Inside Mining January 2014

www.miningne.ws

Highly commended 2012 PICA Cover of the Year - B2B Publishing MEDIA

ining

AFRICAN UPDATES ON THE GROUND AND UNDERGROUND

HOT

SEAT

BME B ME Francois Hay y on the surge into o Africa P8

BASIL READ

MATOMO PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS The top five

MINING INDABA Major companies at top industry event

SHEQ Latest innovations in mine safety

SPECIAL FOCUS P47

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

ISSN 1999-8872 • R40.00 (incl. VAT) • Vol. 7 • No. 1 • January 2014

CONTENTS

A F R I C A N U P D AT E S O N T H E

ining

January 2014

GROUND AND UNDERGROUND

EDITOR’S COMMENT

ENDORSED BY

3

Our prestigious projects

HOT SEAT www.miningne.ws

Highly commended 2012 PICA Cover of the Year - B2B Publishing MEDIA

ining

ON THE COVER O

P4

8

AFRICAN UPDATES ON THE GROUND AND UNDERGROUND

HOT

SEAT

BME B ME Francois Hayy on the surge into o Africa P8

BASIL READ

MATOMO PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS The top five

MINING INDABA Major companies at top industry event

SHEQ Latest innovations in mine safety

T imminent completion The o of MetroWind’s Van S Stadens Wind Farm iin the Eastern Cape h heralds a new era of rrenewable energy in South A Africa, with particular iimplications for the m mining industry.

BME continues its surge into Africa

FROM THE COAL PIT

10

Comment by Phillip Lloyd

HOT TOPIC

12

ThyssenKrupp merges Polysius and Fördertechnik (Materials Handling)

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

SPECIAL FOCUS P47

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

16

MineRP's technological solutions for South African mining

ISSN 1999-8872 • R40.00 (incl. VAT) • Vol. 7 • No. 1 • January 2014

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

26 32 34 40 44

Kibali Gold Mine, Randgold Resources, DRC Kumba’s HME workshop at its Sishen AMD treatment plant in the Central Basin Maseve Platinum Mine, PTM Williamson (Mwadui), Petra Diamonds, Tanzania

SHEQ

12

66 68 70 72

Safety innovations from 3M Fracking and AMD Latest safety products from MSA Africa OSH EXPO Africa 2014: 13 to 15 May 2014

MINING INDABA

74 76 78 80 84 92 100

Bernard Swanepoel says mining still in ‘crisis’ Deloitte on the growth potential of mining Megaflex from Marley Piping Systems Delba Electrical celebrates its 50th anniversary Powermode on spiralling fuel costs Bearings International on local innovation WorleyParsens RSA diversifies into Africa

44 ENERGY EFFICIENCY ON THE COVER O

P47

POWER UP MINING IN AFRICA A leading EPC contractor specialising in low-carbon energy projects is also targeting power plants for mining clients

ESKOM, MINING INDUSTRY JOIN FORCES Electricity savings by mining projects have amounted to 600 MW since Eskom launched its Demand Side Management (DSM) programme in 2004, says senior GM Andrew Etzinger

DRIVING ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN AFRICA Mining companies are embracing energy efficiency from a global perspective, ably supported by such suppliers as the Zest WEG Group

NEW ERA FOR HYDRAULIC OILS IN AFRICA Engen is driving the launch of a new hydraulic oil on the African continent under its banner of Energy-Saving Fluids (ESF)

IN THE

HOT SEAT

“I think it is important to realise that the cost of renewable energy has decreased significantly.” Marius Von Wielligh, energy director at Matomo

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48 49 50 62 64

Contents Conttents t Editor's Comment HOT SEAT: Basil Read Matomo Zest WEG Group supports energy efficiency Engen launches Hydrokin ESF

EDITOR’S COMMENT

Publisher Elizabeth Shorten Editor Gerhard Hope Head of design Frédérick Danton Senior designer Hayley Mendelow Designer Kirsty Galloway Chief sub-editor Claire Nozaïc Sub-editor Beatrix Knopjes Production manager Antois-Leigh Botma Production coordinator Jacqueline Modise Marketing manager Hestelle Robinson Digital manager Esther Louw Financial manager Andrew Lobban Administration Tonya Hebenton

FIVE MAKE THE GRADE

Our prestigious projects

Distribution manager Nomsa Masina Distribution coordinator Asha Pursotham Printers United Litho Johannesburg Tel: +27 (0)11 402 0571 ___________________________________ Advertising Sales

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South Africa: R420.00 (incl VAT & postage) African countries: US$80 Foreign: US$100 E-mail: subs@3smedia.co.za ISSN 1999-8872 Inside Mining Copyright 2014. All rights reserved. ___________________________________ All material in Inside Mining is copyright protected and may not be reproduced either in whole or in part without the prior written permission of the publisher. The views of contributors do not necessarily reflect those of the publishers.

To our avid readers, be sure to sign up and get the latest updates and inside scoop from the mining industry.

Check out what we are talking about on our website, Facebook page or follow me on Twitter and have your say.

@mining_news www.facebook.com/ pages/Mining-News

The beginning of the New Year is a good time to take a look back at the projects that impressed us the most in 2013.

R

ANDGOLD RESOURCES’ Kibali gold mine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is described by chief executive Mark Bristow as an “enormous feat” in every sense of the world, from geology to metallurgy, engineering, logistics, and even “negotiation and diplomacy”. This is the fifth world-class gold mine that Randgold has delivered, following Morila. The opencast phase will be one of the largest operations of its kind in the world.

A totally different project is the Heavy Mining Equipment (HME) Workshop at Kumba’s Sishen iron ore mine in Kathu in the Northern Cape. The R1 billion facility will cater for the mine’s equipment and maintenance service needs for the next 10 to 15 years. It has allowed the mine to boost its haul-truck fleet from 75 to 156, with a special focus on the new ultra-class Komatsu 960E trucks.

The new acid mine drainage (AMD) treatment plant at the Central Basin’s ERPM South West Vertical Shaft is critical in ensuring the future quality of Gauteng’s water supply. Key to realising the project’s tight deadline has been the extensive collaboration between a range of main professionals and subcontractors.

Another project setting a benchmark for the mining industry – not only in South Africa, but throughout the continent – is the WBJV Project 1, or Maseve platinum mine, near Rustenburg. The development rates achieved here are among the highest in South Africa to date.

Petra Diamonds’ Williamson mine in Tanzania, also known as Mwadui, represents the world’s largest economic kimberlite pipe by surface area. With no major kimberlite discoveries since the 1990s, Williamson is poised to capitalise on any upsurge in the future diamond market.

There you have it: from gold, platinum and diamonds to an AMD treatment plant and an HME workshop, our Prestigious Projects of 2013 represent some of the most exciting and diverse technical and logistical challenges in Africa to date.

This is my first issue at the helm of Inside Mining. I started out at Martin Creamer’s Engineering

News and Mining Weekly, as have so many of us in this industry, and went on to work on such titles as SA Builder for the MBSA. I have just returned to South Africa after editing a weekly construction title in Dubai for a number of years.

It is good to be back in Africa and to be involved in the mining industry again, which is still the economic engine of this country and, indeed, the entire continent, despite the myriad problems it is beset with at the moment and the herculean challenges it faces in the foreseeable future, from legislation to labour issues and commodity prices.

The entire team here at Inside Mining would like to reassure our readers, advertisers and supporters that it is ‘business as usual’. You are more than welcome to contact either myself or Tazz Porter if you require any further information or if you have any news you would like to convey to our readers.

Editing a magazine like this is very much a partnership between the team and our readers, advertisers and supporters. Therefore we encourage you to engage with us, from reading the magazine to subscribing to our weekly newsletters and visiting bsite and social media feeds. our website ome to the Inside Insi Mining family!

Welcome

IN SID I D E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014

3

COVER STORY

BA SIL RE A D MATOM O

Van Stadens Wind Farm

The imminent completion of MetroWind’s Van Stadens Wind Farm in the Eastern Cape heralds a new era of renewable energy in South Africa, with particular implications for the mining industry.

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INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

COVER STORY

P

ERHAPS THE single most important requirement of any mining project is a reliable source of uninterrupted power. This requirement becomes even more important as companies expand into Africa, where they are faced with remote locations, difficult logistics and a dearth of proper infrastructure. One of the companies that is quietly changing the power-generation landscape in South Africa, with the successful progress of MetroWind’s Van Stadens Wind Farm in the Eastern Cape, is Basil Read Matomo (Matomo).

Matomo is a leading design, project engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) company servicing the minerals-processing, chemicals and low-carbon energy sectors.

It offers the full range of turnkey solutions for project implementation, ranging from concept development and feasibility studies through to final project execution.

Renewable energy technology is steadily becoming cheaper in South Africa as a result of a government programme to encourage investment in the sector. What this has also meant is that mining companies are now able to take advantage of the advances being made in the sector, as they seek to cut costs and ensure that remote projects continue running smoothly.

Matomo received notice to proceed for construction of the 27 MW Van Stadens Wind Farm on 16 November 2012, with a contractual completion date of the end of this month. The project is located about 30 km from Port Elizabeth, at the Van Stadens River

BELOW Van Stadens Wind Farm has a 27 MW installed generation capacity OPPOSITE The towers are 90 m high up to the hub, with an extra 55 m added by the blades ABOVE The Matomo team at the site in the Eastern Cape

mouth. It comprises nine by 3 MW wind turbines, which means a total of 27 MW, with an 8.9 km, 22 kV overhead line connecting the wind farm to the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM) power grid.

Inside Mining spoke to Matomo's energy director, Marius Von Wielligh (Von Wielligh) just as Matomo was embarking on hot commissioning of the project. “Our first priority was to energise the newly built overhead line, so that electrical commissioning of all the integrated electrical systems could take place. Thereafter each individual turbine is tested on component level to ensure correct functioning of the electrical, protection, mechanical and hydraulic systems.”

“The business is very dynamic at the moment, and we have to ensure we are sustainable.” Marius Von Wielligh, energy director, Basil Read Matomo This is a major commissioning process that takes about a week for the initial turbine, whereafter the testing procedure is streamlined to ensure an optimised commissioning plan for the remaining turbines.

“Choosing the location of the wind farm was undertaken by MetroWind, the developer, after a detailed and thorough

analysis. Once a location was confirmed, the next step of micro-siting involved, inter alia, modelling of the wind resource, the topography, equipment access and environmental constraints, with the aim of optimising energy yield,” explains Von Wielligh.

The Sinovel wind turbines were imported from China and arrived at Ngqura Harbour, from where the project team had to transport them to the project site. The Van Stadens Wind Farm, together with one other wind farm, marked Sinovel’s maiden foray into the renewable-energy sector in South Africa.

The blades and towers were transported separately, with four sections to each tower.

The towers are 90 m high up to the hub, with an extra 55 m added by the blades. “The assembly of the rotor, which involves installing the blades at the hub from ground level, is a delicate operation due to the size and weight of the components,” says Von Wielligh.

Sinovel also has the operations-andmaintenance contract for the turbines, with the facilities management being carried out by 3 Energy, a local company in which Basil Read Energy has a shareholding. 3 Energy acts on behalf of the project owner in overseeing all the O&M aspects of the wind farm.

A perennial bugbear of renewable energy is the inability to effectively store the power generated. This is an area where a South African company like Matomo hopes to make a major input. “There is a lot of R&D going into storage of renewable energy,” says Von Wielligh. He reveals that Matomo is in discussions with a client to commence frontend engineering design based on cryogenic energy storage.

An air liquefier produces liquid air, which is stored in an insulated tank at low pressure.

When there is a need to generate power, the air is pumped from the tank and heated, resulting in a high-pressure gas used to drive a turbine and a generator. ▶

In each issue, Inside Mining offers advertisers the opportunity to promote their company’s products and services to the appropriate audience by booking the prime position of the front cover which includes a two-page feature article. The magazine offers advertisers an ideal platform to ensure the maximum exposure of their brand. Please call +27(0)11 465 5452 to secure your booking.

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014

5

COVER STORY

LEFT Van Stadens Wind Farm marks the entry of China’s Sinovel into the renewable-energy sector in South Africa

FACTS AND FIGURES METROWIND’S Van Stadens Wind Farm • R550 million private-sector investment • 27 MW installed generation capacity • 80 000 MWh per annum annual production • Enough electricity for 5 000 to 6 000 households • 120 direct jobs during construction • Nine full-time jobs during production • 47% Local content during construction phase • 300 households to receive first-time electrification • Meets almost 50% of NMBM’s 10% renewable energy target • Requires no water to generate electricity (80 million litres per annum saved) government’ss commitment to carbon carbon• 80 000 tpa CO2 offset (in line with government emission reduction).

ABOUT BASIL READ MATOMO BASIL READ MATOMO is a leading design, project engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) company servicing the minerals processing, chemical and low-carbon energy sectors.

It offers the full range of turnkey solutions for project implementation, ranging from concept development and feasibility studies through to final project execution.

It has extensive experience in the practical implementation of projects, including multi-disciplinary engineering, design, procurement, construction, project management and commissioning. It also offers postimplementation services.

6

IINS N S I DE DE M MII NI N I NG NG 01 | 2014

Explaining the relationship between Matomo and Basil Read Energy, Von Wielligh says there is no competition between the two companies. “The mandate of Basil Read Energy is to invest in energy projects as an equity investor, which they have done with MetroWind and other projects in their portfolio. Thus in many instances they would be part of the client team, which means there is no direct competition with us.”

Given the large number of projects in the renewable-energy sector at the moment, and the innovation and expertise being generated, is it possible that the energy division of Matomo could surpass the process/metallurgical division?

“The business is very dynamic at the moment, and we have to ensure an enviable track record so that we are sustainable. An important aspect of our business is the different market cycles between energy and process. We trust in our diversification strategy to ensure continued business through varied market cycles,” says Von Wielligh.

In terms of challenges posed by the wind project, an important one “was to mature the relationship with the Chinese supplier, and to really understand how to interact with them.

We are used to normal business being governed by your commercial contract, whereas with the Chinese they place a premium on the relationship. It has been a big learning curve for our team to build those relationships and manage them properly. We have a very competent and experienced project team, and they really went the extra mile to ensure all aspects of the project are covered.”

From a construction point of view, Von Wielligh says the biggest challenge was the transport and mechanical installation of the turbines. “It went very well, with the challenges managed thoroughly. Sinovel provided support, but we also sent our team to Italy where another Sinovel wind farm was being erected. They made contact with the assembly team over there, which we then contracted separately, to support our team on-site during the initial turbine-installation processes as a risk-mitigation strategy.”

Von Wielligh says that quality inspection in China was an important aspect of the project. “We appointed a reputable international company, out of Beijing, to manage the quality inspections on our behalf.” Safety on-site was a major consideration, particularly at the crucial stage of powering up all the components.

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HOT SEAT

EXP LOS IVE S

BME begins 2014 Bulk explosives manufacturer BME not only performed strongly during Omnia’s reported financial results for 2013, but is continuing its surge into Africa as it celebrates 30 years in business, says MD Francois Hay.

F

ROM A SMALL company established in 1984, to the fully-fledged bulk explosives and technology provider that it is today, BME has come a long way. Omnia, initially supplying raw materials to the company, decided to acquire it in 1987 in order to diversify into the mining-explosives market, with growth through the years exceeding expectations, MD Francois Hay tells Inside Mining.

Some of its first major customers were Optimum Colliery, Sishen iron ore mine and Rössing uranium mine. BHP Billiton represented a major contract from the outset, and is still massive today. The end of the 1990s saw BME expand into Mali and Tanzania, the first two countries outside South Africa that it focused on.

Two years ago it commenced with its own truck-building operation. BME started with a single truck in its fleet and today has about 180, of which 70 are deployed in Africa. “That is by far our biggest asset, outside of the Omnia nitric acid facility. The trucks are imperative for business growth – you cannot grow

8

INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

the business without trucks and people,” says Hay.

Blast consultancy Ongoing development has been key to BME’s sterling growth and expansion, with the company venturing into blast consultancy and establishing its own Blastinfo division, which offers customers world-class advice and technical support. In the early 2000s, the company acquired an electronic detonator business in France. From there, BME began developing its own generation of electronic delay detonators, AXXIS, with the second generation currently experiencing an excellent uptake.

“We have seen some really nice growth over the last six months,” notes Hay. BME even has an Australian subsidiary for its AXXIS system. This comprises a digital initiation system with ‘smart’ connectors, a passive logger to establish a connector ID and firing time for each detonator, and

a blasting box to programme and fire the detonators. “We have a 65% share in that subsidiary,” says Hay. “It has started to gain momentum, and there are positive signs for future growth.”

Latest developments at BME in terms of technology include the new Omnia nitric acid plant, which came on-stream in March 2012. “A year down the line, it has been performing well. Whereas we used to buy in ammonium nitrate, it is now fully supplied from this facility,” says Hay. On the environmental side, this plant continues to generate carbon credits. “That continues to be important to the group. As a chemical company, we want to be responsible in the way we do things.”

Used-oil uptake This sense of environmental stewardship extends to the uptake of used oil throughout Africa. “Used oil has been a massive drive and we continue to sell the environmental benefit of this for the

HOT SEAT

with a mines. We are now at the point where we can take up a mine’s full used-oil complement, and that places them in a fantastic position from an environmental point of view.”

From explosives solutions into Africa to providing EDDs to Australia, BME has been diligently growing its geographical footprint.

That there is still going to be a lot of mining activity in Africa “is in no doubt,” Hay says ca, we are still confidently. “For BME in Africa, ome fantasgrowing nicely. We have had some n Zambia, tic growth in the last year in while Botswana also continuess to be a star market.” ootBME has also established a foothold in Mozambique. “We havee started doing small blasts and are in the process of setting ourselves up and understanding the market. With the infrastructure that still needs to be developed, there is a lull, but we are looking forward to it picking up and gaining momentum,” says Hay.

DRC emulsion plant In the past 18 months, the company has also broken through into the tough market represented by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). “It has really been growing well, and we are establishing an emulsion plant there now,” reveals Hay. Tanzania, meanwhile, also holds valuable opportunities. “It seems to be opening up. We previously had a presence here and are looking to re-establish ourselves in this market.”

While Southern Africa is “quite exciting”, according to Hay, the company is having a “fairly good time” in West Africa as

bang well, with Sierra Leone picking up nicely, Mauritania proving very solid and Burkina Faso starting to gain traction. “We have secured business at Resolute’s Syama gold mine in Mali and have just commissioned an emulsion plant there.”

Hay believes that the African mining industry will strengthen if the commodity cycle continues its upswing, particularly with dem the growing demand for iron ore. “This may de be more delayed than anticipated, but at some stage [the upswing] will happen.” However, there are several cavea caveats with this view, with Hay warn that “the continent will warning hav to be aware of costs”. have

FFierce competition The explosives industry is also experiencing

increasingly fierce competition in the African market. “Where the African market used to be shared by three main companies, there are now five, so we have to remain focused. Competition is strong in Ghana, which is a massive market, and is also robust in West Africa, where we have a solid presence. We have been fortunate in the sense that the contracts we have had are growing rapidly, which has contributed greatly to our success.”

Homing in on the mining industry in South Africa, Hay says the challenge for a company like BME is not only to anticipate change, but to manage it correctly. “I believe, in general, there is a bit more nervousness compared to a year ago. Surface mining is looking better than underground, but it is also taking some strain.” Despite perceived bottlenecks on the exploration and development side, Hay says: “There does seem to be quite a few mining licences coming through. Hopefully that picks up, but we need to drive it.”

He adds that the impact of mining on the total economy is often underestimated, as there is a huge flow-through or multiplier effect. However, rising costs and the need to maximise shareholder returns are placing constraints on its growth potential.

“There is massive potential on the expansion side in Africa, but even there the big players are saying they must look carefully at maximising shareholder returns.”

“There does seem to be quite a few mining licences coming through.

Hopefully that picks up, but we need to drive it.” Francois Hay, MD of BME

Suppliers under pressure “In Africa there is some massive medium-term potential, but the major mining houses want to ensure their revenue streams first and foremost. So for us as suppliers we are all going to be in for a rougher ride, with more pressure to cut costs,” notes Hay. However, this does not necessarily mean that the potential for growth has been reduced. “I think it is just the angle of the acceleration; the foot has come slightly off the pedal. It does not mean a lack of acceleration, just that this is happening a bit more slowly,” he concludes.

IN SI D E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014

9

FROM THE COAL PIT

By Phillip Lloyd

Professor, Energy Institute, CPUT

Burning coal is a hot potato

When will the coal industry start to fight for its survival?

T

HERE IS A hypothesis that burning coal gives rise to all manner of nasty things.

If coal is burned inefficiently, that is true. If you go anywhere near eMalahleni in winter, you will see very dramatically how awful it can be when coal is burned inefficiently.

But the muck does not come from Eskom’s power stations, which many seem to assume.

Most of it comes from lowincome homes burning coal in unsuitable appliances. There is a minor contribution from spontaneous combustion on dumps and abandoned mines, which is much less today

than it was 20 years ago – which is why we know that most of the pollution comes from elsewhere.

But if coal is burned efficiently, as happens in Eskom’s large boilers and other industrial applications, there is very little pollution. All modern boilers have very efficient fine-particle

collectors, so particulate emissions are essentially nil.

