ZAMBIA’S state investment firm has accused Abu Dhabi-backed International Resources Holding of breaching agreements linked to its control of Mopani Copper Mines, Bloomberg reported.
ZCCM Investments Holdings said in a September 18 letter to IRH unit Delta Mining that the company had failed to meet financial and operational commitments at Mopani. Delta owns 51% of the joint venture, with ZCCM-IH holding the balance.
The letter points to growing strain between the partners less than three years after IRH took control of the copper assets.
ZCCM-IH alleged that Delta had failed to provide required equity funding and had allowed Mopani to take on costly debt without approval.
It also said only $62.3m of a $308.1m project development budget had been spent by the end of March, while some contractors lacked the necessary expertise.
Copper cathode production last year also fell more than 50% short of plan, according to the letter.
ZCCM-IH said Delta’s payments into Mopani during 2025 were $61m below the minimum required and that it was unaware of any transfer towards Delta’s $140m funding obligation for 2026.
IRH said it maintained a strong relationship with ZCCM-IH and was addressing issues through normal shareholder discussions.
ZCCM-IH has called for talks but reserved the right to seek damages or arbitration if the dispute is not resolved.
