Equnox Minerals of Australia will invest 2.22 trillion kwacha (about 653 million U.S. dollars) by 2007 in Zambia's Lumwana copper mine, Zambia Daily Mail reported Friday.

Lumwana mine, one of the largest in the southern African country, is expected to produce its first copper concentrates in the second half of 2007.

The copper mine is also one of the largest in the world undeveloped, reported the newspaper.

The mine deposits have been measured at 269 million tons averaging 0.8 percent copper, which is about 4.9 billion pounds of contained copper.

The Australian firm said in a statement that Lumwana has an additional inferred resource totaling 632 million tons, averaging 0.6 percent copper.

Source: Xinhua