There have been many attempts to compute the ‘external costs’ of coal-fired power generation. By making some wild assumptions, you can come up with a figure in the order of R0.1/kWh. That sounds bad, until you consider the cost of not having a kWh – about R75. The so-called external cost is insignificant.

So the industry needs to stand up for itself. It is now the largest export product.

It is the basis for over 80% of our energy. We need to thank the Lord for the blessings it brings, not curse it for being just a little bit less than perfect.

10 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

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HOT TOPIC

T HYS S ENKRUPP

A new force in African mining

ThyssenKrupp has merged Polysius and Fördertechnik (Materials Handling) to create a new force in mining solutions on the African continent, says Gerhard Hope.

W

ITH EFFECT FROM 1 January 2014, the new company, ThyssenKrupp Resource Technologies (TKRT), merges the expertise of ThyssenKrupp Polysius and ThyssenKrupp Materials Handling into one entity. This will provide customers in the mining and cement industry, as well as the minerals-processing and bulk materialshandling sectors, with a comprehensive product portfolio combined with a tightly meshed sales and service network. TKRT is a division of ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions (South Africa).

Minerals-processing technology The merger is a logical amalgamation of existing resources and strengths. It will create new opportunities and synergies for ThyssenKrupp as it continues to make inroads into Africa. “We have always been very much involved in sub-Saharan Africa. We want to use our know-how and experience, combine that with our existing installation base, and then promote the full product range – not just individual pieces of equipment, but from ‘pit-to-port’,” says Dr Wilfred Barkhuizen, ThyssenKrupp Manager for Minerals.

12 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

The merger is a natural fit in terms of both market focus and product range, for example, from crushing to grinding equipment, including high-pressure grinding rolls. “Combined, that gives us a very competitive edge and ‘smart’ comminution, because now we can offer a total solution for the plant ‘frontend’,” comments Barkhuizen.

“The crushing portfolio we can offer is enormous, with about 40% global market share in semi-mobile crushing plants.” Thus, TKRT is going to inject a healthy dose of competition into this highly competitive market segment, which is dominated by a handful of global players, “among which we have already established a large existing footprint”.

“We have been fortunate so far this year.

The company has seen its biggest-ever order intake, the big contributor to that being our service department, as well as the cement and lime divisions. While investments in new plants seem to be struggling, clients are

The merger is a logical amalgamation of existing resources and strengths

servicing, and hence there was a big increase in the service demand,” says Barkhuizen.

“In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), we just supplied two mills for Randgold Resources’ new Kibali project. One is already in operation and the other is being commissioned. Diamonds also seem to be coming up again, and we have sold a third mill to the Catoca diamond mine in Angola. The hurdle for South Africa might be the 2014 national election, and it is anticipated that once this is out of the way, the investment taps are likely to open under more certainty.

“Current opportunities lie in iron ore and copper, at least until the gold price improves dramatically,” says Barkhuizen. “Other new opportunities lie in rare earth metals, with even beleaguered platinum expected to show an upturn.”

Going hand-in-hand with the combined range is quality assurance, with complete turnkey laboratories being offered in conjunction with the new company’s plant technology. “We conceive of the future of the process stream as having an integrated laboratory to feed back the results you could get from the plant, and thereby optimise the process and quality.”

HOT TOPIC

A corollary of the ‘pit-to-port’ approach is a renewed focus on growth opportunities and prospects on the wider African continent. “I think most business in the near future will come from West Africa, with Ghana seen as the western hub,” predicts Barkhuizen. He adds that ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions is in the process of establishing offices in both Ghana and Mozambique. “We already have equipment in Ghana, and the idea was always to support it from a local office, and Mozambique, with its vast resources in coal and other minerals, is a focus point of the materials handling division.”

Materials handling technology

important new growth area. “It does not help if you have a US$5 million (R50.81 million) piece of equipment and it is not running due to maintenance issues,” says Göing. An important issue in this regard is skills development, with a new trend being for OEMs to assume total control of plant and staff.

“In Africa, we have seen examples from the automated laboratory industry side, where you need very experienced or specialised people. The evolution cycle is to build and install a laboratory, operate it for two years, and then hand it over to the client, in a stable and optimised condition – possibly also with the option to take over the people in the laboratory, as it is moving more and more

over to a plant model due to the dearth of expertise. During the first two to three years, you solve all the teething problems with the equipment. Once it is stable, the client then takes over the plant,” says Göing.

In order to capitalise on the pending boom in Africa, it is important for the continent to ensure it has the necessary infrastructure in place. “You do not just build infrastructure overnight. I think we better get ready now.

For us, now is the right time to sort ourselves out and get everything in place in order to capitalise on growth over the next two to three years,” says Göing.

He adds that the company’s extensive experience around power plants will stand it

The merger is also a direct response to clients’ changing needs, says Matthias Göing, ThyssenKrupp sales manager for Materials Handling. “It is something we are seeing more and more from clients. The client wants to go to one major supplier. If we can do it all in-house, we can optimise the process as well. Just taking the best pieces of equipment and putting them together does not necessarily give you a working solution.”

The immediate advantages for clients are readily apparent. “Before, some of our customers were not even aware of all we could offer, or do. We are now exploring that broader bandwidth,” notes Göing.

Another critical aspect is servicing and maintenance. “We have already combined our service teams. They have been working closely together, with the ThyssenKrupp Service Centre in Chloorkop as the new main service hub,” says Göing.

The focus over the next few years will be on service in the African market. This means that operation and maintenance contracts throughout the continent could be an OPPOSITE Copper ore grinding plant TOP RIGHT Stacker at Sishen RIGHT Excavator BELOW Ash spreader

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HOT TOPIC

ABOVE Semi-mobile in-pit crushing plant RIGHT Drum reclaimer BELOW RIGHT Inclined shaft conveyor

in good stead in power-hungry Africa, where there is a growing demand for coal-handling stockyards with stackers, reclaimers, conveyors and transfer houses, as well as ash-handling systems.

ThyssenKrupp has already submitted a few proposals under the aegis of the new merged entity, and is confidently awaiting its first TKRT order. Both are optimistic for the future, and the role that ThyssenKrupp stands to play in allowing Africa’s mining industry to realise its full potential.

One caveat is the long equipmentreplacement cycles on the continent, which can be 35 years or more, as opposed to a global average of 25. “I know engineers often do not want to replace something that is not broken, but they are missing out on new technology, as well as developments in energy-efficiency,” says Göing.

ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions has the advantage of access to group-wide R&D, innovation and new technology, as well as being able to offer assistance with specialised areas such as preliminary feasibility studies, process design and even financing. This extends to engineering project management, construction, assembly and most importantly, after-sales service.

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“One huge advantage is that we definitely have on-the-ground engineering know-how. We can engineer here, take decisions and make things happen, which differentiates us from most others, as their competence centres are not locally based. That is really a fundamental change, and is a huge benefit,” concludes Göing.

At the moment, both Barkhuizen and Göing have embarked on a concerted campaign to bring TKRT to the attention of the mining industry. The new company will be out in force at the Mining Investment in Africa 2014 Indaba in Cape Town in early February.

MURRAY & ROBERTS CEMENTATION

www.cementation.murrob.com

SHAFT SINKING • RAISEBORING • DEVELOPMENT • CONTRACT MINING • MINE ENGINEERING

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

M I NER P

Business as usual for the mining industry Mining software and consulting company MineRP has a technological solution to tackle the crisis of confidence besetting the South African mining industry, president and CEO Pieter Nel tells Gerhard Hope. This means a total transformation of how mining companies conduct their business.

L

ACKLUSTRE RETURNS on investment, together with spiralling costs and labour unrest, have resulted in a crisis of confidence in the South African mining industry. “It is because there is no confidence from shareholders. It is not a good business to be in at the moment,” says Nel. Faltering commodity prices are often seen as the scapegoat, but Nel argues that any gold-mining company worth its salt should be able to operate profitably at a gold price of about US$1 300/oz (R14 157/oz).

“You need to be able to run the operation at that pricing level; if it is higher, it is a bonus.”

While commodity prices are slightly depressed at the moment, “this cannot be the only reason the industry is in trouble,” argues Nel. The biggest factors are the returns on investment and the way that mining companies themselves operate. “Mining companies often ignore the fact that they are

businesses and that like any businesses, they have shareholders, who must be satisfied with that company’s performance.”

This calls for a fundamental reappraisal of mining companies and the way they do business. “We need to start off with the reason that the mining company is there, and that is the mineral asset. We then need to link the mineral asset to the financial side of the business in order to ascertain what the real value of that mineral asset and to optimise its extraction,” explains Nel. The reason that this has not been attempted in the past is due to a lack of technological development. “Although a lot of things have happened on the technology front, it was not ready to handle the mining industry’s demand for quick answers. Now if you look at what is happening outside of the mining industry, the buzzword there is ‘big data’,” says Nel.

‘Big data’ has the capability to generate answers quickly and thereby allow a mining company to carry out predictive analysis.

This has been the focal point for MineRP: how to develop a basis for mining technical systems to be able to utilise the sorts of tools available in the larger business environment. “With the progress being made on the technology side, this will allow us to get to that level where we can change the way we do mining,” anticipates Nel.

Predictive analysis Empie Strydom, VP of marketing at MineRP, concurs: “One of the reasons why big companies can use predictive analysis and modelling tools on their commercial systems is because, in general, their commercial environment is integrated with their ERP systems.” These big companies have access to tools from major vendors such as SAP and Oracle, which cover the business environment from A to Z. The mining industry has access to similar tools, but they are largely focused on the commercial side.

“The one challenge we have in the mining industry is this ‘black hole’. It is something you cannot see that you need to control. The mining industry is operating in a highly technical, niche environment. Just on the mining technical systems side, there are 79 different vendors, and they support, or have developed, 323 different applications,” says Nel. This poses particular challenges for data integration in the mining industry.

This has been the focal point for MineRP: how to develop a basis for mining technical systems to be able to utilise the sorts of tools available in the larger business environment

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IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Such integration is key, as opposed to the traditional development of standalone applications, with MineRP focusing on this approach since 2006, when it developed its first spatial database for the mining industry.

“That was the start,” says Nel. “We realised that if we wanted to solve all these problems and optimise the mining space, we needed to get all this data from the 323 applications, plus we needed to standardise on Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) standards.”

This would mean that the specific requirements of the mining industry would be catered for. As Nel points out: “That is why there was a need for such a spatial database.

Over time we have developed nine different modules. It is a framework to collect the data.

This allows us to use standard optimisation, predictive analytical tools and enterprise resource management – all the standard tools available to the rest of the business world.”

MineRP’s Due Inventory product, for which a patent is pending, “is a tool where a mine can manage its orebody, in the same way that industry manages stock in a warehouse, by using standard tools within the framework that we developed. The nice thing is that a mine can view its orebody and mining operation graphically, according to the classifications of its orebody.”

Transaction tracking “It can track all the transactions happening in that space, and there is a high level, about 189 different types, of transactions that can influence the orebody. We then have an audit trail of anything that changes. We believe this will help regain confidence the mining industry, by proving its real assets. We can also prove any changes that happen within that environment, not once a year as per the competent person and his team, but on demand as the mine requires it, even on a daily basis.”

MineRP’s Due Inventory therefore allows for a ‘geo-financial’ view of a mining company’s mineral asset. “That is where we link with the commercial tools from the likes of SAP in order to bring all that together. It gives the mine manager or mining executives a much more scientific method of optimising the business and measuring it against the real asset of the mine.”

MineRP’s Due Inventory is a tool that allows mines to manage their orebodies

Strydom acknowledges that this entails a mindset change for the mining industry. “It is a big change in many ways. The mechanism itself is vastly different. Up to now, the minimum requirement for a mining company to have a holistic view of its orebody was to be able to understand and combine all of the information generated by the different mining technical fraternities or disciplines.”

This translates into vendors attempting to create end-to-end solutions covering the entire value chain, from geology right through to figuring how to close a mine. However, that poses an enormous challenge in terms of the mining method or type of mineral in question, “never mind doing that for all of the different kinds of mines, minerals and mining methods,” says Strydom.

Comprehensive solutions “The approach of the mining technical fraternity was to try and find a comprehensive solution from one company. It is not a viable approach. There are too many variables, and there are investments that mining companies have made.” By way of example, a specific product that works successfully in South America may not be ideal to be deployed in Australia, even if it is a better solution, due to the capital outlay and extensive retraining involved.

“The other approach was to let us focus on the things we do well – I will develop a geological management solution, you develop the planning solution, you develop the survey solution, and then we will build interfaces between all of these things. That is very costly, and it is neither robust nor stable. It also leads the customer, the mine, having to learn how to integrate things.

The enterprise data load is just immense,” comments Strydom.

MineRP’s approach to this problem is qualitatively different. “Instead of trying to be the be-all and end-all in all of the expert domains, we talk about expert applications instead.”

This means that rather than replacing the myriad of applications available, “what we did is build this framework that is able to consume information from all 323 applications. We supply the framework, and the client chooses the relevant expert applications. We will integrate the lot so they act as an enterprise solution, never mind what vendor or service provider supplied it.”

Educate mining companies An important part of this process is to educate mining companies on how to function collaboratively. “All the systems may now talk to one another, but you still have to change the way you operate in order to be able to exploit the enterprise framework that now exists,” says Strydom. What this framework also does is ensure that the right governance is in place and is managed centrally, adds Nel. The implications for vendors in the mining technical space is potentially significant, warns Nel, as it will require many to adhere to the standards and specifications of particular mining companies. “This ‘do what you like, free for all’ type of thing is going to change,” says Nel. Strydom concurs, stating that “the cowboy approach” often adopted by vendors in promoting particular products will soon fall by the wayside.

“We are not so much breaking the silos as transcending them. We are putting an umbrella around the business as we can now incorporate all the disparate information.

However, if you want to work in a team, you also have to work as a team. It changes the way people engage with each other. It is going to have some impact on the way systems are designed.

“Value that has been locked into some systems might now all of a sudden be provided at other levels of the business. Just optimising the way you plan, without optimising the way you carry out that plan, is useless. The best way to optimise a mine is not to change the way you plan, but just to work the plan you have,” concludes Nel.

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PROFILE: DRA

TOTAL S OLUTIONS

DRA celebrates 30 years DRA, a total solutions provider from mining, mineral processing and operations to infrastructure, is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. CEO Paul Thomson talks about how the company is rebranding and restructuring to ensure it remains at the top of its game.

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HE LOGO WITH the headgear and the letters DRA at a descending diagonal is one of the most well-known and respected in the industry. “Brands around the world evolve and change continually,” DRA CEO Paul Thomson comments philosophically. “We were looking at how to reflect the values driving us forward, which are safety, sustainability and responsibility, and then to couple that with performance and partnerships.”

The company contracted a branding specialist “because we are basically a bunch of engineers who do not necessarily understand all the nuances of branding”. The end result is an exciting reinvigoration of the DRA logo, as opposed to opting for something totally new. “The company’s colours have changed to better reflect what we are about from the old gold and blue, which emphasises the focus on sustainability and environmental awareness, as well as tying in with our roots.”

Corporate governance In terms of the restructure of the management team to support global growth, Thomson says that the focus has been on improved corporate governance, with a new board and independent directors.

“We have retained some of our founders on the board and the DRA ethos is still strongly embedded.”

A global executive committee is now responsible for the daily hands-on running of the global business, which ensures a unified approach and standard across its global operations. “Our approach is adapted for the different regions naturally, as you have to have a A solar farm designed for Xstrata’s Eland platinum project

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PROFILE: DRA

as an industry leader The South African and African sides of the company are now being aligned in terms of financial reporting and project support services

regional flavour in your outlook,” adds Thomson. He notes that the South African and African sides of the company are now being aligned in terms of financial reporting and project support services. “We are also trying to standardise the output of quality when it comes to studies being produced by our different companies.”

An overland coveyor that bridges the Olifants River in Mpumalanga designed for the Dorstfontein coal project

Change management “Change is a slow process,” says Thomson.

“DRA is a company founded on strong family values such as trust and loyalty, so any change you want to effect must be evolutionary rather than revolutionary. We have a very participative management group; some are conservative and some are very forward thinking, so getting them all to buy in and agree is a process.”

DRA is now positioning itself as a global ‘pit-to-port’ total solutions provider. “This basically means a full global service offering for the mining sector. We can get involved right at the beginning when it comes to defining resources and complying with the various reporting standards, through to designing and equipping the mine – we have got shaft and winder capabilities within the group – so we can offer a client the whole physical mine aspect, and then the design of the process plant and, on top of that,

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PROFILE: DRA

“In Canada we have a couple of projects, and that office is growing very nicely, through which we are becoming a force to be reckoned with in the Western Hemisphere.”

Paul Thomson, CEO at DRA

operational capability as well as providing all the surrounding infrastructure.”

The latter is particularly important in Africa, stresses Thomson. “When mines are constructed in a new region, it is not only the infrastructure of the mine itself, it is the surrounding communities, it is the schools, clinics and roads that the developers have to get involved with. We have got the ability and track record to deliver that infrastructure.”

Operations In addition to all of this, through its operations business known in South Africa as

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Minopex, DRA can operate and maintain a plant on behalf of a client should they require it. “If there are not requisite skills in the area, then DRA can recruit locals, put training programmes in place and train them up to operate the plant on behalf of the client.” Typically an operational contract will start with a core of expats which will decline in numbers as skills transfer takes place over the duration of the contact.

In terms of the ‘port’ component of DRA’s ‘pit-to-port’ focus, Thomson says this is equally critical as many bulk materials handling facilities are inland. “We do have the capability to carry out the rail

and infrastructure design, from stacker reclaimers to ship loaders. That aspect is now part of our suite of services.”

This is where ARDBEL fits into the picture, as this subsidiary relates specifically to bulk materials-handling projects. Thomson explains: “There are infrastructure projects that DRA will carry out on its own, but the bulk materials handling infrastructure projects will be carried out in conjunction with ELB, as a 50% co-owner of ARDBEL.” Kibali gold project currently under construction in the DRC for RandGold had its first gold pour in September 2013

PROFILE: DRA

Synergy “ELB brings materials-handling experience and expertise; we bring a large-scale project management capability to the mix, and that is where we see the synergy. Combined, we offer a bigger balance sheet that we can present to the market and give parent guarantees and so on, so the JV offers a unique competitive advantage,” says Thomson.

“If there is a processing plant involved in a large-scale materials-handling project, DRA will do it. We are facilitating the ability to deliver a complete project on behalf of the client, and I think that is very exciting, especially in the African context, where infrastructure is a constraint around these big projects.” Thomson says the attention being paid to iron ore opportunities in Central and West Africa, and coal opportunities in Mozambique and Botswana, are essentially moot as the necessary infrastructure is not yet in place.

“The infrastructure needs to be developed as an enabler for such projects,” say Thompson. An emerging trend in Africa is the general acceptance of mining as an economic mainstay, which has resulted in a concerted effort by many countries to revamp their mineral rights and mining laws “to be able to make it easier for mining houses to invest”.

Pit-to-port DRA’s ‘pit-to-port’ approach offers obvious benefits to its clients. “It is a new string to our bow and, together with our African experience, offers our clients a solution to their project.

This is a key selling point. DRA’s roots are firmly in Africa.

African countries require African solutions, and that gives us a huge advantage over companies based in Australia or Canada.”

Thomson says this is why international players are increasingly targeting local companies, in order to claim such experience.

“It is more experience than expertise. You can be an expert in your field, but if you do not know how to get things through three different border posts on the way to your project, you may be ascribing the wrong level of risk to the project.”

An important local acquisition for DRA has been Walker Ahier Holtzhausen (WAH), a civil engineering company that specialises in mineshaft development. “We recognised that as a competency we wish to retain in Africa. We will interface our civil/structural team with WAH to ensure we transfer these rare skills in a sustainable manner.”

Growth strategy Africa is the main focus of DRA’s growth strategy, asserts Thomson. “Some 10 years ago we ventured into Africa and delivered our first African project, north of the South African border, well ahead of the current wave.” International companies are increasingly looking to Africa as resources dwindle elsewhere. “Now they see Africa as a prime target, while we have been earning the African experience for some time.”

Thomson says that DRA’s drive in Africa is predicated on setting up appropriate companies in each of the countries where it operates “in order to create the necessary legal presence to ensure that DRA operates as a responsible tax citizen in those countries.” 

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03 / 02 / 2014 Stand 2524

PROFILE: DRA

Clean energy is a particular focus for DRA, which is delivering a hydroelectric project for Kibali

DRA also focuses on junior mining companies “with tenements in Africa that are based in Australia and in Canada”. This is why DRA has established highly successful and growing offices in both those countries.

International offices “We have offices in Toronto, Perth and Brisbane that clients from these regions can directly interact with. Our offering in those regions is supported through lowcost engineering based here in South Africa, from where we can deliver the project for them. Regional offices are the primary contact point for the client, they do the studies, they do the work, they develop the relationships and then we have the execution capability from here, in conjunction with the offices in Australia or Canada.

“That is key to our growth,” says Thomson. “Naturally those two hubs have to develop in their own right, and the Australian mining industry is pretty low-key at the moment, so we are in a sustaining programme there. In Canada we have a couple of projects, and that office is growing very nicely, through which we are becoming a force to be reckoned with in the Western Hemisphere.” Thomson reveals that growth in Canada “will be supported with a capital injection if required”.

