Koryx Copper has increased contained copper at its Haib project in southern Namibia to 3.5 million tonnes, following an updated mineral resource estimate that also cut the stripping ratio nearly in half and extended the mine life beyond three decades.
The company reported 2.09 million tonnes of contained copper in the Indicated category and 1.385 million tonnes in the Inferred category, alongside significant by-product credits of 487,900 ounces of gold and 103.6 million pounds of molybdenum in Indicated resources.
The updated resource, dated March 2026, reflects a major revision from the previous 2025 estimate, driven by the inclusion of gold and molybdenum, expanded low-grade tonnage and refined geological modelling.
Copper equivalent grades in the high-grade zones increased to about 0.40% CuEq, while total mineralised material expanded sharply.
At the same time, the project’s stripping ratio was reduced from 1.74 to 0.92, significantly improving the expected economics of a future open-pit operation.
Koryx said the updated model converted large volumes of previously classified waste into mineralised material, increasing the overall resource base and supporting a longer production profile.
The company now expects the Haib project’s life-of-mine to extend beyond 35 years, up from the previously estimated 24 years.
Haib is being developed as a large-scale open-pit sulphide operation with an envisaged average annual production rate of about 92,000 tonnes of copper concentrate, using conventional crushing, milling and flotation processing.
The deposit, located in southern Namibia, is one of the oldest known porphyry copper systems globally and has been drilled extensively, with more than 120,000 metres of historical drilling completed since the 1970s.
Koryx said ongoing drilling will further expand and refine the resource base, with 14 drill rigs expected to complete about 55,000 metres of drilling by mid-2026.
Results from this programme will feed into another resource update and underpin a Preliminary Feasibility Study planned for the fourth quarter of 2026.
Recent metallurgical test work has also indicated potential for further grade improvements through ore sorting technologies, which could reduce processing costs and enhance recoveries.
The company said the combined impact of higher grades, additional by-product credits, reduced stripping requirements and longer mine life is expected to deliver a “step-change” improvement in project economics.
Koryx President and CEO Heye Daun said the updated resource demonstrates both the scale and consistency required for Haib to become a long-life copper operation.
“We are very pleased with the large improvement and refinement of the Haib MRE… increasing the total copper inventory from 2.6Mt to 3.5Mt while also reducing the expected stripping ratio,” Daun said.
The company is advancing the project through feasibility stages as it positions Haib as a potential large-scale copper producer within Namibia’s growing base metals sector.
