Musokotwane – The Zambian Economist | Your Brand. Our Platform. Maximum Impact.

Musokotwane Presses KoBold to Fast-Track Mingomba Copper Mine

The Zambian Economist — Mon, 02 Nov 2026 09:09:25 +0000

Government wants Mingomba to move faster from discovery to production. At about 300,000 tonnes a year, the KoBold mine alone would cover a tenth of the 3 million tonne copper target, but its first output is planned for the early 2030s.

By The Zambian Economist Analyst | 2 November 2026

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane urged KoBold Metals co-founder Josh Goldman to accelerate the Mingomba copper project in Chililabombwe, and promised government help with implementation bottlenecks.
KoBold says it is increasing capital deployment, hiring and procurement from Zambian firms, according to the Ministry of Finance and National Planning.
Mingomba is planned to produce about 300,000 tonnes of copper a year from the early 2030s, at an estimated cost of US$2.3 billion to US$2.5 billion.
The meeting followed President Hichilema’s 27 October talks with KoBold at State House, where he said mining licences must lead to production, not speculative holding.
Zambia produced 890,346 tonnes of copper in 2025. Reaching 3 million tonnes by 2031 depends on projects like Mingomba arriving on time.

Finance and National Planning Minister Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane has asked KoBold Metals to speed up development of the Mingomba copper project on the Copperbelt, saying Zambia needs mining investment to turn into production, jobs, export earnings and work for local businesses. He met KoBold co-founder and global president Dr Josh Goldman and his delegation on Wednesday, the Ministry of Finance and National Planning said in a statement.

Musokotwane said government would work to clear implementation bottlenecks and support timely investment decisions. According to the Ministry, Goldman confirmed that KoBold was increasing capital deployment, expanding employment and opening procurement to Zambian enterprises, while stepping up technology-driven exploration for further deposits.

What Mingomba is, in numbers

Mingomba sits near Chililabombwe in Copperbelt Province. KoBold, backed by investors including Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, broke ground on shaft construction with partner ZCCM Investments Holdings on 29 April 2026. The company calls it the largest private investment in Zambia’s history.

Item	Figure
Estimated capital cost	US$2.3 billion to US$2.5 billion
Planned output	About 300,000 tonnes of copper a year
First production	Early 2030s
Spent in Zambia before construction	More than US$200 million (KoBold estimate)
Zambia’s 2025 copper output	890,346 tonnes

Sources: KoBold Metals; Reuters via Mining.com; Ministry of Mines and Minerals Development.

Why the timing matters

At full capacity, Mingomba would add roughly a third of Zambia’s current output, and about a tenth of the Grow Zambia Agenda target of 3 million tonnes a year by 2031. The difficulty is the calendar. KoBold has guided first copper for the early 2030s, which means most of Mingomba’s volume may arrive after the 2031 deadline, not before it.

That gap explains the pressure from Lusaka. Every year shaved off construction brings tonnes, tax and foreign exchange forward into the current term. KoBold has said similar deep underground projects usually take more than 15 years from discovery to production, and that Mingomba is already on a faster schedule.

Licences for production, not for holding

The Finance Ministry meeting followed President Hakainde Hichilema’s talks with KoBold executives at State House on 27 October. According to the Ministry, the President stressed advanced exploration technology and productive use of licences, and said mining licences must support investment, not speculative holding of mineral resources. He had already warned licence holders earlier in October to develop their ground or risk losing it.

The message is aimed at the wider sector as much as at KoBold, which is already building. The President’s remarks show government sees too much mineral ground held without work, and the 2025 audit flagged K626.64 million in uncollected mining penalties. Enforcing work obligations is one of the few levers government controls directly.

What it means for Zambian businesses

A project of this size buys catering, transport, protective clothing, fuel, civil works, security and engineering services for years before the first tonne is hoisted. Under Statutory Instrument No. 68 of 2025, non-core goods and services for mines are reserved for local companies, and a rising share of core procurement must go to them. Copperbelt suppliers who are registered, tax-compliant and able to deliver at volume stand to gain most. Our policy brief on how ordinary Zambians can plug into the Grow Zambia Agenda sets out the first steps.

What to watch

Shaft sinking. KoBold has said this should start in early 2027. Any slippage pushes first copper further out.
Financing. KoBold has said it remains the only backer for now. A financing package or partner would firm up the timetable.
Local procurement data. The Ministry says Zambian firms are getting more work. Published figures on what share of spending goes to local suppliers would show whether that holds.

Featured photo: Ministry of Finance and National Planning (MoFNP).