Commodity super-cycle Looking at the commodity super-cycle, Thomson says that while “we are definitely in a dip in that cycle, straightforward maths tells you it has got to pick up again”.

This is due to growing demand in both China and India, and then also the African continent itself.

“If you group Africa as a continent, and you look at the penetration of cellphones, the wealth distribution and the urbanisation taking place, the demands are going to be huge. Therefore your basic minerals such as iron ore, coal and zinc are going to take off, followed by secondary minerals, including copper.” Thomson adds that South America also presents an attractive growth profile for similar reasons.

“All in all, I believe we are well-placed to continue powering ahead as a global

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company. There will be dips; we have seen that, because there are factors beyond our control. The American debt is extremely concerning and the Chinese own half of it.

What effect that will have, not even economists seem to be able to agree on. But generally I think the trend will be upward, and we will continue to develop mines, in the short, medium and long term,” says Thomson.

this regard is both the operational and engineering side of the company. The latter is relatively straightforward as it involves established project sites. “We work closely with the Mining Qualifications Authority and are active in placing graduates and ensuring the continued contribution to the development of young engineers and metallurgists.” DRA is a registered mentoring organisation for the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA), and its management team is actively involved in many of the engineering faculties at local universities.

Rare earth metals In terms of opportunities presented by other commodities, Thomson reveals that DRA is building a rare earth metals pilot plant for Mintek, which “will give us key experience and learning, and allow us to develop that aspect of our business more aggressively”. Similarly, mineral sands are likely to pick up as global growth continues unabated, and “we are well-placed to support that industry,” he adds.

Clean energy is a particular focus for DRA, which is delivering a hydroelectric power project for Randgold Resources’ Kibali gold mine in the DRC. “It is an aspect of the business we are keenly developing, namely the delivery of renewable energy. We are not ignoring solar farms, but in terms of the least impact, hydroelectric power is ideally suited for a large part of sub-Saharan Africa.”

Quality training

Latest projects

African challenges

In terms of some of the latest projects DRA is involved with, Thomson says it has been awarded the feasibility study for the Zanaga iron ore project in the Republic of the Congo. “We are currently on a pre-feasibility phase and are very proud to have been awarded that project as it reinforces our dominant position in iron ore in Africa.”

Another new client for DRA is Newmont, which has awarded DRA the basic engineering design and early works contract for its Ahafo project in Ghana. “Next year will shed more light on how that project will develop,” says Thomson.

Looking at skills development and training, Thomson says a key focus area in

In terms of the rest of Africa, Thomson says that DRA faces the same challenges as everyone else, ranging from the political to the social environment. “We comply fully with the UK Bribery Act, and we have a policy that we will not pay a bribe. The more companies that take this stance, the less bribery and corruption there will be, and doing business in Africa will become easier.

“We have delivered many projects in Africa and understand the difficulties around structuring a local business, the tax issues, employment requirements and even the nuances of cross-border shipping. We have paid our dues and can pass the benefit of this experience on to our clients.”

“DRA is also a contributor to the Mining Education Trust Fund, based on the number of process engineers it employs. For us, a critical part of our corporate social responsibility is to ensure that competency is retained in the South African training institutions. Being an engineering company, we rely on the quality of our engineers, and we want to ensure that the high standard of engineering training is maintained.”

Looking to the future, Thomson reiterates that the South African mining industry continues to pose a challenge. “It used to be that 85% of our business was derived from South African mining projects and 15% north of the border. That has turned around, which places a question mark over the continued existence of a South African-based minerals engineering industry.”

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PROFILE: CONSULMET

P RO JECT HOUSE

A year of diversifying Consulmet is a specialised technology and project house serving the mineralprocessing industry through the design, supply and construction of productionready plants.

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AST YEAR saw Consulmet vary its diamond-focused portfolio to now include copper, PGMs and coal. Below is a selection of flagship projects completed by this specialised technology and project house in its drive towards diversification:

PGMs Tweefontein Plant, Sylvania Metals Following a tender process by Sylvania Metals in early 2011, Consulmet was awarded the design and study for a new chrome and PGM recovery plant at Tweefontein mine near Steelpoort in Mpumalanga, explains project director Marie Kirsten. Following the design and budget approval, Consulmet was awarded a further extension to implement the new plant on an EPCM basis. Detail design commenced in August 2011, with project construction kicking off in January 2012. First concentrate was

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delivered in September of the same year.

“Consulmet Metals was appointed as EPCM contractor for the Tweefontein project,” explains Kirsten. The contract included the design, engineering, procurement, fabrication, supply, construction and commissioning of the process plant. “The project was officially handed over (contractual closure) in May 2013. I am happy to say it is running efficiently.”

The process plant comprises coarse and fine chromite spiral modules producing metallurgical-grade chromite, and PGM-laden fines are recovered by means of a flotation process. Various processes comprise the circuit, namely: a ROM and dump re-treatment material feed system, scrubbing and screening, milling and classification, a chromite spiral plant (an expansion of the existing plant), a float feed thickener and process water supply, a PGM flotation plant, a reagents plant, final tailings and

associated utilities such as compressor and blower systems.

Kirsten says that Tweefontein is an excellent reference for Consulmet. “It is definitely a flagship project, because we handled it from start to finish. We also had a very good safety record. These types of projects are difficult, with attendant problems, but we managed to maintain the relationship with the client. It was a very good project for us.”

Coal Stuart Coal, Delmas Project manager Mike Van Rensburg says that Consulmet is in the process of fabricating the components of a mega 450tph DMS plant at its Klerksdorp fabrication facility for client Stuart Coal of Delmas.

Consulmet’s in-house expertise has grown dramatically in the last few years, which has allowed the company to pursue more diverse projects.

PROFILE: CONSULMET

“What has made this project different is that this is a large-scale plant, designed in a modular concept, which allows it to be transported and relocated in less time than would normally be the case. The module includes its own steel catchment sump. This removes the need for most of the civil work in terms of civil bunded areas.”

Van Rensburg says this approach was adopted due to the possibility that the client might want to move this plant to another site. “Hence we have cut the civils down to a minimum. What we have done is try to design the plant in sections. These will be loaded onto trucks and transported to Delmas, where the plant will be erected like a series of Lego building blocks, in order to reduce the work on-site. That is the whole concept behind it, as the aim is to reduce the erection time by as much as possible.” Van Rensburg goes on to say: “The client expects a higher standard of quality, and Consulmet is committed to meeting this standard.”

Project process engineer Warren Monaghan explains that “this is a dual-cyclone dense medium process which allows washing of smalls and coarse fractions separately in order to maximise the yield.”

Van Rensburg says that the 15-m-high plant is 65% fabricated at the moment. “We have erected the desliming section, which is the biggest module of the lot. We will trial-erect and water-test the module prior to it being transported to site. The client has stringent performance parameters based on extensive operating experience. Consulmet has carried out its design to ensure that the TOP LEFT Sylvania Metals plant RIGHT Gecamines scrubber screening module with double-deck banana screen BELOW Gecamines Kamfundwa DMS and spirals modules and product stockpiles

specific requirements of the client are met.”

The plant is expected to be fully commissioned and up and running by the end of April. “We carried out the process design, mechanical design and fabrication, and will also install and commission the module. It is a major project that showcases Consulmet’s capabilities, especially on such a large module,” concludes Van Rensburg.

Copper Kamfundwa, Gecamines, DRC Senior process engineer Alecia Moodley has successfully undertaken a LSTK project for client Gecamines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The project covered the full range of project works from civils to commissioning, with the timeframe extending from December 2012 to August 2013. The project contract value amounted to R162 million.

The 300 tph copper treatment plant comprised a ROM receiving, primary crushing module, scrubber and screening and secondary crushing, together with a spirals module and DMS module, both with a 150 t/h capacity. Moodley explains that “the front end was built to withstand the punishment that 300 t/h can deliver, and design capacities allowed for sufficient process flexibility. The primary and secondary crushing modules behaved well, with good reduction ratios, and as a result a low circulating load on the secondary crushing circuit. A simple, open layout was achieved by omitting the secondary screen and allowing for a larger banana screen with sufficient capacity to handle both the ROM feed and the secondary crusher discharge.

“We did test work upfront to assure ourselves and the client that the process decisions we were making were sound, and that the plant that was designed was the most

effective system we could put in place,” says Moodley.

The client required that the feed containing 2% copper be upgraded to at least 12% in the spirals and 18% on the DMS. The commissioned modules far exceeded the required product specifications and operating parameters had to be adjusted to reduce the product grade.

Transport to the DRC proved to be difficult, with extensive delays at borders, and two instances where the Zambian/DRC border was closed due to riots. In spite of this, every effort was made to sign-off the plant on schedule. “I am very pleased with the outcome. We have built a robust plant that works well. We delivered this plant on an LSTK basis in a difficult environment, on-time and within budget,” concludes Moodley.

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PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

R ANDG OLD RE SOURCE S ‘ K IBAL I

The early bird gets the gold African gold miner and explorer Randgold Resources’ giant Kibali gold project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has successfully started production, well ahead of its original year-end target, and still in line with capital forecasts, writes Vicky Sidler.

T

HE MINE HAS been brought into production ahead of schedule after a massive operation, which included the resettlement of more than 4 000 families to a new model village and the substantial upgrading of the local infrastructure. The construction process alone has required a team of more than 7 000 people on-site at one time.

“It has been an enormous feat of geology, metallurgy, engineering and logistics, as well as negotiation and diplomacy,” says Mark Bristow, chief executive of part-owner Randgold Resources, which is developing and operating the project. Kibali represents an initial investment of US$1.7 billion (R17.5 billion) by Randgold and its partner AngloGold Ashanti.

“Kibali is the fifth world-class gold mine Randgold has delivered to its stakeholders

26 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

since 2000 when Morila was commissioned, and it is significant that we are doing so at a time when the gold-mining industry generally is cancelling projects, cutting budgets and revising growth plans downwards in the face of the drop in the gold price. This again illustrates the merit of Randgold’s longterm strategy of creating value through discovery and development, and of continuing to invest in our future even when the gold price turns down,” notes Bristow.

The mine The Randgold development team only moved on-site in January 2010, and since then has built a world-class gold mine in one of Africa’s remotest regions, more than doubling its reserves to 11 million ounces and increasing its resources to 21 million-plus ounces.

Randgold is developing and operating the opencast mine, which will rank as one of the largest of its kind in Africa, with a projected annual production of some 600 000 ounces of gold, reserves of 11 million ounces and resources of 21 million ounces. With the earlier start-up, Kibali is expected comfortably to exceed its production forecast of 550 000 ounces of gold in 2014.

The mine is being developed in two concurrent phases, starting as an opencast operation, with the underground mine – already well advanced – scheduled to access ore in 2015.

In the first phase, the plant’s oxide circuit was commissioned early and is treating Construction of the Kibali plant is progressing well

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

oxide ore from the stockpile of more than a million tonnes already produced by the opencast mine. The sulphide circuit will be commissioned in the second quarter of 2014.

Phase 2, which runs concurrently with Phase 1 but extends to 2016, will include the completion of the underground mine, where development is already well advanced. The underground mine is scheduled to access first ore in early 2015, with stoping operations starting later that year.

Kibali will also commission four hydropower facilities during the two phases to allow the mine to access low-cost energy from the abundant hydropower potential in the DRC. The enormous relocation programme, which has involved the resettlement of more than 4 000 households in 14 villages on the Kibali site to a new model town, Kokiza, has also been completed on schedule. The management of Kokiza is now in the process of being handed over to a local administration.

DRC focus The new Kibali gold mine could be the catalyst for substantial long-term value creation in the DRC and is destined to be an enormous economic boon to its Congolese stakeholders: the state, which has a 10% interest in Kibali through SOKIMO; the Province Orientale, where Kibali is located; and the local community.

“Over the lifetime of Kibali, approximately half of its profits will go to the DRC state in the form of royalties, taxes and dividends. By next year, it will be providing employment to more than 2 500 people on-site, almost all Congolese nationals,” says Willem Jacobs, Randgold’s general

manager: operations for Central and East Africa.

“More than half of its senior management are Congolese, while almost 100 Congolese have been trained as skilled operators at our West African mines. In addition to our locals-first employment policy, we also give preference to sourcing our goods and services from local suppliers, which spreads the economic benefit of our activities even wider.

“Randgold sees itself as an enabler of regional development, and in line with this belief, we have succeeded in interesting investors as well as the Congolese government in cooperating with us to establish a palm oil production business in the Province Orientale, where Kibali is located. With much of Kibali’s construction now complete, the workforce has been reduced by some 2 500, and the proposed palm oil venture would not only ameliorate the impact of this but could make the DRC an exporter of oil and soap.”

The history of mining in Africa is littered with projects that failed to realise their potential because exploiting developers and greedy governments had sought to cash in prematurely instead of focusing on value creation, says Bristow.

“In Province Orientale, Kibali’s stakeholders have an opportunity to start with a clean slate and to demonstrate to the world what can be achieved in Africa through a real partnership between a mining company and its hosts. To date, Randgold has delivered all that it undertook to do, and more. We expect that the Congolese authorities will also keep their side of the bargain by, among other things, building the administrative capacity required to fulfil their obligations under the mining code,” continues Bristow.

Randgold sees itself as an enabler of regional development

Full steam ahead Bristow believes that having failed to create any real value during gold’s 10-year bull run, the mining industry is now again facing a struggle for survival, but adds that increased production and reduced costs

ABOVE Kibali - Mark Bristow and other Randgold Resources directors inspect progress of the decline development for the undergound mine

should enable Randgold Resources to remain profitable in the face of a decreased gold price.

The successful development of Kibali is a tribute to Randgold’s experienced and multi-skilled team. “This is the fifth major gold mine we have built in Africa and the lessons we have learned in the process have proved invaluable to us in bringing a project of this magnitude into production ahead of schedule and on budget,” says John Steele, Randgold’s capital projects executive.

“Important as early production may be, it is still only the first step in achieving this project’s great potential,” adds Kibali general manager Louis Watum. “Our focus is now on commissioning the rest of the metallurgical plant and the hydropower stations, as well as progressing the underground development.”

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 27

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

G R OU P FIVE

Dominating mining in Africa “We remain driven to having the mining industry recognise us as its contractor of choice,” Group Five Projects’ contracts director Tony de la Motte tells Laura Cornish.

A

significant portion of the group’s current and historical market share has been greenfield projects, together with upgrading existing mines and mining infrastructure across the full spectrum of resources.

“Our strategy is to position the group as the mining construction partner of choice.

We have a strong track record in the mining sector and are well-positioned to continue serving this market effectively,” says Group Five civil engineering contracts director Gerry Henny.

Group Five’s largest business cluster – construction – is driven by one of its strategic goals: to position itself as the mining construction partner of choice for all mining companies across Africa.

The BEE Level 2 rated company has the ability to extract value from the full infrastructure life cycle, from development and investing to building, operating and servicing. Currently 43% of its construction order book is multi-disciplinary work.

While the construction cluster is one of five within the Group Five group, including both the civil engineering and projects divisions, the overriding growth objectives are aligned.

28 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

“We may already be the largest structural, mechanical, electrical and piping (SMEP) contractor in Africa, picking up between 60 and 80% of our targeted new-builds in Africa, we remain driven to have the mining industry recognise us as its contractor of choice,” says De la Motte.

“Our focus lies predominantly on the emerging infrastructure and commodities growth in Africa, with a growing pipeline in road, rail, ports and power. We have a proven track record of delivering on mining construction in very remote locations in Africa, which involves enormous logistic and people management.

“It requires an understanding of timelines, and planning adequately to avoid delays, managing various interfaces and problem solving on a daily basis,” says Group Five civil engineering contracts director Nelson Alfaiate.

Group Five has an extensive African footprint and attributes its growing success to its ability to secure repeat business with both mining houses and all major EPCM clients.

“We offer solid working experience across all African countries, with locally based expatriates who understand each country’s cultural, legislative and compliance

Tonkolili 1b plant, Sierra Leone

requirements and know how to accommodate them accordingly. This has ensured our track record for building to clients’ specifications and consistently meeting the required time schedule,” says Group Five Projects’ estimating manager Kevin Burnard.

Group Five Projects has 16 years of working experience in Ghana, 14 in Mozambique, seven years in Burkina Faso and the DRC, and five in Tanzania.

“While the countries we are currently working in are opening up extensively, we are constantly looking to expand our reach and footprint even further. The market is very buoyant,” state De la Motte and Donovan Carroll, director at Group Five Projects.

In addition to having worked on eight major copper and cobalt projects in the DRC’s Katanga province alone, the company has carried out the entire SMEIP contract for the Randgold Resources/AngloGold Ashanti jointly owned Kibali gold project, which will be one of the largest gold operations in Africa.

“We worked alongside DRA on this project, following the very successful working

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

Grootegeluk Medupi Expansion Project – Lephalale, South Africa

relationship we established with the company for Perseus Mining’s Edikan gold project in Ghana. This alone is proof of our successful ability to secure repeat business with clients.”

The company has an additional SMEP contract with Newmont Mining’s Aykem gold project in Ghana, SMPP contracts with Blackthorn Resources’ Perkoa Zinc project in Burkina Faso, African Barrick Gold’s North Mara crusher in Tanzania and Buswagi mine in Geita, as well as its second coal plant in two years for Jindal Africa in Mozambique.

Locally it was awarded the flagship contract for Exxaro’s Grootegeluk Medupi Expansion Project, which will supply Medupi with a dedicated coal stream of 14.6 Mtpa of coal for at least 40 years.

“We were awarded the fabrication, supply, installation and commissioning of the structural steel components, free-issued mechanical equipment and components, as well as all piping for the run-of-mine (ROM) feed conveyors from inside the pit to the ROM

bunkers, and from the ROM bunker to the reclaim conveyors.

“The discard bunker and its feed conveyors, as well as the two reclaim conveyors and transfer areas, also formed part of the scope of work,” says Group Five projects construction director Chris Willemse.

The following mining projects are currently in execution by Group Five Projects: a copper

project for ENRC’s Boss Mining in the DRC, the Kibali gold mine for Randgold Resources and the Kalagadi manganese project for Kalahari Resources.

Completed flagship mining projects include First Quantum’s Frontier copper project and Kansanshi copper mine in Zambia, and African Barrick Gold’s Lumwana mine in Zambia.

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 29

40

1974 – 2014

years as a listed company

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

LOG IS T I CS

Managing the supply chain Tradecorp Logistics, in partnership with Freight Forwarders Group, has supported Randgold Resources‘ Kibali Gold Mine in the DRC, meeting its strict timelines and budget constraints, explains David Cohead, Director of Tradecorp Logistics.

W

ITH MORE than 30 years’ experience, the Group has developed a network of subsidiaries and agents, offering a range of inbound supply chain services.

These include international and local procurement, freight forwarding, customs clearance, marine services, warehousing, transportation, on-site/offsite handling and equipment hire. Services are delivered across some of the harshest terrains in East and Central Africa, including remote areas of Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, the Eastern DRC, Zambia, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan.

The Group has been involved in a number of successful mining, oil, gas and power projects.

The strength and success involved in delivering on time and in budget is due to experienced, dedicated teams delivering local solutions with international standards. To better illustrate the Group’s capabilities and experience, below are examples of past projects.

Kibali Gold Mine (Operated by Randgold Resources, in a joint venture with AngloGold Ashanti and SOKIMO): The Group’s involvement constitutes

a comprehensive supply chain offering, comprising sourcing, procurement, warehousing, logistics, clearing and on-site handling. The speed and agility of the supply chain are key contributors to the continued project success.

Over 10 000 truckloads have been moved from Mombasa to site, covering an approximate 1 700 km each way. To date supply has included the movement of 100 000 Mt of cement and 50 million litres of diesel fuel. Currently the Group is focused on the transition from a construction to an operational environment.

AngloGold Ashanti’s Geita Gold Mine The Group handled the entire greenfield project, including fleet and earthmoving equipment mobilisation, and continues to support the steady-state operations at the mine. The project was successful despite operating in arduous conditions, after the El Nino rains had destroyed vital infrastructure, including roads and bridges in East Africa. It was during this time that the Group pioneered multi-modal transport for the out-of-gauge equipment over Lake Victoria

to Nungwe Bay, about 30 km from the mine site. This effective system is still in use today.

Banro Corporation The Group has provided a full logistics service to the Banro Corporation in the eastern DRC during both construction and steady-state phases of the Twangiza and Namoya mines.

African Barrick Gold Over the past seven years, the Group has been contracted to provide ABG’s operating mines in Tanzania with ‘final leg’ logistics and custom clearance. Logistics systems were created and implemented through dispatch platforms in Dar es Salaam and Mombasa, and comprised load planning and optimisation, convoy preparation and supervision, transport and heavy haulage with real-time tracking.

North Mara Mine Upgrade (Afrika Mashariki Gold Mine) When the Tanzanian miner embarked on a plant upgrade, the Group was awarded the task of managing the international and Tanzanian-based logistics. This included moving cargo from various international locations to Mombasa, from where road transportation and delivery to site was undertaken. For the past seven years, the Group has continued to provide support to all the mines in Tanzania.

Oil and Gas Projects The Group has provided logistical support for Tullow Oil and Heritage Oil in the Lake Albert region, Uganda, demonstrating robust experience in moving oil drill rigs and camp equipment. Additional activities include service companies in the oil energy exploration sector such as BGP Kenya, Weatherford Drilling, SMP Drilling, Sakson Egypt and

30 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

Schlumberger. Success is evidenced by the maintenance of unparalleled safety records in Uganda, South Sudan and Kenya.

