot ...
. In December 2009, First Quantum acquired the
Ravensthorpe Nickel Mine
The Ravensthorpe Nickel Mine is a nickel mine and hydrometallurgical processing plant located at Bandalup Hill, east of Ravensthorpe, Western Australia.
Built by BHP Billiton, it was closed in January 2009, after less than a year of operatio ...
in
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to t ...
for US $340 million from
BHP Billiton
BHP Group Limited (formerly known as BHP Billiton) is an Australian multinational mining, metals, natural gas petroleum public company that is headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
The Broken Hill Proprietary Company was founded ...
. In October 2010, First Quantum announced plans to acquire Antares Minerals for $450 million. In November 2010, First Quantum sold its stake in Equinox Minerals. In April 2013, First Quantum successfully completed a hostile takeover of
Inmet Mining
Inmet Mining Corporation was a mining company headquartered in Toronto. In 2013, the company was acquired by First Quantum Minerals.
The company held an 18% stake in Ok Tedi Mining Limited. The company had mines in Çayeli, Turkey; Las Cruces, Spa ...
for CAD$5.1 billion. In June 2013, it was announced that FQM would have to lay off 500 workers at the Sentinel mine in Zambia as it could not sustain their upkeep while waiting for the lifting of a protection order on its operations from the Zambia Environmental Management Agency.
In 2016, it sold the Kevista mine to
Boliden AB
Boliden AB is a Swedish multinational metals, mining, and smelting company headquartered in Stockholm. The company produces zinc, copper, lead, nickel, silver, and gold, with operations in Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Ireland.
Boliden is linke ...
for US$712 million. In March 2017 First Quantum announced it had launched a $1.6 billion offering of Senior Notes due 2023 and 2025. In December 2017, First Quantum was announced as "the major mining company that will complete the Pebble Limited Partnership" by Ron Thiessen, president and CEO of Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd., which is currently the sole owner of the Pebble Partnership.
In 2016, First Quantum was ranked as being among the 13th best of 92 oil, gas, and mining companies on indigenous rights in the Arctic.
In December 2019, Chinese state company Jiangxi Copper agreed to buy a subsidiary of First Quantum's largest shareholder, Pangaea Investment Management Ltd, which holds 17.6 percent of First Quantum, causing shares to spike up to five percent.
In January 2022, negotiations between the Government of Panama and FQM started to define a new contract concerning the Cobre Panama mine. First Quantums subsidiary Minera Panamá S. A. made proposals favorable to the Government of Panamá including yearly payments of US$375 million in tax and royalty revenue. These payments were offered under the conditions that metal prices and profitability of this mine would not drop significantly. However, the Government of Panamá halted discussions in December 2022 and announced plans to order suspension of operations at this mine.
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Kolwezi tailings project was a major project to extract copper and cobalt from tailings of older mining operations around
Kolwezi
Kolwezi or Kolwesi is the capital city of Lualaba Province in the south of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, west of Likasi. It is home to an airport and a railway to Lubumbashi. Just outside of Kolwezi there is the static inverter plant ...
. It was expected to produce around 70,000 tonnes per year of copper metal and up to 14,000 tonnes per year of cobalt hydroxide.
In August 2009, the DRC government revoked First Quantum's license due to a dispute over renegotiating the contract. First Quantum ceased operations in September 2009, throwing about 700 people out of work. First Quantum had spent $750 million on acquiring and developing the property. First Quantum took out an action against the DRC government in the International Chamber of Commerce
International Court of Arbitration
ICC International Court of Arbitration is an institution for the resolution of international commercial disputes. It operates under the auspices of the International Chamber of Commerce and consists of more than 100 arbitrators from roughly 90 co ...
.
The Frontier Mine is an open pit copper mine located near
Sakania Sakania is a town in Haut-Katanga Province, in the Congo Pedicle, in the far south of the Democratic Republic of Congo, near the border with Zambia. It is located at an elevation of 1278m asl, therefore it has a cool climate.
Between 1935 and 1939 ...
.
