MOPANI RESCUE TEAM SECURES HISTORIC SECOND PLACE AT 2026 INTERNATIONAL MINES RESCUE COMPETITION
Mopani Copper Mines PLC has recorded a major international achievement after the Mopani Mufulira Mine Rescue Team emerged as the Second Overall Best Team at the prestigious 2026 International Mines Rescue Competition (IMRC) held in Zambia.
The IMRC brings together the world’s leading mine rescue professionals to test their emergency response capabilities, technical expertise and teamwork under realistic mine emergency simulations.
Mopani’s Mufulira Mine Rescue Team competed against 22 elite teams from more than 10 countries, including Canada, Australia, Poland, Colombia, India, China, Indonesia, Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso and the host nation, Zambia.
The overall 2026 IMRC award was won by Coal Mine India, while Glencore Kidd Mine of Canada secured the third Overall Best Winner prize.
The results were announced by IMRC 2026 Chief Judge, Mr. Shawn Rideout, during the Awards Gala Dinner held in Livingstone on Tuesday, 5th May 2026.
The rankings were based on cumulative performance across six disciplines – underground simulation, firefighting, rope rescue, first aid, equipment testing and team skills, assessed by over 40 international judges.
In announcing the overall runners-up in the global competition, Mr. Rideout declared: “The overall second-best winner, ladies and gentlemen, is a team from Zambia – Mopani Mufulira Mine Rescue Team!”
In addition to winning the overall second-best award, Mopani delivered exceptional performances in individual categories, emerging second best in Rope Rescue, while Mopani rescue technician Wellingtone Bwalya won the second best position in the Equipment Technician’s Individual Test category.
The Mopani Mufulira Mine Rescue Team becomes the first African team in over 100 years of the competition to achieve a second-place overall finish.
Reacting to the achievement, Mopani Copper Mines PLC Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Charles Sakanya, described the recognition as a strong confirmation of the company’s continued investment in mine safety and emergency preparedness.
“This outstanding global achievement by our Mufulira Mine Rescue Team is a demonstration of the world-class competence, discipline and professionalism that our people continue to exhibit. It is also a strong endorsement of Mopani’s heavy investment in safe mining operations and emergency response preparedness,” said Mr. Sakanya.
He added that Mopani remained committed to ensuring that safety continued to be embedded in every aspect of the company’s operations.
“At Mopani, safety is not merely a compliance requirement; it is a core value that defines how we operate, how we interact and what we prioritise, and that is why any incident or accident, however minor, is treated with seriousness and the urgency it deserves with a view to eliminating any recurrence. We are proud that our investment in modern rescue infrastructure, training and emergency response systems is producing globally competitive results,” he said.
As part of preparations for hosting the IMRC 2026, Mopani invested more than US$ 1 million towards upgrading critical rescue and training infrastructure.
The investments included the establishment of an ultra-modern communication and control room equipped with advanced technologies for communication and real-time monitoring of competition activities, the upgrading of underground infrastructure at the Mufulira West Underground Portal as well as extensive improvements to facilities at the Mopani Central Training Centre (MCTC).
The 2026 IMRC was co-hosted by Mopani Copper Mines PLC at MCTC in Mufulira and FQM Kansanshi Mine in Solwezi, with Zambia becoming the first ever African country to host the globally recognised competition.
Mopani Copper Mines PLC is an integrated Zambian copper mining company committed to safe, sustainable and responsible mining operations.