Power Generation Projects The Group has handled many projects in this area, the most recent being Thika, an 87 MW diesel power plant located at Thika, and Rabai, a 90 MW diesel power plant located at Rabai, near Mombasa in Kenya.

One-Stop Service With extensive logistics and procurement knowledge, the Group is committed to providing cost-effective supply chain solutions to clients.

With offices in Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Uganda, the DRC, the UK and the UAE, solutions are tailored to client requirements and scope of work. Services cover the full process, with specific focus on sourcing, cost-management, expediting, quality assurance, packaging, warehousing, movement of cargo and materials handling on-site.

As a Group, the current focus is on East and Central Africa, as this is where experience and resources have been invested. The

service offering provided enables clients to have a single point of contact between their identified need for goods or services and delivery on-site.

The strength inherent in the Group is its ability to handle bulk materials through the supply chain on a continuous, reliable basis.

Examples include the supply of large quantities of cement and fuel in the region, pivotal to clients operations and project success.

Other commodities handled cover lubricants and various mining reagents. Due to the length of lead times from order to delivery, an effective supply chain solution is central to managing clients’ cash flows and stockholding strategies.

Delivering Local Solutions with International Standards In the last year, the Group implemented SAP, as an ERP system, to further facilitate efficient client integration. This has allowed real-time reporting and visibility in day-today activities within the supply chain. The Group is also proud to be the only transporter in East Africa to be certified by The International Cyanide Management Institute. The

Group has also achieved ISO 9001:2008 certification as part of its continuous improvement drive.

Long-Term Focus The Group’s experience in the mining industry has delivered attested quantified value to clients. There is no pioneering of concepts in geography or practice – the infrastructure and people are in place. The Group has invested in its fleets, which include heavy lift and out-of-gauge transportation as well as offloading and material handling equipment.

The project methodologies utilised have been developed through years of experience, and have been refined to meet the prevailing conditions in the countries in which they operate. Operations are enhanced by the mitigation of operational and financial risk through the Group’s experience, systems and processes. Services offered by the Group cover all segments within the logistics supply chain, and the correct mix of services can be deployed as and when required to meet unique client expectations.

Queries - info@tradecorplogistics.com

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 31

THE TRADECORP LOGISTICS / FREIGHT FORWARDERS GROUP PARTNERSHIP Delivering Local Solutions in Africa with International Standards – IN TIME, ON BUDGET A proven track record of handling valuable Project Cargo in East Africa for more than 30 years through dedicated and experienced Project Teams

SECTORS: Mining, Oil and Gas, Power and Infrastructure AREAS SERVED: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, South Sudan, Eastern and Southern DRC, Rwanda, Burundi, Zambia, Malawi ONE STOP SERVICE: The Partnership offers a comprehensive service covering all aspects of Procurement and Logistics and adheres to ISO certification standards Î Worldwide Procurement

Services / SAP ERP System Î Warehousing Î International Forwarding

TRADECORP LOGISTICS DMCC FREIGHT FORWARDERS GROUP

Î Group Owned Trucking Fleet including

Heavy Lift and Out of Gauge Transport with GPS Tracking Î Certified Cyanide Transporter by The

International Cyanide Management Institute

Î Customs Clearance, Onsite / Offsite

Handling Services Î Waste Management, Plant Hire Services Î Supply, Transportation, Management

of Fuel and Lubes

Dubai UAE Tel: +971 4 456 3023 | South Africa Tel: +27 11 467 9056 | E-mail: info@tradecorplogistics.com Kenya Tel: +254 41 222 7573/ 222 7575/ 222 7610 | Fax: +254 41 231 5864/ 231 5331 | E-mail: info@ffkgrp.com

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

KUMBA IRON ORE, HME WORKSHOP

Sishen keeps on trucking Gerhard Hope attends the official handing-over ceremony for the R1 billion life-of-mine Heavy Mining Equipment (HME) workshop at Kumba’s Sishen mine in Kathu in the Northern Cape.

T

HE EVENT WAS “very significant event for Sishen, because the HME Workshop is also symbolic of Sishen’s future,” says Sishen’s Johan van Schalkwyk. The facility is expected to cater for the mine’s equipment maintenance and service needs for the next 10 to 15 years.

The project started three years ago when an economic evaluation determined that a lot more value could be generated by Sishen through the exploitation of some of its deeper ore reserves. This meant increased stripping ratios and hence increased material movement requirements as the mine ramps up to a target of 300 million tonnes a year.

The new HME Workshop has a footprint size of 8 758.6 m2 for the total facility, excluding the apron. It is 28 m high and 52 m wide, with a length of 172 m. A total of 1 581 tonnes of structural steel was used in its construction, sourced from a Chinese fabricator.

32 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

The HME Workshop has adequate crane capacity to accommodate Sishen’s first new ultra-class Komatsu 960E trucks. This has meant that Sishen’s haul-truck fleet can now be increased from 75 to 156, together with a significant increase in the size and loadcarrying capacity of the haul trucks.

TWP (now WorleyParsons RSA) and BVi were appointed as engineering consultants for the pre-feasibility and feasibility reports in October 2010. They were tasked to investigate methods to fast-track the design, procurement and implementation of the project, which took three years to plan and 17 months to build.

“The aim was to find an optimised solution to cater for the additional service demands. We also needed to ensure the sustainability and improvement of safety and operational standards,” says Hamish Riddet, TWP project manager. “To achieve this, we investigated the bulk infrastructure

TOP An interior view of the HME workshop ABOVE The HME workshop can accommodate ultra-class Komatsu 960E trucks

for the new tyre workshop and associated services, because the development of new infrastructure is an essential part of future expansion.”

The previous tyre-fitting workshop had no floor and roof, and was too small for haul trucks. The new tyre workshop, with tyreremoval bays, storage areas and other bulk facilities, is essential for future and secondary fleet expansion.

Traffic congestion in and around the existing diesel workshop, which was a major safety risk, has now been reduced, thanks to the design of the facility. Travelling time to maintenance facilities has also been reduced, adding another cost and safety benefit, while

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

also providing safe access from mining operations for equipment.

Although a few days were lost due to strong winds during July, the project was a success and was completed ahead of schedule and under budget. A major milestone was the one million lost time injury (LTI) free hours and 500 LTI free days achieved by the team during construction.

Speaking at the official handing-over ceremony, WorleyParsons RSA CEO Digby Glover said: “We are proud of the facility and the success we have achieved here.” Stefanutti Stocks MD Schalk Ackerman said the project was a first for the South African mining and construction industries in that it had combined earthworks, concrete, mechanical and electrical, and building works “on a fully integrated basis, with one management structure”.

BELOW The tyre press section BOTTOM The professional team at the official opening

Andrew Loots, head of the steering committee and former GM at Sishen mine, concluded that the new facilities are aligned with the life-of-mine plan for the total operation. The life-ofmine is the expected number of years that an operation has to mine, which extends until such time that the final block of ore is extracted.

“The new contractor-built and maintained facilities will drive efficiencies at the operation, as it provides additional maintenance capacity to the existing haultruck and tyre-handling workshops. We are confident that these new facilities will cater for the additional service demands, which will add to the mine’s sustainability and productivity,” said Loots. The project has also generated several new jobs.

HAUL-TRUCK MAINTENANCE WORKSHOP Footprint size Total facility

8 758.6 m2

Workshop

7 601.8 m2

Offices

390.5 m2 (west)

Stores

789.4 m2 (east)

Waiting place

28 m2

Working bays Number

18

Floor space per bay

416.7 m2

Civil floors Thickness

550 mm

Apron thickness

550 mm

Concrete cubes installed

6 070 m3

Rebar installed

257.02 t

Overhead cranes Lifting height

17.5 m

Number of overhead cranes

4

Overhead crane lifting capacity Main hoist

3 x 30 t 1 x 60 t

Auxuliary hoist capacity 3 x 10 t 1 x 15 t

Compressed air Number of compressors 2 Compressor type

Scroll screw

Volume capacity

148 l/second (free area flow at 10 bar)

Working pressure

10 bar, with regulator to adjust flow at usage points

Nitrogen Pressure

12 bar

Strorage capacity

3 x 700 l maxi tanks

Store facilities Number of workshop stores

8

Capacity

970 m2 (total floor space)

Mega doors Number

16

Height

10.5 m

Width

13.2 m

Weight

3t

Material specification

Polyester, 1 100 dtex

Safe wind loading specification

144 km/h

Power Facility power capacity

1 000 kVA

Number of mini subs

2

Number of 11 kV switchgear panels

12

Number of distribution boards

6

Length of cable

10 447 m

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 33

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

TCTA

Central Basin’s AMD plant nears completion The new acid mine drainage (AMD) treatment plant at the Central Basin’s ERPM South West Vertical Shaft will be ready for operation by 11 June this year, representing a herculean effort by Group Five and its subcontractors to complete this critical project, writes Gerhard Hope.

I

T IS A PROUD Wayne Poulsen that gives Inside Mining an update of the AMD project. The construction site has changed markedly in the few months since our last visit in May, reflecting the fast-track nature of the project. It is hard to believe that Group Five was only appointed as main contractor in January 2013 on this project, which has an estimated value to completion of R465 million, including variation orders.

As senior site agent: civil engineering, Poulsen reports that the high-density sludge treatment plant and pump system at the Central Basin’s ERPM South Vertical Shaft, near Germiston, is about 60% complete. The ready-for-trial-operation (RFTO) date has been pencilled in as 29 January 2014, while the ready-for-operation date (RFO) is 18 April 2014. However, due to

34 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

the increase in the scope of certain works, there is a claim for extension of time that is currently being assessed. This does not necessarily mean the end of Group Five’s involvement, however, as a 12-month defects liability period will follow.

At the time of our visit, the project was slightly behind schedule, reports Poulsen.

“Our latest programme submission shows that we are finishing about six to eight weeks later than the original programme.

There are various reasons for that, some being design changes, some being that the amount of work after the inclusion of variation orders was partly underestimated, and then due to the actual ground conditions (rock to be blasted) on-site, particularly at the thickeners section.”

This minimal delay does not detract from the considerable achievement to date by

ABOVE The ready-for-trial-operation date is 29 January

Group Five and its team of subcontractors.

The project is critical to prevent AMD entering the Vaal River, which would have the disastrous consequence of affecting the water supply to Gauteng. “Without this project, the major impact will be on water security for anyone who draws water, directly or indirectly, from the Vaal River system,” says Richard Holden, a business analyst at Trans-Caledon Tunnel Authority (TCTA).

TCTA is a special-purpose vehicle established by the Department of Water Affairs to implement emergency works water management on the Witwatersrand Gold Fields, with a special focus on AMD. The AMD project comprises construction of

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

the necessary infrastructure, or upgrading of existing infrastructure, to extract and treat acid mine water and then to convey the treated water to nearby water sources.

Construction of the treatment plant at the South Vertical Shaft began in February 2013, with site handover taking place on 8 January. The decision to use an existing defunct shaft was the result of a due diligence study that evaluated the cost of constructing a new shaft. Group Five Civil Engineering was appointed as main contractor, with its full scope of works ranging from civil works to earthworks, building, and mechanical and electrical installation. “If you take it that we started on 8 January and are currently installing mechanical equipment, and have started with the electrical cabling, plus the bulk of the civil works is nearing completion, our progress has been quite remarkable, despite the difficulties that we have experienced,” reports Poulsen.

In terms of the basic treatment process, Poulsen explains that an extraction pump station, featuring two massive dewatering pumps, will pump acid water from the existing ERPM shaft. The water will be pumped to the AMD splitter box, where it is channelled into two 5 m-deep reactors, with a combined concrete footprint of 80 m x 80 m.

Lime-dosed water is pumped into the reactor from the lime-dosing plant, comprising lime storage silos, dosing equipment and eight concrete tanks (each 16 m in diameter and 4 m high). Two thickeners, each 47 m in diameter, will settle out the solids. The treated water will be discharged via pipelines to the nearby Elsburg Spruit, and the sludge via pipeline to an existing ERPM tailings facility.

In terms of challenges faced by the project, Poulsen says that the location of the thickeners, for example, required more rock-blasting than had been originally anticipated. Some of the delay was due to some unforeseen ground conditions, not to mention that the programme was always tight. However, the main reason for Group Five’s extension-of-time submission was changes to the shaft-structure design for it to be able to accommodate the pumps.

“The changes to the shaft pump station were quite significant, due to the increased quantity of reinforcing. This was always a

bit of a grey area because we had to probe the shaft to check for any blockages, and to see what condition the shaft is in. In the original design there are seven compartments in the shaft, and they had planned to use #3 and #6.

“However, when we put cameras down and probed, #6 was blocked, #3 had a minor obstruction, and #2 and #5 were clear to water level, but #2 had something else further down.” Poulsen says this investigation was not conducted upfront initially as the equipment to scan below the water level, which had already reached 213 m at that point, was unavailable at that time.

“The redesign process was relatively quick, but the structure got significantly more complicated as a result of the new

design. There is a lot more reinforcing. The direction of the beams changed. Whereas before there were short horizontal beams, now there are longitudinal and horizontal beams, with a lot of the design changes being in the reinforcing to be able to accommodate this. They are now leaving all seven of the compartments open instead of just two, to facilitate moving the pumps around and to allow access if required at a later stage.”

Poulsen adds: “Overall, we are about 62% complete. That includes mechanical, commissioning, the whole complete scope.

On the bulk earthworks and civil works side, which is your roads and servicing, we are about 84% complete. There has been approximately 35 000 m3 of cut and

TOP RIGHT AND BELOW Construction of the treatment plant began in February 2013

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 35

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

40 000 m3 of fill to date. A lot of that was cut to spoil because it was not suitable material, with the fill being mostly imported.”

The abstraction pump station is also about 65% complete, with only the structural steel component remaining, whereafter Ritz Pumps will install its equipment, BOTTOM AND BELOW Group Five’s success has been attributed to the integration of and collaboration between all the subcontractors on the project

36 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

which was on-site in containers at the time of Inside Mining’s site visit.

Poulsen says that the treatment plant as a whole is about 63% complete, with the reactors at 80% completion. These percentages run the gamut from mechanical to concrete and electrical. “On the reactor side there is minimal civil works to do; it is really just mechanical, and this aspect has already commenced with installation.”

The thickeners, which are the responsibility of M3 Construction, are about 52%

complete. Breaking this down into separate components, Poulsen says the treated water tank is 41% complete, while the lime-dosing section is about 70% complete.

The latter comprises tanks, silos and various other items. The treated water pump station is about 83% complete.

On the building side, which is the responsibility of Enza Construction, “we are about 40% complete in total. The important buildings here are the administration building, with the control room, which is 77% complete. The MCC, which is where all your power runs from, is 56% complete, while the VFD and MV room is about 38% complete, with most of the work remaining being internal finishes.”

Group Five’s success on this challenging project can be attributed directly to detailed planning, integration and cooperation among the various subcontractors.

“Work schedules have got to be planned properly, or it ends up being a mess and then the job carries on and you cannot fit all, whereas if you plan properly from the beginning and coordinate between activities and contractors, such problems can be avoided,” concludes Poulsen.

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

C ONT R ACT

Major contract clinched M3 Construction Projects is progressing well with a major infrastructure contract at the Central Basin’s new acid mine drainage (AMD) plant, reports Gerhard Hope.

E

STABLISHED IN 1998 as a medium-sized civils, earthworks and building construction company undertaking work in various parts of Southern Africa, M3 Construction Projects prides itself on developing lasting customer relationships and securing repeat business. It boasts a 7CE CIDB grading, as well as being a BBBEE Level 5 contributor.

A recent showcase for the company has been its involvement with the AMD plant at the Central Basin’s ERPM South West Vertical Shaft, which is anticipated to be operational by mid-June. M3 Construction site agent Hans Pienaar explains that the

contractor was awarded the contract to build two 50-m-diameter thickeners with associated pump stations, in addition to a 30 mdiameter treated-water sump (dam).

“Our team is myself as site agent, with Boela Coetzer and Dawie du Plessis as senior foreman, assisted by Sam Mkhaliphi, Herbert Letsoara, Morris Ngobeni and Masibulele Ndzelane,” explains Pienaar. Safety was handled by Desmond Mathabatha and Isaac Fokwane, while quality control was handled by Janette Ndou.

Pienaar says that, at the close of work in December, progress was 85% complete. “The biggest challenge we faced on this project

was the quantity of rebar and the rock we encountered. In addition, it was critical to get the project finished on time due to the rising acid water.”

The contractor had 150 people on-site at peak, including its steel-fixing subcontractors. No major plant was required as the earthworks was the responsibility of another contractor on the project team.

“We worked previously with Group Five on the toll roads around Alberton. We were able to secure this contract with Group Five by negotiating the rates,” explains Pienaar. “Our main philosophy is to develop lasting customer relationships and repeat business.”

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 37

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

AC ID M INE DRA INAGE

Tecroveer’s Thanda

Tecroveer Holdings, an established water and environmental engineering business, is playing a key role in TCTA’s acid mine drainage (AMD) project in the Western, Central and Eastern Basins of the Witwatersrand Goldfields through its Tecroveer Thanda Manzi subsidiary.

T

ECROVEER HOLDINGS IS A technology-driven group that designs processes and equipment, as well as manufactures, installs and commissions world-class turnkey solutions for all water treatment-related industries. The Tecroveer Thanda Manzi subsidiary focuses on providing a solution for treating AMD and mine-affected water, under the directorship of Izak Cronje.

According to Cronje, Tecroveer Thanda Manzi began working on TCTA’s AMD project in the Central Basin in January 2013. “We started off supplying pumps and pipework only, but as a result of our industry expertise and efficient service delivery, we were afforded further opportunities on the project.” Tecroveer Thanda Manzi forms part of the

38 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

professional project team, which includes Group Five and SAME Water.

“This is a fast-track project that has demanded a lot of resources and time, including weekly progress meetings. It is the first project of its nature and size in South Africa and hence has been a learning curve for the entire professional team,” says Cronje. He adds that the AMD project has also set a new benchmark in professional collaboration. “What is unique about this project is how all the

“Our long-term aim is to look at transforming mine-affected water into potable water”

ABOVE An aerial view of TCTA’s AMD project in the Central Basin ABOVE LEFT Izak Cronje, MD, Tecroveer Thanda Manzi

mechanical contracting service providers, comprising various companies, have been brought together into a single team to deliver the particular solution for this project.”

The main aim of the government’s shortterm solution to the AMD problem is to stop decant in the Western Basin and to prevent environmentally critical levels being breached in the Central and Eastern Basins.

The project comprises the installation of specialised pumps to extract the water from the mine void to on-site treatment plants, in addition to the construction

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

Manzi tackles AMD of an on-site AMD treatment plant in each basin. Attendant to this is the necessary infrastructure to convey the treated water to nearby water sources.

Cronje explains that the particular solution to the AMD problem in the Central Basin had already been designed prior to Tecroveer Thanda Manzi’s involvement, which therefore means that it is playing more of an engineering than a process role. “The consultant has already designed and specified the solution, so our involvement is to source, install and commission the best suited equipment and pumps,” he comments.

Looking beyond this current project, the company is also hoping to be successful as the main mechanical and electrical contractor for the Eastern Basin project, which is similar to the current Central Basin project, only considerably larger. “We have submitted what we believe to be a very competitive offer and have geared up for this potential contract.

It will place us in a totally different league,” says Cronje.

“Our long-term aim is to look at transforming mine-affected water into potable water, and not just to neutralise the water and transfer the large quantities of highly-abrasive resultant sludge to a nearby tailings facility.”

Tecroveer Thanda Manzi was established two years ago, under the Tecroveer banner, to carry this vision forward. “The aim of Tecroveer Thanda Manzi is to offer long-term solutions to the problem of mine-affected water by transforming raw wastewater into drinking water as an ultimate end result.”

Such a solution is the only answer to the critical AMD problem, compounded by the country’s growing water scarcity.

AMD is one of the most serious and potentially enduring environmental problems facing the mining industry which, if left unchecked, will have such a negative impact on long-term water quality that it will stand to upset South Africa’s water balance.

In 2012, Tecroveer entered into a partnership with Pollution to Water (P2W), in order to be able to provide a holistic technological solution to the South African government’s AMD dilemma. In the same year, Thanda Manzi and P2W established a pilot test facility in South Africa’s gold hub, Randfontein.

The Tecroveer Thanda Manzi team on-site at TCTA’s AMD project in the Central Basin

This successfully demonstrated the technology’s ability to treat sulphates in AMD water without the need for chemicals or for the traditional reverse osmosis membrane methodology. Cronje says: “Together with P2W we were successful in demonstrating that we can treat the AMD water from its raw state, up to potable water quality, cost-effectively with minimal waste products and no waste brine stream.”

P2W is a global expert in treating water from any source available, and its association with the Tecroveer Group means that South Africa now has access to the latest technology in tackling serious environmental issues such as AMD. P2W is currently operating at AngloGold Ashanti’s Obuasi and Iduapriem operations, Goldfield’s Tarkwa mines, as well as Golden Star Resources at Bogoso in Ghana. It has adapted its electrochemical technology for the treatment of AMD, thereby skipping the high density sludge pre-treatment stage. This also means that AMD can be treated directly from underground, with high metals content and a low pH. Tecroveer Thanda Manzi has been extensively involved in a water treatment project for Lonmin Platinum. Cronje explains: “We offered a total solution to Lonmin Platinum on their water requirements by treating the

water used by their local community. This has assisted Lonmin in reducing its demand on treated potable water quality for their mining operations.”

