Zambia, a major copper and cobalt producing country in the world, saw the two kinds of mines' productions declining during the first half of the year, the country's Central Statistical Office (CSO) said here Thursday.

Buleti Nsemukila, CSO director, said at a monthly press briefing that Zambia produced 191,075 tons of copper in the first six months, down 4.3 percent from 199,264 tons in the same period of 2004.

The country's cobalt production also decreased by 3.4 percent from 2,920 tons to 2,824 tons in the same period.

"This negative growth may be attributed to the ore smelter breakdowns and the industrial unrest at one of the major producers of the ores," said Nsemukila.

However, copper production is envisaged to grow in the coming years following major investments by the country's mining companies.

According to the Chamber of Mines, copper production is expected to rise from around 500,000 tons to 800,000 tons a year as a result of investments in plant rehabilitation and expansion.

A recent survey by the chamber shows that major mines will spend as much as one billion US dollars by 2008 on new and old mines, smelters, leaching plants and other facilities to raise their capacity.

Source: Xinhua