Prospect Resources Limited Unveils Robust Metallurgical Breakthrough at Mumbezhi – 95% Copper Recovery, High-Grade Concentrates & Gold Credit Potential
Thursday, July 17, 2025
at
9:02 am
Prospect Resources Limited’s latest metallurgical tests at the Mumbezhi Copper Project in Zambia achieved high-grade copper concentrates with excellent recoveries and promising gold by-products. The results support low-cost, scalable processing, bolstering confidence in strong economic returns and future exploration potential.
Prospect Resources Limited has reported compelling new results from its ongoing metallurgical testwork at the Mumbezhi Copper Project in northwest Zambia. Independent consultants carried out tests on fresh sulphide composites from the Kabikupa deposit and both fresh and transitional composites from the Nyungu Central deposit. The tests demonstrated that the project’s copper ores are amenable to a simple, conventional flotation process, supporting plans for a central processing hub to reduce capital and operating costs.
Results show that the Kabikupa fresh composite produced a copper concentrate of 27.5% copper with 310 ppm cobalt at a recovery rate exceeding 95% after just one cleaning stage, while the Nyungu Central fresh composite achieved a concentrate grade of 24.6% copper and 0.9% cobalt at a recovery of 96.2%. A transitional composite from Nyungu Central delivered even higher concentrate grades of 32.1% copper and 9.1% cobalt, albeit at a slightly lower recovery rate after two cleaning stages. Early indications also point to promising gold values in the Nyungu Central transitional materials, with preliminary assays showing 0.40 g/t gold and possible concentrate concentrations up to 29 g/t, suggesting potential payable by-product credits that could further enhance the overall project economics.
The testwork involved material preparation that included crushing to a primary grind size of P80 250 microns, with further regrinding as necessary to liberate the copper minerals. The tests confirmed that copper is consistently hosted in chalcopyrite and chalcocite, enabling reliable predictive processing. The Kabikupa material’s low levels of total graphitic carbon also reduce the complexity of the reagent scheme, highlighting the operational advantages of the project. These outcomes mark a significant improvement over historical testwork and underscore a copper recovery potential for Mumbezhi of around 95%.
Planned Phase 2 exploration and drilling, along with additional flotation and comminution testwork, will continue to underpin the project’s development. The broader licence-wide gold assessment and subsequent geometallurgical model updates aim to capture further value from the project’s extensive mineralisation.
In terms of market sentiment, the announcement is largely bullish. The high-grade concentrates, impressive copper recoveries, and potential for gold by-product credits signal strong economic prospects for the Mumbezhi Copper Project. However, the need for further optimisation—particularly in processing transitional materials—remains a challenge. For beginner traders, these solid technical indicators support a positive outlook, while the developmental risks typical of early-stage projects continue to warrant prudent caution.