About Tecroveer Tecroveer is an established OEM water engineering company with over 35 years’ experience in the execution of multi-disciplinary turnkey water treatment projects across Africa.

The group’s subsidiaries deliver appropriate solutions for domestic wastewater, drinking water, sludge treatment and handling, as well as mine/industrial water treatment challenges.

Tecroveer has been cleaning water for future generations since 1976.

Becon Watertech, a recognised supplier of small robust wastewater treatment technologies, is part of the Tecroveer Group, providing several small, modular, containerised systems into the mining sector across Africa.

Contact: Gary Brown t +27 (0)11 752 1191 gbrown@tecroveer.co.za www.tecroveer.co.za

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 39

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

M AS EVE

First major milestone at WBJV Project 1 The Western Bushveld Joint Venture (WBJV) Project 1, also known as Maseve mine, is being developed by Platinum Group Metals (PTM) on the Western Limb of the Bushveld Complex. Sandvik‘s Garry Brooks tells Gerhard Hope about the project’s first milestone.

A

LSO KNOWN AS the Western Bushveld Joint Venture (WBJV) Project 1, the Maseve mine has achieved a 1 200 m length, billed as its “first milestone”, at which point all the general infrastructure, from ventilation to pumping water, has just commenced. The first raisebore ventilation shaft has just been completed, with the second under way.

The development rates being achieved at Maseve mine “stand as a big achievement, and sets a benchmark for the rest of the mining industry to follow in South Africa,” says Garry Brooks from Sandvik Mining and Construction RSA. Brooks, who has extensive experience in the international mining industry, including Canada and Australia, has been seconded from Sandvik’s trans4mine advisory services division. He explains his main

40 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

function as “advising the on-site team on the fast-track implementation of best practices,” in order to meet the delivery targets as well as ensure the health and safety of workers at all times.

PTM COO Peter Busse notes: “We are very cognisant of the cost-efficiency of the Sandvik machines. We are very pleased with the team and are making big inroads in terms of availability and capability. We are essentially tripling the business underground.”

Sandvik is providing the necessary primary underground equipment for the mine’s decline development, as well as maintaining the fleet through an ‘asset reliability’ team.

This team comprises 14 people on-site to ensure the machines are available and at peak performance at all times.

Sandvik has the following machines onsite at the North decline shaft: a DD311

single-boom drill rig (spare), a DD320 double-boom drill rig with split feeds, a DD321 double-boom drill rig, two Toro 400 load haul dumpers, one Sandvik LH410 and LH514, and three EJC 533 underground trucks. Another six DD321s and a DS311 roof bolter have subsequently been delivered to site as the project ramps up.

“The whole project is going through a ramp up at the moment in terms of underground.

All the way down the declines we had to get 226 m a month, which we achieved on a monthly basis, but now we are building up to 750 m a month,” says Brooks.

He comments: “This project has a special place in my heart because of the amount of metres we have achieved. Basically, it is the first time in South African mining that a 226 m or 100 m system advance on two

WBJV PROJECT 1 FACTS AND FIGURES Current target date of mid-2015 for commencement of concentrate sales from the mine.

About three million man hours of construction work has been completed.

About $190 million has been invested in the construction, equipment and underground development.

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

NEW MANDATE FOR PROJECT FINANCE PLATINUM GROUP METALS (PTM) has entered into a new mandate letter with Barclays Bank PLC, Absa Corporate and Investment Bank, a division of Absa Bank Limited, Caterpillar Financial SARL and Societe Generale Corporate & Investment Banking. These financial institutions have agreed to use commercially reasonable efforts to arrange for up to a US$195 million project finance loan to develop the Western Bushveld Joint Venture Project 1 platinum mine.

President and CEO R Michael Jones says: “We are pleased to move forward with an experienced global set of financial institutions in a structure for the WBJV Project 1 that does not require the direct participation of Wesizwe. Our near-term objectives are to complete the financing plan for the WBJV Project 1, and to continue to explore the scope and scale of the Waterberg Platinum discovery.”

A surprise decision on 18 October 2013 by Africa Wide Mineral Prospecting and Exploration, a subsidiary of Wesizwe Platinum, to not fund a US$21.8 million cash call for its 26% share of a six-month forward budget for the WBJV Project has resulted in the requirement for a restructured banking mandate and loan structure.

First production through the North twin decline system is scheduled to ramp-up through 2015 ... Based on reserves, the mine’s lifespan is 22 years

declines has been achieved, and we achieved it for a year.”

While the industry average is generally between 75 and 80 m a month, underground mining developer JIC Mining Services has achieved “phenomenal” rates, which divisional director George du Plessis attributes mainly to the deployment of the Sandvik fleet.

“In terms of the mechanisation development plan we opted for, we knew of only one OEM that could supply the equipment and services needed to achieve our underground advancement targets,” says PTM project manager Pran Maharaj.

First production through the North twin decline system is scheduled to ramp-up through 2015, with a targeted full 18-month ramp-up to 160 000 tpm run-of-mine (ROM) nameplate capacity. Based on current and reserve figures, the mine’s lifespan (for both Merensky and UG2 ore) is 22 years.

Construction of the 22 m deep North boxcut commenced in May 2011, and was completed in October of that year, followed by the subsequent development of the twin North decline system (at a nine degree dip).

This component of the project achieved 1 000 m by March 2013.

The first reef drive lateral development began in April 2013, with Phase 2 shaft infrastructure under way. The South twin decline development began in February 2013, and is on track to reach 1 000 m by mid-2015.

Unlike its neighbours, the Maseve mine is a shallow operation, which is why decline development was opted for as the most costeffective means of kick-starting the project.

In addition, two identical twin declines were decided upon as the most effective means of extracting maximum value from the ore body. Essentially what this means is that two separate mines are being developed, with immediate access to good-grade ore sections.

DRA Mineral Projects is the EPCM contractor for the surface infrastructure, plant design and build, while value engineering is being carried out by various specialist consultants. Construction of the concentrator began in January last year and is scheduled to be commissioned by mid-2015.

“I cannot say enough about the support we have received from Sandvik and its commitment and working relationship to make sure it happens,” concludes Busse.

LEFT Maseve Platinum-JIC project leader Clinton Cilliers and Garry Brooks from Sandvik Mining and Construction South Africa

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 41

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

M I NE VEN TILATION

Fans of Maseve The Bluhm Burton Engineering (BBE) Group is a global leader in mine ventilation, refrigeration and cooling systems. BBE Projects’ MD, Richard Gundersen, talks to Gerhard Hope about the company’s involvement with the Maseve mine by Platinum Group Metals (PTM) on the Western Limb of the Bushveld Complex.

A

LSO KNOWN as the Western Bushveld Joint Venture (WBJV) Project 1, the BBE Group saw its initial contract at the Maseve mine extended from the initial fan station to include the shaft collar. This was a significant affirmation of the company’s turnkey capability, says Gundersen.

BBE Projects, together with BBE Consulting and BBE Energy, comprise the BBE Group.

This engineering consultancy has established a name for itself as a global leader in mine ventilation, refrigeration and cooling.

Additional services include measurement and control of underground pollutants such as dust, diesel, methane and radiation, energy optimisation and energy recovery, computer modelling and software for ventilation and cooling networks.

BBE Consulting is staffed with a full complement of mechanical, electrical, civil, process and project engineers. This specialised team has gained invaluable experience in some of the world’s deepest mines, from South Africa to Canada and Brazil.

About 35% of its work is now outside South Africa. “We consider ourselves the world experts in deep-level ventilation and cooling.

Generally, we are involved anywhere in the world where there is mining that is deep and hot,” comments Gundersen.

Its full EPCM offering is particularly attractive to the junior mining companies, as it allows them to outsource most of the major technical requirements of their mining projects. BBE Projects was established in response to an increased client demand for a full-spectrum turnkey design-and-build service in the field of mine ventilation, refrigeration and cooling.

These projects include refrigeration systems, air-cooling installations (several 20 MW to 30 MW installations on gold and platinum mines in South Africa, Ghana

42 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

and Tanzania), ice thermal storage systems (1 000 ice-tonnes per day on gold mines) and main fan energy-saving projects (guide-vane automation throughout the South African gold and platinum mines).

BBE Projects focuses specifically on delivering complete and ready-to-operate systems to mining-sector clients. The company is structured to deliver turnkey projects incorporating design, supply, construction, commissioning and process-performance guarantees of complete surface and underground ventilation, refrigeration and cooling systems.

Particular areas of expertise include refrigeration and air-cooling stations, energy-saving schemes, thermal storage installations, main-fan control and monitoring systems. All types of projects are undertaken, from greenfield sites to plant extensions and upgrades. Operating as a totally independent entity, BBE Projects is able to offer the optimal solution using the best combination of selected equipment.

The company takes overall responsibility for the entire process, from concept through detailed engineering and construction to commissioning. Clients benefit from a focused project management team, improved project efficiency and streamlined project delivery. The client still enjoys overall authority, but without the burden of micro-management. Client standards and specifications are strictly adhered to, as are all the necessary health and safety standards.

“Designs, layouts and vendor selection are subject to client approval, but the

coordination of equipment procurement, drawing office supervision, interface details and contractual boundary issues are then our responsibility as the turnkey company. More importantly, the client’s exposure to design and construction risk is effectively transferred to BBE Projects,” explains Gundersen.

“Clients come to us, ask for a price for a complete turnkey project and then tell us to inform them when it is time to cut the ribbon. That is what we really like: Maseve mine is an excellent example where the client started with concept level studies, and we saw it through to the point where we pressed the button. That is what we really like to do,” comments Gundersen.

BBE has been involved with PTM’s flagship project on the Western Bushveld from its initial feasibility studies and design stage. It tendered and was awarded the contract for the first two fan stations; one two-fan and one three-fan station.

At the site visit following the kick-off meeting, “I informed the client that we needed

BBE Projects focuses specifically on delivering complete and ready-to-operate systems to miningsector clients

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

Trifurcation being manoeuvred into position

to know what contractor would be responsible for the raiseboring, as our shaft bends needed to tie onto the top of that. This led to a query as to who would be responsible for the shaft collars,” explains Gundersen. At that stage, BBE Projects had only assumed full responsibility for the fan station and associated civil work.

When informed that the ground conditions at the mine site were friable up to a depth of 20 m, necessitating grout curtaining, BBE Projects advised PTM that it could get experts in to assist with the shaft collars, such as Frankipile and Jones & Wagener.

“The next thing we knew was that we got our contract extended to include the shaft collars – not the raiseboring itself, because this is a bit of a dynamic with the mine itself and falls outside our ambit,” says Gundersen.

“The geotechnical engineers gave us a design for the shaft collars. So between our mechanical and civil engineers and the geotechnical guys, we got together, drilled the holes and put in grout curtains. We went for a spiling option. We got the shaft collars we wanted because we designed them and built them, whereupon the raiseboring commenced.

That is the beauty of a full turnkey solution,” says Gundersen.

While the ground stabilisation was being carried out and the shaft collar constructed on top of the spiling, BBE Projects began building the fan station simultaneously. “As soon as we finished the shaft collar, we then moved back to do the bases for the fans, and as the raisebore contractor commenced its work, we were building the fan station at the same time.

“The order for our full scope of work came at the same time, so we started off-site manufacturing of components while we were busy with the early civil work on-site, so it kicked off and came together quite nicely,” says Gundersen.

The main challenge posed by the Maseve mine project was the tight timeframe. “We went on-site in May 2012 and commissioned the first fan station in October 2012. We are proud of getting it finished and commissioned on time,” concludes Gundersen. “That is now one of our signature projects. It adds to our good track record of getting things done in challenging timeframes and in remote places.”

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 43

BBE Consulting provides a comprehensive professional consulting service from concept studies, through technical feasibility studies to preparation of detailed engineering design

BBE Projects provides a full spectrum turnkey contracting service incorporating detailed process and engineering design, supply, construction, commissioning and performance guarantee of complete systems

is a highly experienced team of professional engineers operating worldwide, specialising in mine ventilation, refrigeration, cooling, health and safety www.bbe.co.za bbe@bbe.co.za +27-11-706-9800

BBE Energy provides engineering in mine ventilation cooling systems, pumping and process solutions

VUMA is a comprehensive suite of computer programs with 3D interactive graphics for the simulation of mine ventilation and cooling networks

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

WI LLIAMSON

Bigger

is better

Petra Diamonds’ Tanzania-based mine, Williamson (also known as Mwadui), will emerge as a great cash generator in the upcoming years as diamond demand starts to exceed supply, writes Vicky Sidler.

S

EEING THAT THE pipe remains the world’s largest economic kimberlite by surface area at 146 ha, its ‘lower than average’ carat grade is of little consequence to its profit-making potential. Williamson’s true potential, however, lies in its history. The mine first became operational in 1940 and has been producing carats almost continuously ever since. It is opencast, with a pit extending only 90 m in depth, making it extremely shallow in comparison with its age.

Petra Diamonds concluded the acquisition of Williamson in 2009 – only a few months after the global crisis. After takeover, the company completed a 2.5 million tonne bulk sample to ascertain the operating parameters of the mine under Petra management.

Production was then stopped for nearly two years, while a major development

ABOVE The tailings conveyor from the two-roll classifier at Williamson RIGHT Engineers Peniel Shuma and Ayoub Mwenda discussing plant operations at Williamson

44 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

programme was carried out, which involved, among other things, the reshaping of the open pit, as well as a major rebuild of the existing plant at the mine.

This plant has now been entirely refurbished and commissioned, and commercial production commenced in March/April

2012. The mine has proved numerous times that, despite all odds, it continues to be of value to its owners (see sidebar history).

“Future diamond market fundamentals are exciting. With no major kimberlite discoveries since the 1990s, and many of the world’s major mines maturing, the potential for

PRESTIGIOUS PROJECTS

ABOVE The open pit at Williamson RIGHT The Williamson open pit mine in Tanzania

long-life kimberlite mines is endless,” says Johan Dippenaar, CEO, Petra Diamonds.

While Williamson may only record about 6 cpht on average, the grade is compensated for by the diamond value and the mine’s size, which, despite the current 17-year mine plan, has the potential to have an actual life of more than 50 years. “The grade may be considered low, but the mine still delivers ‘nice’ commercial quality ‘goods’ and has ‘lovely pinks potential’.” It also has the capability to deliver the occasional big carat– the mine delivered a 35.8 carat stone in June 2013, which sold for US$1.3 million.

Taking all these factors into account, Petra Diamonds’ plans for Williamson reflect similarly to those the company is implementing at all of its other mines in its portfolio – expansion. “This indicates Williamson’s value to the company, and our total growth aspiration,” says Dippenaar. Petra is looking to increase its carat production from just over 2.6 Mctpa (2013 calendar year) to 5 Mctpa (ROM) in the next six years. This means doubling carat production from Williamson – from over 160 000 cpta (in c.2013) to about 300 000 cpta in FY 2017.

“Successfully reaching our expanded production target has already seen us invest significant capital into the operation (US$11.7 million in FY 2013 and US$22.2 million in FY 2012), which included an entire rebuild of the plant. This was completed in the last quarter of 2012.

“It also included the establishment of a 550 000 t stockpile, containing about 30 000 carats, which will be processed up until 2016, providing us with flexibility for pit reshaping, shale removal, haul-road construction and slimes/tailings handling facilities activity took place.” Williamon’s geology is complex and comprises six different numerous zones and needs to be approached schematically.

Beyond 5 Mtpa While the aim to reach 5 Mtpa is still the main goal at Williamson, expansion beyond that is potentially on the table. “Further expansion, however, will rely on the ability to secure sufficient supply of electricity and water,” notes Dippenaar. Considering the mine still hosts a resource of 39.4 million carats, another expansion seems highly likely if its infrastructure challenges are resolved.

Dippenaar points out that the plant’s design can easily accommodate an expansion and simply requires the addition of extra modules as and when required. “At the end of the day, Tanzania is a good address to do mining business. We like the country, we like the mine, and we will invest in the asset to ensure it still delivers on all of its untapped potential.”

Carats were produced predominantly from near-surface eluvial deposits that had

WILLIAMSON’S HISTORY THE MINE WAS discovered in 1940

by Dr John Williamson, a Canadian geologist. By the 1950s, the mine had developed into a successful operation with several thousand employees, and was managed by Williamson until his death in 1958.

undergone significant secondary diamond concentration, with grades that ranged from 30 cpht to 100 cpht, and an annual production approaching 1 Mct. In 1958, the mine was sold to an equal partnership between De Beers and the colonial Government of Tanganyika.

De Beers operated the mine until 1973.

Tonnages and carats produced increased dramatically during this period, but grades dropped to well below 30 cpht as the open pit entered primary RVK material underneath the near-surface zone of eluvial enrichment.

From 1974 to 1993, the mine was operated

by STAMICO (the Tanzanian State Mining Organisation). Grades varied between 5 and 12 cpht, and diamond output fell dramatically relative to the previous 15 years, to about 70 000 carats per annum. In 1993, De Beers returned to Williamson as operator, together with a recapitalisation and ownership restructuring.

Production increased to about 195 000 carats per annum to 2005. Despite the increase in tonnages treated, the mine did not return to profitability, and De Beers decided to sell its 75% interest to Petra in November 2008. Petra completed the acquisition of Williamson in February 2009.

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 45

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POWER UP MINING IN AFRICA A leading EPC contractor specialising in low-carbon energy projects is also targeting power plants for mining clients

ESKOM, MINING INDUSTRY JOIN FORCES Electricity savings by mining projects have amounted to 600 MW since Eskom launched its Demand Side Management (DSM) programme in 2004, says senior GM Andrew Etzinger

DRIVING ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN AFRICA Mining companies are embracing energy efficiency from a global perspective, ably supported by such suppliers as the Zest WEG Group

NEW ERA FOR HYDRAULIC OILS IN AFRICA Engen is driving the launch of a new hydraulic oil on the African continent under its banner of Energy-Saving Fluids (ESF)

IN THE

HOT

SEAT

“I think it is important to realise that the cost of renewable energy has decreased significantly.” Marius Von Wielligh, energy director at Matomo

49

EDITORâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S COMMENT

50

HOT SEAT Powering up mining

The mining industry is both cost- and energy-intensive, which are important drivers for promoting energyefficiency initiatives and programmes.

Basil Read Matomo is experiencing a big demand for renewable-energy power plants for the mining industry, especially in Africa, where there is a critical demand for independent power.

48 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

56

A bright partnership

62

Driving energy efficiency in Africa

64

New era of hydraulic oils in Africa

Electricity savings by mining projects have amounted to 500 MW since Eskom launched its Demand Side Management programme in 2004.

Mining and industrial process plants depend on electric motors. The Zest WEG Group is at the forefront of innovation in this sector.

Engen is driving the introduction of a new range of Energy Saving Fluids (ESF) on the African continent.

EDITOR’S COMMENT

C OS T EFFICIE NCY

Green mining A leading EPC contractor reports that it is receiving a growing number of enquiries for low-carbon energy power plants for the mining industry. Such plants are particularly attractive for companies operating in the more remote regions of Africa, where a reliable power supply is a bottom-line imperative.

R

ENEWABLE ENERGY resources such as solar PV “offer an attractive grid supply through either a stand-alone or hybrid solution,” Basil Read Matomo energy director Marius von Wielligh tells us. Seen in a larger context, South Africa’s renewable energy programme is one of the largest of its kind in the world, with R150 billion worth of projects totalling 3 900 MW under construction at the moment.

In addition to looking at alternative energy sources, the mining industry has also been pioneering energy efficiency in South Africa as a whole. Eskom’s Andrew Etzinger reveals that the mining industry has collectively saved 600 MW since the implementation of the utility’s Demand Side Management (DSM) programme in 2004.

The mining industry consumes about 15% of Eskom’s total output. Gold mining specifically accounts for 47% of the industry’s total electricity consumption and platinum mining 33%, with the rest of the industry accounting for the remaining 20%.

The mining industry is both energyintensive and cost-sensitive, which is why energy efficiency has always been such a critical focus area to cut costs and improve efficiencies. What is interesting is that the bulk of these savings have been achieved through such simple methods as scheduling operations in off-peak periods.

Meanwhile, the latest trends range from new innovations in lighting to improved conveyor-belt technology. Suppliers such as Engen are also promoting energy efficiency in terms of mining equipment, with South Africa chosen as the global launch platform for a new range of hydraulic oils.

We also take a closer look at the latest developments in terms of motors and drives.

One of the three biggest consumers of electricity in a major industry such as mining is electric motors, which are essential to drive pump, fan and compressed air systems.

Electric motors alone account for 60% of electricity consumption in industry. Over its entire lifetime, an electric motor can cost 100 times more to run than it did to buy, which opens up significant opportunities for energy saving.