First Quantum obtained exploration licenses in January 2001 and July 2002. Production began in 2007, and in 2010 the mine yielded 322,700 tonnes of copper. The Lonshi Mine is an open pit copper mine that produces high-grade oxide ore that was transported to
Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...
for processing at the
Bwana Mkubwa
Bwana Mkubwa (or Bwana M'kubwa; meaning "big chief"; or "great master") is a settlement and a mine in Copperbelt Province, Zambia. It is the oldest mine in Zambia's Copperbelt region. As a settlement with no municipal status, it became a locale d ...
SX/EW
Solvent extraction and electrowinning (SX/EW) is a two-stage hydrometallurgical process that first extracts and upgrades copper ions from low-grade leach solutions into a solvent containing a chemical that selectively reacts with and binds the ...
plant away. The mine was closed after the governor of
Katanga Province
Katanga was one of the four large provinces created in the Belgian Congo in 1914.
It was one of the eleven provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo between 1966 and 2015, when it was split into the Tanganyika, Haut-Lomami, Lualaba, ...
, Moses Katumbi, banned the export of ore to Zambia, insisting that it should be refined in Katanga. In May 2010 a Congolese court ruled that FQM's Lonshi and
Frontier
A frontier is the political and geographical area near or beyond a boundary. A frontier can also be referred to as a "front". The term came from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"—the region of a country that fronts ...
copper mines had been awarded illegally and that they should revert to state-owned
Sodimico
Sodimico (''Société de développement industriel et minier du Congo'') is a state-owned mining company in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Early years
Sodimico took over several mining properties from the Union Miniere du Katanga in ...
. According to FQM the ruling was due to FQM's decision to contest the expropriation of its Kolwezi tailings project, which was later sold to the Kazakh mining company
Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation
Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation PLC (ENRC) was a public, Kazakhstan/Central African-focused, multinational leading diversified natural resources company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It had activities in integrated mining, proc ...
.
Operations
First Quantum currently operates mines and development projects in Africa, Australia, Finland, Spain, Turkey and Latin America. In 2016 First Quantum produced 539,458 tonnes of copper, 23,624 tonnes contained tonnes of nickel, 214,012 ounces of gold and 28,862 tonnes of zinc. Copper was responsible for 80% of revenues, gold 10%, and nickel 7%. As of December 2019, First Quantum operates seven mines.
Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...
. Main product copper, by-product gold. Open-pit mine, opened in 2005
* Guelb Mohgrein Mine, near
Akjoujt
Akjoujt (Arabic: أكجوجت) is a small city in western Mauritania. It is the capital of Inchiri region. "Akjoujt" (ɑk'ʤuʤt) means 'wells'. The city's main industry is gold and copper mining.
History
Archeologists have discovered that as e ...
,
Mauritania
Mauritania (; ar, موريتانيا, ', french: Mauritanie; Berber: ''Agawej'' or ''Cengit''; Pulaar: ''Moritani''; Wolof: ''Gànnaar''; Soninke:), officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania ( ar, الجمهورية الإسلامية ...
. Main product copper, by-product gold. Open pit mine, opened 2006
* Sentinel Mine, a copper mine in north-west Zambia opened to commercial production in 2016
* Çayeli mine, a copper/zinc mine in eastern
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
. This mine was acquired through the take-over of Inmet Mining Corporation, and started production in 1994
*Las Cruces mine, a copper mine in Sevilla Province, Spain, acquired through the take-over of Inmet Mining Corporation
* Pyhäsalmi mine, a copper/zinc mine in central Finland, acquired through the take-over of Inmet Mining Corporation
* Cobre mine, Panama, a copper mine in Panama acquired through Inmet Mining Corporation, which started commercial production in 2019.
*
Ravensthorpe Nickel Mine
The Ravensthorpe Nickel Mine is a nickel mine and hydrometallurgical processing plant located at Bandalup Hill, east of Ravensthorpe, Western Australia.
Built by BHP Billiton, it was closed in January 2009, after less than a year of operatio ...
, a nickel mine in
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to t ...
, opened in December 2011, mothballed in 2017. Brought into production again in 2020.
Other Investments/Projects
* Partial interest in Mopani Copper Mines, Zambia
* Fishtie copper project in
Central Province, Zambia
Central Province is one of Zambia's ten provinces. The provincial capital is Kabwe, which is the home of the Mulungushi Rock of Authority. Central Province has an area of . It borders eight other provinces and has eleven districts. The total a ...