Related coverage

WARNING! All rights reserved. This material and all other digital content on this website may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed, in whole or in part, without the prior express permission of The Zambian Economist. Where permission is granted, the content must be clearly credited to “The Zambian Economist,” with “www.zambianeconomist.com” prominently displayed.

Work With The Zambian Economist

Moody’s Lifts Zambia to Caa1 Days Before the 2027 Budget

The Zambian Economist — Mon, 02 Nov 2026 08:48:47 +0000

Moody’s has raised Zambia’s sovereign rating one notch to Caa1 with a positive outlook. All three major agencies have now moved up since the 2020 default, a week before Musokotwane presents the 2027 Budget.

By The Zambian Economist Analyst | 2 November 2026

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Moody’s Ratings upgraded Zambia from Caa2 to Caa1 with a positive outlook on 30 October 2026, according to the Ministry of Finance and National Planning.
The Ministry says Moody’s cited “substantial and sustained improvements” in the government’s debt trajectory since the 2020 default.
S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings both lifted Zambia out of default in November 2025, to CCC+ and B- respectively.
The upgrade follows a 9 October staff-level agreement with the IMF on a US$1.472 billion, 36-month Extended Credit Facility, still subject to Executive Board approval.
Caa1 remains deep in speculative territory, seven notches below investment grade. The 2027 Budget on 6 November will show whether the fiscal path behind the upgrade holds.

Moody’s Ratings has upgraded Zambia’s long-term sovereign credit rating from Caa2 to Caa1 and assigned a positive outlook, the Ministry of Finance and National Planning announced. The decision, dated 30 October 2026, means Zambia has now been upgraded by all three of the main international rating agencies since it defaulted on its Eurobonds in November 2020.

According to the Ministry, Moody’s based the move on “substantial and sustained improvements” in the government’s debt trajectory. The positive outlook signals that a further upgrade is possible if that trend continues.

Where Zambia now stands with the agencies

Agency	Current rating	Latest action
Moody’s	Caa1, positive outlook	Upgraded from Caa2, 30 October 2026
Fitch	B-, stable outlook	Upgraded from Restricted Default, November 2025
S&P Global	CCC+	Upgraded from Selective Default, November 2025

Sources: Ministry of Finance and National Planning; agency announcements as reported.

The three ratings sit at roughly the same level: all are speculative grade, and Moody’s Caa1 is seven notches below the lowest investment-grade rating of Baa3. Zambia is out of default, but it is not yet a cheap borrower.

The IMF programme behind the numbers

The upgrade comes three weeks after the International Monetary Fund reached a staff-level agreement with Zambia on 9 October for a new 36-month Extended Credit Facility of SDR 1,076 million, about US$1.472 billion. The IMF described the programme as supporting a “growth-oriented, revenue-led fiscal strategy to rebuild fiscal buffers and safeguard debt sustainability.” It still needs approval from the IMF Executive Board and the completion of agreed prior actions.

Rating agencies tend to read an IMF programme as an external check on fiscal policy. A board approval later this year would remove one of the remaining uncertainties.

What does the Moody’s upgrade mean for Zambia?

The Ministry lists several possible gains: stronger investor confidence, lower borrowing costs for government and business over time, and more investment in mining, agriculture, energy, manufacturing and infrastructure. It also notes that “rating upgrades are not an end in themselves.”

That caution is fair. A one-notch move inside the Caa band will not change the price of a loan at a Lusaka bank this month. Its effect works slowly, through the yields investors demand on Zambia’s restructured Eurobonds and on domestic government securities. When the state pays less to borrow, it crowds out less private credit, and banks have more reason to lend to firms. The gain for a small business is real but indirect, and it depends on government keeping its deficit on the path the agencies have priced in.

What to watch on Friday

Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane presents the 2027 National Budget to Parliament on Friday, 6 November 2026. Three figures will tell analysts, and the agencies, whether the upgrade is secure:

The fiscal deficit target, and whether it keeps falling as the IMF programme assumes.
Domestic revenue, since the new programme is explicitly revenue-led and depends on the Medium-Term Revenue Strategy delivering.
Spending on arrears and capital projects, which shows how far the Grow Zambia Agenda will be financed from the budget rather than through borrowing.

The Ministry framed the task as turning “renewed confidence into stronger production, more jobs, greater economic opportunities, and better livelihoods for ordinary Zambians.” For what that could look like at household level, read our policy brief on how ordinary Zambians can plug into the Grow Zambia Agenda.

Featured photo: Ministry of Finance and National Planning (MoFNP).

Related coverage