Compressed air systems, another big power consumer, are essential for driving heavy drills, for example. A latest trend in this regard is to replace such systems with electrically powered tools. The main problem with compressed air systems is their vulnerability to damage and leaks, which hampers their energy efficiency. For example, a good system should not leak more than 5%, whereas inefficient systems can lose up to 40%. Therefore the mining industry is looking to adopt modular systems that allow for better control of compressed air to match requirements,

without driving each unit out of their best efficiency zone. Another focus area is to reduce pressure drops, as a loss of one bar translates into a 6% increased electricity. When added to compressed air systems, variable speed drives can yield energy savings of up to 25%, depending on the operating profile.

Pumps, on the other hand, are not only critical for deep-level mining, but are also needed for washing and drinking water, as well as process applications. Key factors here are specification, as correct sizing of pumps is essential for high efficiency. It is therefore important that the mining industry adopts a life cycle costing approach when it comes to such high-level equipment. For a multiple ray, for example, a modular arrangepump array, ment of different siz sizes could be used for mum overall effi overall efficiency. maximum ciency.

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 49

HOT SEAT

B A S I L R E A D MATOMO

Power up mining A leading EPC contractor specialising in low-carbon energy projects is also targeting power plants for mining clients.

HE RENEWABLE Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement (REIPPP) programme has been such a resounding success that the Department of Energy launched another programme last year for small projects.

“This is for developers who want to submit projects to the Department of Energy of up to 5 MW. We do have a couple of clients in

T

The remoteness of locations demands a price premium for electricity, and this is where renewables like solar PV offers an attractive addition to a mine’s grid supply through either a standalone or hybrid solution,” according to Von Wielligh.

The question raised is whether or not this is something that is gaining ground in the mining industry. Von Wielligh thinks

With several EPC projects presented in the first two rounds of the REIPPP programme, Matomo has emerged as a prominent player in the renewable energy sector in South Africa. “We are very excited to have, in EPC execution, a Round 1 and Round 2 project in different renewable technologies.”

Matomo, in partnership with one of Spain’s largest private EPC companies,

this regard, specifically on the solar photovoltaic (PV) side,” says Marius Von Wielligh, energy director at Matomo.

The company is also receiving a large amount of interest for low-carbon energy power plants for the mining sector. “This is a big market, especially as mining operations in remote locations in African countries regularly have to make provision for their own power supply, which is essential for any kind of mining activity.

“Mining companies often make use of the ‘pilot plant’ philosophy, so they want to see small projects get off the ground first in order to evaluate performance, and then scale up as appropriate. These pilot plants typically require 1 MW to 2 MW for operation.

so: “Definitely. Energy security is something that needs to be on the agenda of mining companies.”

Matomo has been a key player in the government’s REIPPP programme. “Our energy client base is varied, but it is mostly Independent Power Producers (IPPs), with global roots. Thus we have several international companies with local representation in South Africa,” says Von Wielligh. “I think it is important to realise that the cost of renewable energy has decreased significantly, to the point where it is becoming competitively priced and sustainable without subsidy intervention. I believe it is really the tip of the iceberg in terms of potential growth throughout Africa.”

Isolux Corsán, has recently been awarded the contract for the SunEdison 60 MW Boshoff Solar Park in the Free State. This follows closely after entering into a joint venture (JV) with Isolux Corsán, which operates in 30 countries. “We have signed the JV, named Engala Africa (Engala), for participation in projects in South Africa and potentially neighbouring countries. It provides us with a solid track record, as well as an experienced execution capability.”

The SunEdison Boshoff Solar Park, which falls under Round 2 of the REIPPP programme, is a 60 MW, AC grid-connected project, with a contractual completion date of mid-2014. It is located between Kimberley and Bloemfontein. “We have established site, and construction has commenced on the civil, electrical and structural fronts,” says Von Wielligh. The steel structures, which are a major component, will be manufactured locally. The project will have a significant local component.

“There is a 132 kV line running through the property, so we will connect directly to that.” The Boshoff Solar Park will be a solar

“I think it is important to realise that the cost of renewable energy has decreased significantly.” Marius Von Wielligh, energy director at Matomo

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HOT SEAT

in Africa PV tracking installation, with the tracking technology developed by SunEdison of the US. A major multinational, SunEdison has more than 1 GW of projects worldwide, with a project pipeline of 2.8 GW of projects. “So they are a big player, and it is great to be associated with them,” says Von Wielligh.

“With the partnership forming process behind us, both partners are eager to make Engala a significant player in Africa, and this is the vehicle to tackle some of the bigger projects on the continent,” says Von Wielligh. The success of the REIPPP programme

to date reflects the growth of renewable energy in South Africa. “The REIPPP has been fantastic in terms of attracting foreign investment, stimulating the local economy and creating some meaningful jobs. The sustainability of the government’s programme is a concern.

“I hope that economic growth can sustain this level of investment and provide the necessary continuity. I am confident, however, that if the government decided to discontinue this programme, there would be sufficient momentum in the market to enable IPPs to enter into private arrangements for their projects, because renewable energy makes economic sense.”

Matomo is a wholly-owned subsidiary, with its shares held by Basil Read Holdings which, in turn, is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. It is a leading engineering and project management company, dedicated to carrying out projects in the metallurgical, chemical and renewable energy industries.

With headquarters in Melrose Arch, Johannesburg, its services include multi-disciplinary engineering, design, procurement,

VAN STADENS WIND FARM MATOMO RECEIVED notice to proceed with construction of the 27 MW Van Stadens Wind Farm on 16 November 2012, with a contractual completion date of the end of this month. The project is located about 30 km from Port Elizabeth, at the Van Stadens River mouth. It comprises nine by 3 MW wind turbines, which means a total of 27 MW, with an 8.9 km, 22 kV overhead line connecting the wind farm to the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality power grid.

construction, project management and commissioning. “Our services are based on extensive experience in the practical implementation of engineering, procurement and construction EPC projects,“ says Von Wielligh. It has successfully completed engineering and/or execution work in South Africa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Mali, Sudan, Botswana and Zimbabwe.

The company adopts a hands-on approach to problem-solving. “Our philosophy of partnering with our clients ensures open communication and transparent decision-making, and enables us to respond quickly to their needs. We offer flexibility in our approach, competitive pricing and fit-for-purpose supporting systems for the implementation of projects,” explains Von Wielligh.

“We also offer post-commissioning plant operation services,” he adds. Major projects are undertaken with the combined capabilities of alliance partners and sister companies within the Basil Read group, depending on the specific skill set required.

These projects are carried out utilising

different contracting methods tailored to suit client requirements.

Metallurgical and chemical process plants Matomo’s project capabilities range from conceptual studies to design, construction, commissioning and optimisation of pilot-scale and production facilities for materials-handling plants, concentrators, hydrometallurgical facilities, chemical production plants, smelters and refineries. Its capabilities extend to the design and engineering for supporting infrastructure and utilities, including water recovery and treatment, roads and buildings.

Energy and infrastructure Matomo’s energy division offers EPC turnkey solutions for low carbon and specialist power generation to clients in various markets and business sectors across Africa. The energy division has the necessary skills to design and engineer renewable energy projects using wind, solar PV, hydro, concentrated solar power as well as low carbon projects.

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 51

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

PA R T NERSHIP

IT firm ventures into power and automation Adapt IT has entered into a partnership with Ventyx, a company owned by ABB, a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve performance while lowering environmental impact.

T

HE PARTNERSHIP IS especially significant as it takes Adapt IT further in its quest to deliver complete solutions to African clients in the energy and utilities sector.

“This partnership is specifically targeted at accelerating Adapt IT’s ability to deliver solutions, services and support to the energy and utilities sector,” explains Sbu Shabalala, CEO of Adapt IT. Ventyx’s Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software solutions are designed to bridge the gap between information technologies (IT) and operational technologies (OT), enabling clients in specialised industries, including mining, public infrastructure and utilities, to make faster, better-informed decisions.

Johan Engelbrecht, VP Sales Africa at Ventyx, notes that Adapt IT brings a proven track record in the sale, implementation and support of specialist ERP solutions in a range of industries.

“With this partnership, Ventyx has greatly improved imp the potential for sales sale and support of its solutions solu in key Southern African A markets. Our softw software is

capable of improving the performance and management of asset-intensive industries in the vibrant economies of the African sub-continent,” said Engelbrecht.

Adapt IT will seek further opportunities for the deployment of Ventyx solutions in the Energy and Utilities sector.

Specialist software like Ellipse, provided by Ventyx, allow organisations in specific vertical industries to benefit from ERP software that goes further than the front and back office and reaches directly into operations.

Adapt IT is accredited to provide local support for companies considering the internationally proven Ventyx solutions.

“We look forward to a successful and mutually beneficial partnership with Ventyx and to include the Ventyx solution offering into our product portfolio, as we seek the best-of-breed solutions for our customer environments,” concludes Shabalala.

In other news, Adapt IT has announced its 100% acquisition of Aquilon, a South African-based oil and gas specialist consultancy. The R98 million strategic acquisition will enhance Adapt IT’s expansion into Africa's burgeoning energy sector, as well as bolster the company’s presence in

“This partnership is specifically targeted at accelerating Adapt IT’s ability to deliver solutions, services and support to the energy and utilities sector.” Sbu Shabalala, CEO at Adapt IT

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the Western Cape. It will also boost Adapt IT’s growing SAP solutions expertise, notes Shabalala.

Established in 2006, Aquilon designs, implements and supports SAP IS-Oil and other supply chain IT solutions in South Africa and internationally. It services six of the major oil companies. Aquilon forms part of Adapt IT’s new energy division, specialising in oil and gas.

The acquisition also expands the group’s operational sites to include Cape Town, which is becoming a favoured international location for Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and offshoring as global companies strive to remain internationally competitive.

The latest acquisition stands to contribute significantly to Adapt IT’s strategic growth trajectory. “The latest acquisition is aimed at improving the solutions and services we offer so as to benefit both our current and future clients,” comments Shabalala. “It will position the company to continue to deliver meaningful long-term value to our shareholders.”

ABOUT ADAPT IT ADAPT IT HOLDINGS has over 350 employees, operating out of business divisions in Durban, Johannesburg and Pretoria, and led by a core team of executives.

Adapt IT provides a variety of specialised turnkey IT solutions and services to the education, mining and manufacturing, and financial services sectors. Adapt IT has over 100 customers in South Africa, East Africa, Australasia, the US and Europe. Its services and solutions span the complete IT life cycle from consulting and application design through to delivery and support.

Talk to us at Adapt IT about meeting the challenges of your environment.

Email: sales@adaptit.co.za Durban Tel: +27 31 514 7300

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

I NS U R AN CE

Powering up insurance in Africa The investment into power and renewable energy on the African continent presents considerable opportunities for insurance advisors, Marsh Africa’s Nicola M. Harris tells Gerhard Hope.

W

HAT IS EXCITING about Africa at the moment is that it is a growing market.

“South Africa and Africa are very important in their own right, but actually what makes it very interesting is the fact it is a growing market. There is so much happening in Africa. There is the oil and gas side; there is the investment into power and renewable energy,” says Nicola M. Harris, senior VP and regional manager at Marsh Africa.

“There are lots of exciting opportunities in Africa. It is a very interesting place to be, as we are at the infancy of renewable energy, we are seeing a renaissance of power.”

Marsh is the largest insurance broking firm in the world, as well as the largest in the corporate sector in South Africa. “In the past, we were relatively small in South Africa. We acquired Alexander Forbes last year, and that is how we expanded our footprint in Africa. We have offices and correspondents throughout Africa and the world, and are expert in a number of fields,” says Harris.

In terms of mining,, Marsh is one of the ers in the world. wo “We leading mining brokers are of th the South Afrihave a substantial share you look at powcan mining market. Iff yo er, we are one of the world’s leading power experts, both in power conoperation. struction and power operation. trong posit itio ion, “We have a very strong position, at posi siti tion and we have got to that position ces and by pooling our resources ractice having specialist practice ble to groups and being able rk of draw on our network d apglobal experience and ntext, plying it in a local context, because at the end of the

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day, the South Africa market is very specific. It has its own regulations and flavour.

What everyone wants is to be able to benefit from previous experience,” says Harris.

“We try and take our global experience and apply it in a local context, so that our clients not only get value for money, but are ahead of the curve. We like to think our clients get the best service possible.” Harris acknowledges that the South African mining industry is going through a difficult period, largely due to external challenges and socio-economic factors.

“What happens in the mining sector does have an impact on us. There are definitely challenges out there. A lot of companies are reviewing their positions, and decisions they are making are perhaps being suspended for the time being. I think there is possibly more suspension of plans and maintenance of mines rather than investment at the moment. But there are a few areas bucking the trend, rare earth metals being one of them. Platinum, gold and coal are definitely struggling, and we feel the pain of our clients,” says Harris.

Harris stresses that Marsh Africa is a risk consultant as well as an insurance advisor and broker. “Risk management drives all the decision-making for insurance.

Insurance is a small part of risk,

rather than risk being part of insurance.

We look at economic management, how you can manage your risk in a contractual and financial way: alternative revenue streams might be one area; how part of your housekeeping and general maintenance programmes might mitigate risk is another way.

“We have a strong team of engineers that can carry out anything from health and safety to fire surveys, all of which is proactive. Then when you have done all that, you can start looking at insurance. Whatever risk you cannot manage in a proactive way can be transferred through an insurance mechanism. Insurance is a last resort, as opposed to being a first-resort action, which it should be if you are being proactive.”

When it comes to insurance: what exactly does the client need? Is the client buying insurance simply for the sake of it, or do they have a specific exposure? How can you obtain the best insurance programme? “The cost of insurance is not just the cost of the premium; the cost of insurance is actually the cost of the self-assured retention, and the cost of insuring such a potential loss.”

Harris concludes: “Both mining and power are dynamic areas. They are quite complex, in terms of having very many different factors to them. They also can be what we call capacity risks. In other words, they involve a lot of money, and therefore the insured limits you need to purchase are quite high.

“It is about being quite measured and considered in the way you go about purchasing insurance, reNicola M. searching the market so you get Harris, senior VP and regional the most cost-effective insurance programme. It is not a commodity manager at Marsh Africa like motor insurance.

“We try and take our global experience and apply it in a local context.”

www.marsh-africa.com

Marsh Mining, Metals & Minerals Mining is a diverse and complex industry of vital importance to the economy. As a high hazard industry, casualty risks are inherent, but mining companies must also contend with new challenges such as an industry wide decline in financial solvency, consolidation, and an aging workforce. In addition, industry-specific risks such as environmental rehabilitation make it difficult for mining companies to remain financially competitive.

Marsh's Mining, Metals and Minerals Practice offers a variety of consultative services to help clients avoid, mitigate and transfer risk.

Marsh will have representation at the 20th annual Mining Indaba from 3-6 February, 2014 in Cape Town, so pop in and visit our stand.

MARSH AFRICA www.marsh-africa.com | 011 060 7100 An authorised financial services provider | FSB/FSP: 8414

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

P OWER SUPPLY

A bright partnership Electricity savings by mining projects have amounted to 600 MW since Eskom launched its Demand Side Management (DSM) programme in 2004. Gerhard Hope talks to Andrew Etzinger.

T

HE MINING INDUSTRY consumes about 15% of Eskom’s total output. Breaking this figure down further, gold-mining accounts for 47% of the sector’s electricity consumption and platinum-mining 33%, with the rest of the industry accounting for the remaining 20%. “From Eskom’s point of view, we have specific relationships with our biggest 500 customers, simply because of the complexity of managing those accounts,” says Andrew Etzinger, senior GM at Eskom. This includes the bulk of the major gold and platinum mines, for example.

The utility began its DSM programme in 2004, with the mining industry in particular making very good use of it. “In fact, the savings we have seen coming through from our mining projects have been in excess of 600 MW, which is a substantial amount. It really has gone very well,” says Etzinger.

He attributes this to the fact that mines are both energy-intensive and costsensitive, which meant it made sound business sense to pursue opportunities to save power. The majority of savings have resulted from scheduling mining operations in off-peak periods. “That has meant additional controls and resizing of Hendrina power station

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equipment and the like, and also looking at the energy efficiency of pumping refrigerated water, particularly for deep-level mines,” says Etzinger.

The trend within the past five years has been to focus on industrial lighting projects. With mineshafts often running for many kilometres underground, lighting is a major consumer of electricity. “Changing lights presents a massive opportunity for energy efficiency. We have seen many of our mining customers not only change lights, but in certain cases develop new lights altogether that comply fully with their specific safety requirements, such as being encased in non-explosive containers,” says Etzinger.

“To begin with, it was not LED lighting per se, but more recently it has been. In fact, to begin with, there were a couple of 100 km done with industrial CFLs, which were also engineered in such a way so as to prevent theft.” This meant a unique fitting that required a special tool to change out any lights.

“We have seen great innovation from the mining industry when it comes to energy efficiency,” says Etzinger. One such technology is the three-chamber pipe system or 3CPS (also

known as a three-chamber pipe feeder system), which recovers energy from incoming water and uses it to pump water out of the mine.

Etzinger says the next big focus area for energy efficiency is compressed air systems, which is an area that has not been addressed successfully to date. “The opportunities of changing rock-drilling technology, for example, would result in substantial savings.”

However, he adds: “Although we have come a long way, there is still a substantial way to go.” Etzinger says the trend being pursued by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) is for Eskom’s customers to invest in energy-efficient technologies and upgrades, and thereby curtail electricity consumption.

“That is where we are. In certain cases, our funding has been enough to fully fund the cost of these programmes, while in other cases it has not. An example of one idea we have rolled out over various mines is the use of polycarbonate blading systems on fans.

This is highly innovative stuff,” says Etzinger.

The mining industry works closely with Eskom. “They are certainly not obliged to do so, but that is certainly how it has worked out to be,” says Etzinger. “I think we have such a close relationship because, in mines, electricity often means the difference between life and death. It differs to an aluminium smelter, for example, where if you shut off the electricity, it freezes the potlines, but there is no loss of life, whereas in mines it is a completely different proposition.”

Looking at energy audits of mines, Etzinger says that in most cases these have such specialised requirements, “they tend to bring in independent specialists, and we would work together with them. I do not think we quite have the expertise; we understand the general principles and generally know what is going on, but in many cases specialist resources are required.”

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

FIGURE 1: Energy efficiency opportunities in the mining industry

Another focus area for energy efficiency in the mining industry is conveyor systems. “I think that is going to be one of the future trends – better rubberised and lower friction systems with better motors. We have significant opportunities there,” says Etzinger.

The advent of mechanised mining “will definitely be a step change” in terms of energy

cien because all the electricity needed efficiency, crea an environment in which a human to create being can perform and survive will not be ne necessary anymore. “If you measure ene ergy efficiency as how many units of electricity it takes to produce a unit of gold, that equation would be improved dramatically,” notes Etzinger.

He says that the mining industry approaches electricity as a strategic resource. “The mining industry r recognises that, in the long run, the res responsibility for ensuring the supply ele of electricity to its mines is the industry’s respon responsibility.

Eskom would certainly be a player, but many mines are looking further.

“Yes, there are renewable energy technologies that are looking extremely positive, and that in other parts of the world are taking off exponentially, so the mining industry is looking at trying it out here and integrating it with the Eskom supply. That is why you see certain mines going with photovoltaic systems, for example,” says Etzinger.

“One particular technology we are likely to see is steam generation using solar power. It is a technology similar to solar water

heating, developed by a company in Bryanston, Johannesburg. This raises the water temperature to produce process steam that can be used in a mine or industrial facility.

Certainly the mines are looking at this technology and others as well.”

Etzinger says these initiatives represent “the recognition that the energy and electricity landscape is changing. I think these companies, understandably, want to position themselves and to safeguard themselves going into the future.

“And we fully support the mines in doing that. Our position as Eskom is that we will not be going it alone; we fully recognise it is a partnership, together with our Independent Power Producers (IPPs). What we do require from a grid perspective is that if systems are grid-tied, grid codes must certainly be complied with.

“It is a power quality and a safety consideration. Again, the mines understand this particularly well, as from their point of view they also look at power quality, in not wanting something added to the grid that would affect their neighbour, or vice versa,” says Etzinger.

T02574

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 57

We don’t talk logistics solutions, we walk it Being able to deliver high-quality logistic and supply chain solutions requires having more than just a one-size-fits-all approach. At Cargo Carriers we pride ourselves on being customer centric and while vertical specific we are always looking for challenges and opportunities in new industries and regions. We strive for the highest levels of reliability in all that we move. With each customer comes an individual set of safety, health, environmental and quality requirements, and our innovative and service orientated offering means that we are consistently able to provide for your specific needs.

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ENERGY EFFICIENCY

F L EET S OLUTIONS

Improving efficiency and reducing costs Logistics plays a vital role in mining profitability. A unique bulk haulage fleet is supplying reliable, cost-effective materials-handling solutions to the copper industry in Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, using trailers that enable return loads – even if they are bulk liquids.

R

OAD HAULAGE IS the backbone of supply-chain logistics in African mining. While rail is an important component, particularly in linking processed product to ports for export, most bulk cargo moved between mines and processing facilities is carried by road. As a result, there are two factors mining companies must consider when contracting bulk carriers: cost-effectiveness and reliability.

One-way traffic is one of the biggest contributors to logistics costs, so ensuring that trucks never travel empty creates an immediate saving. This is borne out by the experience of Buks van Rensburg, co-owner of Cargo Carriers’ Zambian subsidiary Buks Haulage Limited (BHL).