. At the end of September 2012, First Quantum Minerals announced that it had entered into a joint venture with a Zambian-based mining company called Mimosa Resources. The purpose of the venture is to develop the Fishtie copper project in the Mkushi District near the border with the
Democratic Republic of Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
Salta Province
Salta () is a province of Argentina, located in the northwest of the country. Neighboring provinces are from the east clockwise Formosa, Chaco, Santiago del Estero, Tucumán and Catamarca. It also surrounds Jujuy. To the north it borders Bolivi ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...
, acquired through the purchase of Lumina Copper in 2014
* Haquira mine, a copper deposit in the
Apurímac Region Apurímac is the name of:
* Apurímac River, a river in the south-eastern parts of central Perú
* Apurímac Region, a region in the south-eastern parts of central Perú
*Three albums by the German new-age band Cusco:
** ''Apurimac'' (album)
**'' A ...
in southern Peru acquired through the purchase of Antares Minerals in 2010
*
Pebble Mine
Pebble Mine is the common name of a proposed copper-gold- molybdenum mining project in the Bristol Bay region of Southwest Alaska, near Lake Iliamna and Lake Clark. As of November 2020 the mine developer, Northern Dynasty Minerals, was seekin ...
, in
Lake and Peninsula Borough
Lake and Peninsula Borough (russian: Лейк-энд-Пенинсула, ''Leyk-end-Peninsula'') is a Borough (United States)#Alaska, borough in the U.S. state, state of Alaska. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population wa ...
near
Bristol Bay
Bristol Bay ( esu, Iilgayaq, russian: Залив Бристольский) is the easternmost arm of the Bering Sea, at 57° to 59° North 157° to 162° West in Southwest Alaska. Bristol Bay is 400 km (250 mi) long and 290 km, ...
in southwest
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U ...
, United States, the most significant undeveloped copper and gold resource in the world. Pending an option agreement to purchase 50% interest in the PLP
Former/Mothballed Mines
*
Bwana Mkubwa
Bwana Mkubwa (or Bwana M'kubwa; meaning "big chief"; or "great master") is a settlement and a mine in Copperbelt Province, Zambia. It is the oldest mine in Zambia's Copperbelt region. As a settlement with no municipal status, it became a locale d ...
in
Copperbelt Province
Copperbelt Province is a province in Zambia which covers the mineral-rich Copperbelt, and farming and bush areas to the south. It was the backbone of the Northern Rhodesian economy during British colonial rule and fuelled the hopes of the imme ...
, Zambia, a copper
SX/EW
Solvent extraction and electrowinning (SX/EW) is a two-stage hydrometallurgical process that first extracts and upgrades copper ions from low-grade leach solutions into a solvent containing a chemical that selectively reacts with and binds the ...
plant and mine. This mine was closed in 2010.
* Kevitsa mine,
Sodankylä
Sodankylä (; sme, Soađegilli ; smn, Suáđigil; sms, Suäʹđjel) is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the region of Lapland, and lies at the northern end of Highway 5 ( E63) and along Highway 4 ( E75). The Kitinen River flows nea ...
,
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bot ...
. Main products are nickel and copper, by product PGE elements. Open pit mine opened in August 2012, and sold in June 2016 to
Boliden AB
Boliden AB is a Swedish multinational metals, mining, and smelting company headquartered in Stockholm. The company produces zinc, copper, lead, nickel, silver, and gold, with operations in Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Ireland.
Boliden is linke ...
.
*Troilus Gold-Copper Mine, closed in 2008 by Inmet, located in northern
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirte ...
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada. This mine was closed in 1998 by Inmet.
*Sturgeon Lake copper-zinc mine, closed, located near Sturgeon Lake,
Kenora District
Kenora District is a district and census division in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. The district seat is the City of Kenora.
It is geographically the largest division in Ontario: at , it covers 38 percent of the province's area, making it larger ...
, northwestern Ontario.
Carbon footprint
First Quantum Minerals reported Total CO2e emissions (Direct + Indirect) for 31 December 2019 at 3,539 Kt (+1,706/+93% year-over-year).Alt URL /ref>