About 140 kilometres northeast of Windhoek, near the dry farmlands between Okahandja and Hochfeld, lies the Omitiomire Copper Project, one of Namibia’s largest undeveloped copper deposits and the foundation of a new inland copper frontier.
The Omitiomire copper deposit was first discovered in 1973 by Dr J.S. Greeff, a geologist with the Geological Survey of South West Africa, now the Geological Survey of Namibia.
During regional mapping and mineral reconnaissance, Greeff identified distinctive malachite and azurite stains on quartzite and schist outcrops east of the Omitiomire Farm, located about 120 kilometres northeast of Windhoek.
Rock-chip sampling confirmed elevated copper values, marking the start of one of Namibia’s most significant inland copper finds.
According to archival Geological Survey field reports from 1973 to 1975, follow-up mapping and soil geochemical sampling outlined a broad copper anomaly spanning several kilometres along a north-northeast structural trend.
The results suggested that copper mineralisation was hosted within sheared, metamorphosed sedimentary and volcanic rocks, part of the Damara Orogenic Belt, a 500-million-year-old geological system stretching across central Namibia.
Between 1974 and 1976, the Geological Survey partnered with Anglovaal (Pty) Ltd, a South African exploration company, to carry out the first trenching and drilling campaign at Omitiomire.
Early percussion drilling confirmed broad, low- to medium-grade copper mineralisation averaging between 0.3 per cent and 0.8 per cent copper over tens of metres. These results established Omitiomire as a large-tonnage, disseminated copper system, unlike the narrow volcanogenic massive sulphide deposits at Matchless and Otjihase.
The project remained under state custodianship through the late 1970s and 1980s, with periodic geological mapping and academic studies refining its stratigraphy. After independence, the area was re-licensed under Namibia’s new Minerals (Prospecting and Mining) Act.
During the early 2000s, Craton Mining and Exploration (Pty) Ltd, a Namibian-registered company founded by geologists who recognised the project’s long-term potential, acquired the exploration rights to Omitiomire.
In 2010, the Australian-listed company Weatherly International plc acquired a 25% stake in Craton Mining to advance the project. Weatherly’s involvement provided technical and financial backing, enabling deeper drilling and more accurate resource definition.
By 2014, Craton had secured Mining Licence 197 (ML197) from the Namibian Ministry of Mines and Energy. Shortly thereafter, Weatherly divested its interest as part of a corporate restructuring, and ownership was consolidated under Omico Mining Corp, a private Canadian and Namibian-backed company.
Omico subsequently became the majority shareholder of Craton Mining, holding a 95% interest in Omitiomire.
At the same time, 5 per cent remained in the hands of Namibian partners, as required under the country’s local equity participation framework.
Omico is a privately funded copper development company established to fast-track Omitiomire into production. It operates from Windhoek and maintains technical links with Canadian engineering and finance institutions.
The company’s 2024 corporate filings confirm its ownership of Omitiomire through Craton Mining and its commitment to sustain Namibian ownership participation throughout the mine’s life cycle.
Omitiomire’s copper occurs within a shear-hosted disseminated system, with chalcopyrite and bornite mineralisation spread through biotite-quartz schist, quartzite, and gneiss of the Damara Supergroup.
Unlike the high-grade sulphide lenses at Matchless and Otjihase, Omitiomire’s orebody is broad and low-grade but extensive, extending along a strike length of more than three kilometres and remaining open at depth.
According to Omico Mining’s 2024 Bankable Feasibility Study, the deposit contains a proven and probable reserve of 102 million tonnes grading 0.51 percent total copper, equivalent to 516,000 tonnes of contained copper metal.
The resource supports a 15-year mine life, with potential to extend through deeper exploration.
The planned operation is a large-scale open-pit mine using heap leaching and solvent extraction-electrowinning (SX-EW) technology to produce 99.99 per cent pure copper cathode.
The Bankable Feasibility Study projects an annual output of 26,800 tonnes of copper, with peak production of about 32,000 tonnes per year, according to Mining Weekly (February 2025).
The project’s capital cost is estimated at US$364 million, with a post-tax internal rate of return of 18 per cent and a payback period of 3.7 years. The planned strip ratio is 5:1, and processing facilities will include crushing, agglomeration, heap-leach pads, solvent extraction, and electrowinning circuits.
Infrastructure plans outlined in the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment by ECC Environmental Consultants in 2024 include a single open pit, leach pads, SX-EW plant, workshops, power supply from the national grid, and water management facilities.
Omico’s Q1 2024 project update reports that metallurgical testing phases one to three have been completed, while Phase 4, focused on leach kinetics and reagent optimisation, is ongoing. Results from this phase will be integrated into the final Bankable Feasibility Study, which is expected to be completed in late 2025.
The project is forecast to create 800 to 1,000 direct jobs during operations and several hundred during construction.
Omico has committed to local procurement, training initiatives, and collaboration with technical institutions for workforce development.
Copper cathodes produced at Omitiomire will meet London Metal Exchange specifications and be transported by road and rail to Walvis Bay for export.
Omitiomire represents a different kind of copper opportunity for Namibia, a bulk-tonnage, open-pit project that will deliver refined copper cathode within the country.
It complements the smaller, higher-grade sulphide mines around Windhoek and aligns with Namibia’s broader strategy of expanding green energy and base-metal production.
From Dr Greeff’s first malachite samples in 1973 to Omico’s advanced feasibility studies today, Omitiomire stands as one of Namibia’s most enduring copper prospects, a discovery born in geological fieldwork and now positioned to anchor the next chapter of Namibia’s copper industry.