Established in 2004, BHL has enjoyed consistent growth in the Zambian and subSaharan transport sector, aided by the ability to carry return loads on most contracts, through an innovative trailer configuration.

Innovation to maximise cost efficiency “For example, our tankers carry copper concentrate from mine to smelter using a tipper,” explained Van Rensburg. “At the smelter, they load sulphuric acid, which is a smelting by-product, using the tanker component of the trailer and deliver it back to mines where it is used in leaching during copper processing.”

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By ensuring that tankers are carrying cargo on almost every journey, BHL is able to offer more competitive pricing than it would otherwise.

The secret, according to Van Rensburg, is that whatever direction the trailers are going, the load is always equally configured over the axle, thus complying with safety and road regulations, and reducing the wear-and-tear on the road surfaces and tyres.

BHL has also been using unique tankertipper combination trailers for two-and-ahalf years, built specifically to Van Rensburg’s design. The multi-purpose trailer concept is not new, but BHL’s ‘Bucksta’ has a side-by-side configuration of tankers and tippers, which avoids the loading and structural problems experienced by other designs.

The tippers are equipped with galvanised hydraulic covers, offering protection against theft and the elements. With tankers and tippers combined on one trailer, BHL is able to transport liquid and dry bulk cargo on return routes or simultaneously, delivering another logistics saving.

Adapting to African conditions African roads present haulers with extremely variable conditions, so the trucks pulling the trailers need to meet those challenges if a company is going to maintain any kind of

reputation for reliability. This is the reason that BHL, when upgrading its fleet earlier this year, opted to buy 80 FAW trucks from China, rather than a European manufacturer.

“We can service and maintain the vehicles in our own workshops,” said Van Rensburg.

“The majority of the latest European models are intensely computer-based, and you need computerised diagnostics and expensive spares to maintain them. That is just not practical in an African environment; you can end up with enormous downtime on each vehicle.

“So we saved time and money by opting for trucks that do not require digital diagnostic infrastructure and specially trained technicians to maintain them. We are saving 8% on fuel and are running at over 90% utilisation, compared to our 65% utilisation on the ‘more sophisticated’ European fleets.

This translates to lower costs on top of the savings generated by return loads. These cost-savings and the higher levels of reliability make the combination hard to resist,” said Van Rensburg.

Already active in Zambia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Namibia and Angola, BHL is planning continued expansion into sub-Saharan Africa, particularly in the mining and farming sectors, which also have a need for flexibility on return loads. It is a fast-opening market, with African growth in general still outpacing many developed nations.

To succeed in the bulk haulage business, and to be competitive to rail, trucking companies are going to have to develop innovative, entrepreneurial strategies and focus on areas of business where they can be complementary to rail. The hauliers that thrive will be those that combine appropriate technology with innovative logistics practice.

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PROFILE: ENERGY EFFICIENCY

P RIC E F ORBE S A ND PFP IN S UR AN C E BR OK E R S

(In)suring that the sun Many mines are looking to generate their own power from renewable energy sources; however, this brings its own cost and risk imperatives. Price Forbes & Partners and PFP Insurance brokers has a specialist division that concentrates on power generation, including renewables and nuclear, as well as catering for the mining industry as a whole.

T

HE INCREASE in clients looking at generating their own power is due to government incentives in the renewable sector along with the increase in cost of purchasing energy supplies from major utilities and the remote nature of mine sites.

The use of wind, solar or hydro power is on the increase. It is also apparent that the costs of generating power from wind and solar is vastly more expensive than purchasing power from third parties or from traditional onsite fossil generation.

Renewable energy is not normally a viable sustained base-load production, and alternative means of power supply have to be considered in order to maintain the integrity of the operations. There are a lot of considerations when clients try to develop power from renewable sources, such as who manufactures the equipment, the siting and foundations, and ensuring that full warranties are maintained.

Price Forbes & Partners has a long history of working with clients in the mining industry. In response to clients’ needs, it decided to bring together all its experience from across the company into one mining team,

offering clients from the US, Canada, South Africa, Australia and other territories a coordinated service-orientated team.

The mining team at Price Forbes & Partners and PFP Insurance brokers specialises in:

Construction The construction of mines and their ancillaries is a specialised and volatile business, for which technical and robust insurance markets are required. The transition from the construction phase to the operational phase is an important risk period that requires special attention, and it is important that there is a seamless transfer from the construction phase to the operational phase in order to avoid any gaps in cover. Price Forbes Group designs an insurance policy that considers the sheer breadth of coverage and forever-changing footprint that a mine under construction requires – from remote infrastructure requirements such as roads, bridges, harbours to multiple process lines.

It also recognises advancements in technology and specific natural and environmental risk exposures.

Contractors’ plant and equipment The specialised mobile equipment needed to establish a mine constitutes a large part of a contractor’s investment, whether owned or hired-in, and the schedules are very large and varied.

Cover can be arranged under an all-risk policy, which is separate from the main works policy.

Property and business interruption The operation of mining and processing facilities, often in the remotest areas and most hostile

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of environments, brings a range of circumstances beyond the experience of many general insurers.

The domestic South African insurers have a competitive advantage over international insurers as they have not been subject to major loses from multinational companies that operate in other territories.

Due to the high number of mines operating in South Africa and the specialist nature of its deep-level operations, the South African market has developed a sophisticated and in-depth knowledge and understanding that is competitive against the international insurers.

Where mining companies have operations outside Africa, or where there is a need for greater limits than those available locally, the Price Forbes Group utilises the specialist mining insurance market in London and Europe, which understands the risks involved in the insurance of these assets.

As well as insuring the fixed assets, one has to consider the profits generated from the mining companies themselves. Any reduction of capacity due to a prolonged outage can have a profound effect on cost and mineral prices. Combined with the high values at risk in many cases, this key area requires expert attention to ensure correct levels of protection are provided.

Liability Annual and multi-year placements are provided to protect the insured from litigation arising from third-party bodily injury, property damage and employee injury.

Common issues are mine collapse or explosion, damage to adjacent property, seepage and pollution.

Coverage is available for mining, processing and associated trades, including underground and aboveground exposures.

PROFILE: ENERGY EFFICIENCY

still shines This coverage can also incorporate construction and operational exposures, sudden and accidental pollution and contingent employer’s liability, and can include worker-to-worker exposure.

Environmental impairment liability The principle that the ‘polluter pays’ is firmly in place, with the polluter liable for any costs of remediation or rehabilitation, including retrospective costs. Mining and mining service-related companies are increasingly purchasing this product to cater for exposures arising from tailings dams, evaporation ponds, return water dams and AMD exposures.

Terrorism, political violence, political risk and kidnap for ransom Aspects of coverage can be packaged or placed individually to suit the needs of the insured and to protect them from an uncertain world. The escalation of commodity prices and the geopolitical climate in certain areas present many mining companies with the challenge of protecting their assets, expatriate staff and balance sheets.

Once again, specialist markets have developed that understand the risks involved, with considerable knowledge of the political, socio-economic and terrorism potential in each country.

Specie and precious metals Director and officers’ insurance Since implementation of King III and the introduction of the Companies Act (2008), directors and officers find themselves in a very onerous position, with legislation now holding directors and officers responsible for wrongful and negligent acts.

The business landscape in South Africa is changing rapidly and the associated exposures are not always apparent from the outset. This makes the purchase of this class of insurance ever more important.

Political and credit risk (PCR) PCR insurance is a financial strategy to protect lenders against the failure of customers to pay their debts. This also covers against loss caused by adverse political environment in a country leading to credit or asset losses caused by confiscation, currency non-transferability and other political risk perils. It is an indispensable risk-management tool for companies from a wide range of sectors with assets, equity or operations in commercially and/or politically changing environments.

Coverage can be arranged for precious minerals and plant and machinery imports on an all-risks physical loss or damage basis for precious metals, which includes diamonds, platinum, gold and silver. Storage and transit risk is automatic, and forms the basis of the Price Forbes Group product. Our policy has very few exclusions: employee infidelity and mysterious disappearance can be included, with low or no deductibles being imposed.

Flexibility in the product allows for any increases in the sum insured to be adjusted at a predetermined rate at the expiry of the policy, as well as allowing long-term deals. These are all negotiable in the London market.

Aviation A large number of mining companies have fleets of small fixed-wing aircraft or helicopters to access their sites in difficult terrain, or for the movement of precious cargo. Price Forbes Group has a specialist team with an extensive book of general aviation business, which is primarily the hull and liability (re)insurance of individual or fleet fixed wing or rotor wing aircraft.

Price Forbes and PFP Insurance Brokers The origins of the Price Forbes name can be traced back to 1893. The business today is a result of a 2004 merger of two highly professional brokers, Prentis Donegan and Price Forbes. 2006 saw the formation of Price Forbes & Partners, a truly independent London and Bermudabased global, specialist broker which is 100% owned by management and its employees, followed in 2012 by the incorporation in South Africa of PFP Insurance Brokers a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Price Forbes Group.

It trades with all the major international insurance and reinsurance markets in London, South Africa, Europe and Bermuda, with simplicity and service excellence in complex situations being its key driver. It uses an innovative approach and vision to provide bespoke insurance solutions for clients.

Price Forbes & Partners is the 11th highest-ranked Lloyd’s insurance broker, based on premium volume, as at Q2 2012. Today the business continues to offer exceptional solutions to valued clients, with a team of over 230 (re) insurance professionals. The skill sets of both Price Forbes & Partners and PFP Insurance Brokers are defined by the best industry standards.

International motor Price Forbes Group has developed a policy that provides protection for mining companies operating both in their own countries and in countries outside of their own domicile. It provides worldwide cover in respect of international motor risks. Our policy protects against accidental damage, fire and theft of the vehicle. In addition, cover is provided for hijacking, riots and commotions and natural disasters.

Claims The programme design incorporates claims procedures and protocols to ensure that all parties are aware of the claims-management process from day one. By putting specific emphasis on this area of its activities, and with the use of specialist underwriters, the team is able to give its clients the confidence of knowing that all claims will be dealt with as quickly and as effectively as possible.

www.priceforbes.com

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ENERGY EFFICIENCY

MOTORS & DRIVES Mining companies are embracing energy efficiency from a global perspective, supported by such suppliers as the Zest WEG Group, writes Gerhard Hope.

Driving energy efficiency in Africa

M

INING AND industrial process plants depend on electric motors, and increasing the energy efficiency of these plants is a critical focus area for mining companies as they strive to cut costs. One company at the forefront of energy efficiency is the Zest WEG Group, which began distributing electric motors to the mining industry in 1980. “There are not many companies that make 33 years,” comments Gary Daines, group sales and marketing director.

The group’s longevity has meant it has always remained ahead of the trend curve.

“Energy efficiency is undoubtedly, in my opinion, a big global focus at the moment,” says Daines. The European Union, for example, legislates minimum levels of energy efficiency for equipment. “South Africa does not have comparable legislation, but what we have seen is that the global mining companies have certainly embraced it from a global perspective, and in that way we are able to support them.”

WEG’s extensive R&D drive means that the products available locally are “really prepared for a global market. We have products that are actually ahead of the curve in terms of the South African and African market,” says Daines. While a major international player like Sasol uses IE3-rated equipment, which is the norm in the Australian market, for example, “we are seeing the rest of the market in South Africa still sitting at IE1 and IE2”.

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However, the local market is changing, and Daines says that what is particularly encouraging is that “it is a voluntary as opposed to a legislative change, which is indicative of the vision of South African industry”. Looking at future trends, an increasing focus is the energy efficiency of total systems, such as electric motors and pumps in combination.

“Currently where I think energy efficiency sometimes falls down is that because it is so easy to measure the efficiency of the electric motor, it is focused on in isolation. The electric motor could be at a 96% efficiency level, but you find it is driving a pump operating at 70% efficiency, for example.

“What we are seeing into the future is that they are going to focus on the total solution: the electric motor and pump, or electric motor and compressor combination must achieve a minimum efficiency. This will take us to a different level in the future whereby we will need to work closely with the OEM in order to optimise the energy efficiency.

“We are almost getting to the point where, on the high-volume equipment, we are going to be customising electric motors per their application in order to be able to get to those levels of efficiency. I think it is a very ABOVE WEG R&D centre in Brazil RIGHT “Hidden Power” Silo 1 business and residential building, backup power solution

exciting trend moving forward,” says Daines.

Not only that, but WEG itself likes to stay ahead of international developments.

“The maximum defined efficiency level at the moment is IE4. WEG has extrapolated based on this curve, saying what it thinks the IE5 efficiency level would be, and it has already developed a product to meet that standard, which technically does not exist yet. That is the focus of WEG, and which is where they really want to take it.”

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

Commenting on the group’s success to expensive. What we have done is ensure all date, he says: “The really important thing the solutions we offer are reliable and enis to ensure you have the right products, gineered for their environment, as well as the right companies and the common culcatering for the logistical requirements of ture to pull it altogether to make sure you getting it there.” give your customers a total electrical soluDaines explains that the group further tion.” The group has, since its inception, limits the number of staff required on-site also continued to focus on the mining industry.

“That is really where we grew.

In the 1980s and 1990s, it was the biggest market segment – and it probably still is. One of the changes that has taken place Gary Daines, Zest WEG Group sales and over time is that we have seen investment into Africa. Most marketing director of that certainly came initially from South African-based companies that contracted local project houses during the installation and commissioning and used locally sourced OEM equipment,” phases by offering a total package that insays Daines. cludes technical and customer-service supThis was the group’s first stepping stone port. “We utilise resources within our variinto Africa, “which really assisted us in ous divisions for the first line of support and getting a substantial installed base into can draw on additional resources within the Africa” – long before Africa became the flagroup if need be.” This means the customer vour of the month for so many other comonly has to make a single phone call in order panies. “We have really made it a definitive to obtain assistance. strategy,” says Daines of the group’s involveOne of Zest WEG Group’s more recent ment on the continent. acquisitions in 2009 is Zest Energy. “The “We have had an office in Ghana for threelatest catchphrase is that everything is and-half-years now, to look after the West about energy, which is very broad. The Africa region. We have a good installed base kind of projects we do there are island in Ghana, which has been developed over the power plants for Barrick Gold in Tanzania, years, so it also supports that base,” he says. where we take modular units of Cat gen“We have had to ‘Africanise’ our solutions. sets, cable them together, do the software Doing business in Africa is really tough. and installation, and give them a power Travel, logistics and accommodation are supply,” explains Daines. “We then do all

“Energy efficiency is undoubtedly... a big global focus at the moment.”

of the controls, ensuring all the engines have equal running times, and giving them the flexibility of optimised diesel usage by switching units as they are needed and also giving them the redundancy necessary for safe maintenance.”

Zest Energy is also carrying out a flagship 48 MW steam turbine project for Mondi in Richards Bay. Zest Energy is the main contractor, EnI is doing the installation, WEG in the US built the alternators and it is supplying the transformers, which were built in Brazil. “This is really the type of project that encompasses the entire group,” says Daines.

“Zest Energy has really found its niche in power generation,” he adds. It has already built two substations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which Daines says is “a great achievement for us”. The company also specialises in mobile substations for Eskom, a project that has seen significant technology transfer from WEG in Brazil.

“The specifications in South Africa are very different, but the core of ensuring that the transformer is suitable to be moved around, and can withstand the environmental conditions and being transported to site, is really what it is about. It has been great to be able to work with WEG on this. Certainly in terms of Eskom, we have had great success, and they have been really pleased with the results,” says Daines.

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ENERGY EFFICIENCY

I NDU S T RIA L LUBRICA N TS

New era of hydraulic oils in Africa

Engen is driving the launch of a new hydraulic oil on the African continent under its banner of Energy Saving Fluids (ESF), Engen’s Anton Allner explains to Gerhard Hope.

F

OR DECADES, hydraulic oil was just hydraulic oil, “and suddenly we have something new to say,” says Anton Allner, industrial lubricants strategy manager at Engen. It is rolling-out Hydrokin ESF. “We are the first lubricants marketer to really push an energy-saving hydraulic fluid on the continent.

“Everywhere you look, someone is saying something about saving energy, or claiming to have a product that will save energy costs. We did not want to simply be part of the ‘noise’, so it was important for Engen to prove through trials run in South Africa, under local conditions, that Hydrokin ESF produced the savings claimed. We wanted to prove this locally so that it could make a positive contribution to the power challenges our customers are experiencing in South Africa,” says Allner.

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Allner hails the launch of Hydrokin ESF as “the start of a new era in hydraulic oils”.

But what is different about Hydrokin ESF? Changes to hydraulic fluids over the past few decades have largely been focused on doing the same old things such as improving base fluids, additive stability and so on. Reducing energy consumption is a relatively new idea.

While reducing energy consumption has always been a factor, it has only become of

“Everywhere you look, someone is saying something about saving energy.” Anton Allner, industrial lubricants strategy manager at Engen

paramount importance of late, and it could be argued that it is one of the chief driving forces in purchasing decisions at present.

This is where the formulation of Hydrokin ESF is different. It introduces a real step change in the thinking about how hydraulic fluids are formulated, and what is expected of the fluids in practice. By understanding what is required of a fluid while in use, it was possible to design Hydrokin ESF in such a

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

way that the fluid provides not only superior performance in all aspects, when compared to other hydraulic fluids, but which also reduces energy consumption significantly.

By partnering with Energy Cybernetics in monitoring the local field trial, Engen ensured that it had a partner who knows its game when it comes to energy measurement, verification and reporting. Energy Cybernetics and Engen participated jointly in the product’s launch events to get word to end users.

By simply changing the hydraulic fluid in a system to Hydrokin ESF, immediate energy savings can be made. However, that is only part of the message. “There are also great energy savings to be made through operational and behavioural changes as well, and these should be considered together with any ‘technology’ changes in order to maximise energy savings,” argues Allner.

A simple example used by Energy Cybernetics is that changing a normal showerhead to a water-efficient one is a ‘technology’ change. “If you turn your geyser temperature down, you are doing something operationally. You are tweaking and optimising it.

Changing ‘behaviour’ would be showering rather than bathing. All of these together will reduce the amount of hot water required by a household. Introducing further technology then, such as buying and installing solar water heating or a heat pump, becomes less costly as the size of the new equipment can be reduced,” explains Allner. Energy Cybernetics focuses on helping customers to find, implement and sustain energy-saving opportunities, while sharing the risk.

In terms of proving energy savings through simply changing to Engen Hydrokin ESF, trials were run locally, which proved savings of 11% in electrical energy consumption, with a total energy demand reduction of about 4%. “These are enormous savings in any

language. In these trials, improvements in production efficiencies were not even taken into account,” notes Allner.

Trials were also run on earthmoving equipment. Measuring the energy savings is difficult though because of the great number of variables that need to be controlled and measured. A great effort was made to measure and control each variable. Three separate pieces of equipment were used, relating specifically to the mining and construction industries, says Allner.

“Drivers were changed, the oil was changed and then changed back again. The work done was monitored closely and measured. The essence of the testing was to establish how much fuel could be saved by having more fluid power. The results were astonishing, with anything between 9 and 13% overall efficiency change measured, which is significant at today’s diesel price,” says Allner.

“The findings showed that, while the actual fuel consumption did not reduce in all three trials, the machines all worked faster and did more work in a reduced amount of time. It makes sense that when your machine works faster and with more power, the driver does not slow down. So even though you may use only slightly less diesel, the job gets done faster and more rock or dirt is actually moved.”

Allner says this technology shows its true worth in modern high-pressure systems.

“The trend with hydraulic equipment is to achieve ever-higher pressure systems (450 bar plus), together with smaller hydraulic fluid tanks and increased operating temperatures. This means the oil does not have the ‘dwell time’ in the tank to release air that has been entrained in it, or to cool down, before it goes back

into circulation. Air in the oil increases the oil temperature when it is compressed.

“We have all used a bicycle pump and felt how hot it gets when pumping. The hotter the oil, the ‘thinner’ it gets. The ‘thinner’ it gets, the more the oil leaks past seals and into pumps. This leakage, in turn, makes the oil even hotter. It is a vicious circle. For every 10°C increase, the life of the hydraulic oil is effectively halved,” says Allner.

While Hydrokin ESF will show greater savings in heavily loaded, high-pressure systems, this does not mean that a customer with a small, lower pressure hydraulic unit will not realise savings. The higher the system pressure though, the greater the savings.

Allner says that Engen Lubricants is in the fortunate position of having access to inhouse superior Group III base oil from its parent company, Petronas, in Malaysia. “The combination of our local Group I base oil and the Group III base oil gives us the base-oil characteristics we need. Thus the air release is fantastic, while the stability at high and low temperature is great. Allner concludes: “I think it is time for people to sit up and think about changing, and saving.”

OPPOSITE Engen’s parent company is Petronas of Malaysia BELOW LEFT Engen sources its Group lll base oil from its parent company BELOW Trials were also run on earthmoving equipment

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SHEQ

I NNOVATION

Talking about safety

E

VERYONE KNOWS what the correct personal protection equipment (PPE) is for miners on-site, yet one often finds earplugs and respirators worn incorrectly, or safety glasses perched on top of a head. At the 3M South Africa head office in Johannesburg, Henk Beukman, global business director for mining and metallurgy says: “One of the things I keep seeing here, and in other countries still developing their safety standards further, is that we talk about it a lot, but there is not so much implementation –are the people really wearing the PPE they should be wearing?”

