By Nicholas Bariyo 

KAMPALA Uganda--Zambia plans to more than triple royalties on open-pit mines, the Finance Ministry said late Friday, in a move likely to sour the already fractious relationship between the government and mining companies.

Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda said in a budget report that starting in January 2015 royalties will increase to 20% from 6% for open-pit copper mines and to 8% from 6% for underground mines, to achieve a more "equitable distribution of the mineral wealth between government and the mining companies."

The new measures underscore a growing trend across the continent, where governments from Tanzania to Guinea are changing tax regimes and adjusting ownership structures to get a bigger share of natural resources.

Mining companies with open-pit mines in Zambia include Canada's Barrick Gold Corp. and First Quantum Minerals Ltd., while London-listed Glencore PLC, Vedanta Resources PLC and China Nonferrous Metals Co. operate underground mines.

The royalties will replace a 30% corporate income tax on mines, because they are "easier to implement," said an official with the Zambia Revenue Authority.

But the Chamber of Mines of Zambia warned that the royalty increase would hurt investments in the mining industry, which already has "one of the highest tax rates" the world.

Analysts also warned that the new measures are ill-timed. Copper prices have slumped during the past year due to sluggish demand from China, the world's largest consumer of the metal.

The royalty increases come amid simmering tensions between the Zambian government and copper miners, which is threatening to hobble the country's mining industry.

Zambia has withheld $600 million of tax refunds since last year, insisting that copper miners must first present import certificates from destination countries before claiming refunds as part of efforts to curb tax avoidance. But miners say that they can't provide documentation from importing nations because they sell to middlemen and don't know the final destination of the metal.

Glencore and First Quantum have put on hold expansion projects valued at more than $1 billion because of the spat.

Mr. Chikwanda said that government has embarked on efforts to resolve the disagreement. He also said that despite operational challenges at some mines, the Finance Ministry expects 2014 copper production to exceed 2013 production of about 790,000 metric tons.

Until 2012, Zambia was Africa's top copper miner, before it lost its position to neighboring Congo.

Write to Nicholas Bariyo at nicholas.bariyo@wsj.com

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