While there is much talk about safety standards and practices in the mining industry, the implementation is not nearly as stringent as it should be, 3M’s Henk Beukman explains to Gerhard Hope.

Beukman joined the company’s official launch of its localisation drive and factory ramp-up to manufacture products, such as respirators, locally. He says that while on the one hand safety awareness is quite high, practical implementation, on the other hand, is often a totally different manner. “Bringing more education into the mining industry, and also empowering our organisation through localisation, is a very big benefit for the country and the mining industry.”

Len Moult, 3M’s business leader in the Middle East and Africa for the safety and graphics group, adds: “One of the things we have committed to is to help educate the mining-industry customers, as to what the right thing is to do for their employees. We also need to let the employees know what to do in situations of uncertainty or potential danger, which is a subtle distinction. Very often companies underestimate the impact of such educational awareness, and only discover its value much later, as the mining industry is dealing with now.”

Fit and comfort Beukman says the critical factor for worker acceptance of PPE is fit and comfort. “Fit is very important, because you want to be really well protected. If you put on a respirator and it does not fit well or leaks, it will be doing a poor job of protection, even if the filter material is the best in the world. The other factor is comfort, the lack of which is a big reason why people choose not to wear respirators, or take theirs off after only a short while.”

The perception that fit and comfort standards are only obtainable with premium products is accurate. “Very often, our customers say this comes with a price, which is true. However, it is important if you go into a situation where you need a respirator to protect yourself, that you have one that fits and protects you, and which is as comfortable as possible. That is why we have a filter material that is easier to breathe through, with special technology that makes it lighter and with an open structure that still captures all of the particles.” The protection is enhanced even further if such products are used in conjunction with breathing valves.

“We have found over the previous year that an inordinate number of people are inserting their earplugs incorrectly,” reveals Beukman. This has resulted in 3M taking the humble earplug and developing a device that actually measures the fit and decibel protection for each ear. “Thus we are using fit as the optimal measure of protection.

ABOVE 3M hearing conservation FAR LEFT The critical factor for worker acceptance of PPE is fit and comfort LEFT 3M filter material is easier to breathe through

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SHEQ

LEFT A range of PPE products from 3M

the mining industry, or creating something completely new to the market. That is the exciting part for 3M.” The company’s localisation programme is a critical part of this new approach. “We have consolidated our activity into a single factory for efficiency reasons. 3M has certain standards that sometimes our competitors do not have. It is up to us to make sure we maintain those standards.”

Local adaptation

“If a mineworker was tested and supplied with the correct earplugs to protect his hearing to a specified level, he PPE and management ensures that the is really worn during work, that person will have a hard time coming back in five uip me years and saying you did not equip with the right earplugs and that I am now t” deaf as a result. That is the whole concept,” explains Beukman.

3M has even extended the philosophy of fit and comfort into eyewear, with a new technology for eyewear that moulds itself to the shape of any head. “Again it is a fit issue.

If it is too loose or too tight, you will experience discomfort after a little while. Now we have a technology that gives you exactly the right tension, with the same frame,” explains Beukman.

of assets, with safety covering all people, equipment safety and work hazards,” says Moult.

Mi i il and d gas are such h iimportant t t Mining, oil industries for the company that it is structured under its own division. Indeed, Mining, Oil & Gas Solutions is one of the few market-based divisions launched by 3M in the last 20 years. “We have realised, at a strategic level, that the technological capability that 3M can harness for this industry is hugely significant in terms of product and technological development opportunities,” says Moult.

Subtle differences

Ultra deep-level mining

It is such subtle differences and the emphasis on innovation and technical excellence that distinguishes 3M, comments Moult.

The company is structured into five major businesses. “These are more technologybased as opposed to market-based, but we do overlap. We refer to them as big business groups, within which you have separate divisions. 3M’s periodic table has 46 technologies, which are fundamentally mapped to a particular business.

“Cross-fertilisation of technologies is encouraged, and that is where the real power of 3M lies,” says Moult. For example, 3M’s acquisition of Peltor Communications has given it access to technology for underground communications. “Communications in the mining industry are still relatively archaic, but a lot of work has now gone into it, in order to make it intrinsically safe,” says Moult.

“You can run the risk of being too wide and not relevant, or too fragmented so your relevance is not there anymore. We try to stick to what is important in terms of challenges for the mining industry – which is about safety, productivity and protection

For example, a top mining company is grappling with the particular problems of ultra deep-level mining. “They are dealing with issues such as higher temperatures and the time it takes to get people to the work face and back. Thus there are a number of solutions we can help with if we put our collective minds to it.”

Moult says that, traditionally, 3M would take a purely technological view and develop products and solutions after researching the market. “Sometimes we are a long way ahead of the curve. It has happened before where the things we invent only come to fruition five to ten years later. That is fine. I think the important thing here is we are immersing ourselves in the challenges facing the mining industry in order to understand what the market needs, and then bringing that understanding back to our laboratories.

“That is the major difference. It does happen to some extent in other businesses, but it is a significant advantage for 3M,” says Moult. “They are looking for modifications or adaptations of current products so they are more functional or relevant to

“What we then look at is which of our products can give better value in future by being adapted for local circumstances or conditions. We have launched a ‘Proudly South African’ manufactured respirator in the safety space,” says Moult. This particular product is SABS-approved to the latest European standards, according to Dawn Isdale, national sales and marketing manager, personal safety division.

“One of the important things for us in South Africa is the reality that we are remotely located, so our supply chain is often complex, which hampers flexibility a bit, and therefore brings us a bit closer to customers’ challenges from time to time. For example, some companies will take advantage of a situation and have an unplanned maintenance shutdown, and suddenly they need a large volume of respirators, which is a difficult proposition if you have a long supply chain.”

Moult says that localisation “gives you the opportunity to manage your input costs”, which is significant due to the fluctuating cost of imported goods. This means that manufacturers are often forced to pass on price hikes directly, “which is not always acceptable to the customer base”.

Then in the longer term there is the reality of adaptation. Faces are a lot smaller in China, for example, while bearded faces are the norm in the Middle East. Moult suggests that learning these things is an evolution allowing for local capability.

In terms of such future developments, Beukman reveals that fall protection is “a really important issue,” with legislation in Europe and North America deeming that anybody working above 2 m requires fall protection. As an example of 3M’s lateral thinking, the company has applied this approach to local mining vehicles, which are often 9 m high, meaning that drivers need fall protection if they need to exit such vehicles in an emergency, or if they need to undertake any maintenance.

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 67

SHEQ

R E S E AR C H

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Much of the naturally occurring radioactivity in fracking wastewater might be removed by blending it with another wastewater from acid mine drainage (AMD), according to a Duke University-led study.

F

RACKING WASTEWATER and AMD present major environmental and public health risks. “However, in laboratory tests, we found that by blending them in the right proportions, we can bind some of the fracking contaminants into solids that can be removed before the water is discharged back into streams and rivers,” said Avner Vengosh, Professor of Geochemistry and Water Quality at Duke’s Nicholas School of the Environment in the US. “This could be an effective way to treat Marcellus Shale hydraulic fracturing wastewater, while providing a beneficial use for AMD,” said Vengosh. “It is a win-win for the industry and the environment.”

Blending fracking wastewater with AMD could help reduce the depletion of local freshwater resources by giving drillers a source of usable recycled water for the hydraulic fracturing process.

“Scarcity of fresh water in dry regions or during periods of drought can severely limit shale gas development in many areas of the US and in other regions of the world where fracking is about to begin,” said Vengosh. “Using AMD or other sources of recycled or marginal water may help solve this problem and prevent freshwater depletion.”

The peer-reviewed study was published in late December 2013 in the journal Environmental Science & Technology.

In hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, millions of tonnes of water are injected at high pressure down wells to crack open shale deposits buried deep underground and extract natural gas trapped within the rock. Some of the water flows back up through the well, along with natural brines and the natural gas. This ‘flowback fluid’ typically contains high levels of salts, naturally occurring radioactive materials such as radium, and metals such as barium and strontium.

In October last year, the South African government gazetted draft regulations to govern the further exploration and exploitation of the country’s sizeable shale gas resource, covering almost a fifth of South Africa’s land area, through fracking.

South Africa has an estimated shale gas resource of 485 trillion cubic feet, about the fifth-largest such resource in the world.

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68 IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

5th ANNUAL

Feedback & Recommendations Will Be Forwarded To Key Authorities After The Conference Confe

WOMEN IN MINING

-Moving From The Integration To The Development Of Women In Mining Date: 19, 20 & 21 February 2014

Venue: Gallagher Estate, Midrand

CONFIRMED SPEAKERS INCLUDE: GUEST SPEAKER Cynthia Carroll &ŽƌŵĞƌ ŚŝĞĨ džĞĐƵƟǀĞ ANGLO AMERICAN Sarah Luthuli sŝĐĞͲWƌĞƐŝĚĞŶƚ͗ ŽƌƉŽƌĂƚĞ īĂŝƌƐ And Human Capital FOSKOR (PTY) LTD

Bridget Radebe džĞĐƵƟǀĞ ŚĂŝƌƉĞƌƐŽŶ MMAKAU MINING

Deshnee Naidoo CFO – Thermal Coal ANGLO AMERICAN

Carina Wessels 'ƌŽƵƉ ŽŵƉĂŶLJ ^ĞĐƌĞƚĂƌLJ EXXARO RESOURCES LIMITED

Yoliswa Balfour Chairperson INYOSI COAL (PTY) LTD

Kgomotso Tshaka džĞĐƵƟǀĞ͗ ^ƵƐƚĂŝŶĂďŝůŝƚLJ WESIZWE PLATINUM LIMITED

:ĞĂŶĞƩĞ DĐ 'ŝůů Competency Area Manager CSIR: CENTRE FOR MINING INNOVATION

Zandile Radebe Mining Engineer TEAL MANAGEMENT CORPORATION

Nava Narain WƌŽƚĞĐƟŽŶ ^ĞƌǀŝĐĞƐ DĂŶĂŐĞƌ ANGLO AMERICAN - PLATINUM

Asanda Ludidi ^ŚĂŌ DĂŶĂŐĞƌ SASOL MINING

Cordelia Xoliswa Vanda 'ƌŽƵƉ ,ĞĂůƚŚ ĂŶĚ ^ĂĨĞƚLJ DĂŶĂŐĞƌ CONS MURCH MINE - VILLAGE MAIN REEF

Mabo Phokanoka HR Manager ANGLOGOLD ASHANTI

Leinet Phumelele Pako Miner CONS MURCH MINE

Thandi Momubaghan Women In Mining Coordinator KUMBA IRON ORE

Register and pay for 5 delegates and receive the 6th delegate FREE

Key Strategies To Be Discussed: ͻ ͻ ͻ ͻ ͻ ͻ ͻ ͻ ͻ ͻ

Discussing The Amendments To The Mining Charter ƩƌĂĐƟŶŐ ŶĚ ZĞƚĂŝŶŝŶŐ tŽŵĞŶ /Ŷ dŚĞ DŝŶŝŶŐ /ŶĚƵƐƚƌLJ ʹ ĞŝŶŐ dŚĞ Industry Of Choice ƌĞĂƟŶŐ hŶŝĮĞĚ &ƌŽŶƚ ĞƚǁĞĞŶ tŽŵĞŶ ĐƌŽƐƐ ůů >ĞǀĞůƐ KĨ DŝŶŝŶŐ ĚĚƌĞƐƐŝŶŐ WƌĞŐŶĂŶĐLJ ŶĚ ďƐĞŶƚĞĞŝƐŵ /Ŷ DŝŶĞƐ ŶĚ dŚĞ īĞĐƚ /ƚ ,ĂƐ KŶ WƌŽĚƵĐƟŽŶ Making Mining A Career Choice Not A Job Overcoming The Barriers To The Boardroom ŽŵďĂƟŶŐ ^ĞdžƵĂů ,ĂƌĂƐƐŵĞŶƚ tŝƚŚŝŶ dŚĞ DŝŶŝŶŐ /ŶĚƵƐƚƌLJ >ŽŽŬŝŶŐ ƚ dŚĞ ^ƚĂƟƐƟĐƐ KĨ tŽŵĞŶ /Ŷ DŝŶŝŶŐ dŽĚĂLJ Thriving In A Male Dominated Sector >ŽŽŬŝŶŐ ƚ ŚĂůůĞŶŐĞƐ dŚĂƚ ŝƌĞĐƚůLJ īĞĐƚ dŚĞ /ŶĚƵƐƚƌLJ ŶĚ dŚĞ Structure Of The South African Mining Industry

Aw DM aiting RS pe &RQ ¿UP aker DWLR Q

Free Goody G d Bag B & ŽĐƵŵĞŶƚĂƟŽŶ &ŽůĚĞƌ Courtesy Of ITC

Skills Driven Workshops NEGOTIATION - MAKE IT CHILD’S PLAY AND GET WHAT YOU WANT OR WANT WHAT YOU GET Facilitated By: Warren Beech Director: Head of Mining ROUTLEDGE MODISE ATTORNEYS LABOUR RELATIONS - A KEY COMPONENT TO BUILDING SUCCESS IN YOUR TEAMS Facilitated By: Vanessa Henry Owner HENRY ATTORNEYS

Conference Highlights GUEST SPEAKER Allison Botha SURVIVOR & CO-AUTHOR

SELF DEFENCE TACTICS Gordon C Cooper President THE PHOENIX FOUNDATION Media Partners:

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SHEQ

B REAT HING A PPA RATU S

Latest innovation in personal safety An innovative new modular personal monitoring and alarm system for self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) systems has officially been re-introduced to the local market by the African division of MSA.

A

GLOBAL LEADER in the development, manufacture and supply of sophisticated products that protect people’s health and safety, MSA Africa officially relaunched the Alpha Personal Network at its Fire Media Day towards the end of last year, an event dedicated to promoting safety equipment.

MSA Africa respiratory products manager Suraksha Mohun explained that the comprehensive Alpha Personal Network begins with the SCBA pneumatic system and extends to personal monitoring and telemetry.

Alpha technology encompasses a network of innovations that improve safety, efficiency and capability beyond classic SCBA systems. The Alpha Personal Network is a system of modular and wireless components that can be individually integrated to enhance operational safety and capability as needed. A basic set-up includes

personal monitoring, pressure data and motion alarm.

The Alpha Personal Network monitoring and telemetry components include the alphaMITTER, alphaHUD, alphaSCOUT and alphaBASE software. Despite advanced technological sophistication, Mohun noted that the system is robust and user-friendly.

All components are ATEX-approved for Zone 0 environments, which are classed as permanent risk areas that require a high level of protection, due to the fact that an explosive mix of elements are present over a prolonged period. The Alpha Personal Network is therefore designed to withstand the hostile environment that occurs in emergency fire rescue operations.

The alphaMITTER is a short-range transmitter attached to the SCBA, which sends air pressure data to the alphaSCOUT or alpha HUD units every second. The alphaSCOUT is a wireless device that functions as a pressure gauge, mini-computer and motion sensor and alarm combined.

After receiving pressure data from the alphaMITTER, the alpha SCOUT calculates remaining service time based on the user’s breathing rate. Should the user be unable to move, an integrated sensor activates an emergency alarm. In combination with the alphaBASE, the alphaSCOUT can also receive an evacuation notice from incident command.

Using a non-distracting LED display at the perimeter of the user’s field-ofvision, the alphaHUD display enables ABOVE The AlphaSCOUT and alphaTAG writer LEFT The alphaHUD

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hands-free air-supply monitoring. The wireless alphaHUD provides pressure status and alarm information, which greatly improves operational efficiency and safety.

Mohun commented that the alphaHUD is indispensable when used in combination with chemical protection suits, where the ability to use a hand-operated gauge is limited. “What is more, the alphaHUD can also deliver an evacuation signal when used in conjunction with the alphaSCOUT and alphaBASE command communication option.”

The wireless USB 2.4 GHz signal exchange between alphaMITTER, alphaSCOUT and alphaHUD creates a defined network around the user. Although devices are easily interchangeable, when an alphaSCOUT or alphaHUD makes contact with an alphaMITTER, they establish a unique signal pairing that cannot be confused by other devices in the vicinity. “In order to ensure maximum safety, they can only be switched off when the system is fully depressurised,” noted Mohun.

Intuitive alpha BASE software allows for automatic monitoring, without the need for operator intervention. An alarm signal alerts command officers of irregularities, while complete incident data is automatically logged and analysed, thereby replacing time-consuming manual reports.

The alphaBASE base station communicates with all active alphaSCOUT users to provide complete telemetric capability. All operative personnel are monitored to ensure that a rescue team can be sent in at the first signs of trouble. An evacuation signal can also be sent to specific teams or the entire crew.

SHEQ

EXH I BIT I ON

Mine safety under the microscope OSH EXPO Africa 2014 will present a comprehensive health and safety offering to the mining industry.

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S AWARENESS of the legalities around maintaining stringent health and safety standards on mines increases, the need for specifiers to access best practice in OHS products and services, easily and quickly, has become a pressing need.

For the past three years, OSH EXPO Africa has continued to grow in popularity as the only exhibition of its kind to deliver a multitude of occupational health and safety offerings in one venue. OSH EXPO Africa will be hosted by UBM Montgomery at Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand, Johannesburg, from 13 to 15 May 2014.

“By bringing the best in the OHS product and services supplier market under one roof, we are able to reduce the time needed for OHS managers to make a decision on their

OSH EXPO Africa is the perfect platform for companies involved in providing occupational health and safety products and services to the mining industry

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occupational health and safety requirements. This is advantageous for both the exhibitor, who has a captive audience and a resultant lowered cost per sale, as well as the visitor to the show, who has a multitude of choices at their fingertips in one convenient setting,” says Charlene Hefer, event director at UBM Montgomery.

A number of exhibitors have already secured their stand space for the OSH EXPO Africa 2014 show. North Safety Products Africa’s North brand of protective clothing, hearing protection, safety footwear and head and face protection is ideally suited to the harsh environments in underground mines. The company’s full product range will be available, from overalls to hearing, head, hand and eye protection, with an emphasis on gloves and respiratory equipment.

Aludar’s HexArmor purpose-built PPE is designed for specific hazards and applications, such as those found in mining and exploration. The IR-X technology shields within the company’s gloves, together with its Impact Exoskeleton, provide full back-ofhand protection. These gloves have been found to be extremely successful in operations such as jacklegging, where the risk of hand damage is possible.

In another instance of personal protective wear at work, HexArmor designers and engineers responded to a request from a major mining company that had been experiencing a high level

of recordable puncture and laceration injuries in its belt conveyor splicing operations.

The company engineered a conveyor belt chap designed to deflect the cutting blades and knives used in belt splicing maintenance.

Conveyor belt maintenance and installation injuries were completely eliminated after the introduction of the product.

NOSA Mining is able to assist mining companies with risk management and SHEQrelated consulting. In addition, the organisation provides safety audits, mine management training and mentoring programmes.

Specialised services include malaria, snake, scorpion and spider risk management.

Hearing protection equipment is particularly pertinent in the noisy conditions found in mining operations. Manufactured locally by HASS Industrial, the Noise-Ban Elite hearing protection product is custom-made and has been found to be 100% leak-tight in tests.

The devices have an adjustable valve for clear communication in noise and are both ISO 9001:2008 accredited and SABS-approved.

Included in the HSP Group’s services are occupational health medical surveillance, medical surveillance programmes and various medical and occupational health risk tests.

The company will use OSH EXPO Africa 2014 to launch a new disinfectant product that is proudly South African and eco-friendly. The disinfectant eliminates 99.9% of all viruses, fungi, spores and bacteria.

“OSH EXPO Africa is the perfect platform for companies involved in providing occupational health and safety products and services to the mining industry to gain maximised exposure. In addition, because of the large number of offerings on display, visitors will be able reduce the time spent on making a purchasing decision,” concludes Hefer.

MINING INDABA

J OHANNESBURG INDA B A 2013

Mining still in crisis The South African mining industry “is still perceived to be in crisis,” said Bernard Swanepoel. Gerhard Hope attended last year’s Investing in Resources and Mining in Africa Indaba in Johannesburg.

I

T IS A REASONABLE assumption to describe the local mining industry as still being in a state of crisis, one of the industry’s veteran executives told a packed conference venue at the Hilton in Sandton towards the end of last year. The mischievous Bernard Swanepoel also told delegates they were in the fortunate position of having top industry spokespeople debate the state of the local mining industry at the inaugural Johannesburg Indaba, instead of having to trek down to Cape Town.

“I think it would be fair to say that the mining industry is still perceived to be in crisis.

Society does not really think we deserve the right to exist; our workers seem more keen on burning down our mines than helping us build them; we are not sure whether government considers mining a gainful activity or not.

“Of course, then there is a bit of an investor stampede, and it is not in our direction.

We have enough input from investors who tell us why they are not particularly keen on touching South African mining stocks or, for that matter, mining stocks in general.

And any of you guys who are crazy enough to have executive jobs are living with the aftermath of the hangover of the commodity super cycle, more so in some commodities than in others.

“And during all of this we are going to attempt to talk about what we

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could be five years from now. So this is not a funeral. This is a gathering of people who would love for this industry to flourish and exist in five years, and we are going to hope to get that done adequately,” said Swanepoel.

International investors Kokkie Kooyman, global fund manager at Sanlam Investment Management Global, gave an overview of the mining industry as perceived by international investors. Kooyman said that it was important to look at the local context: mining employs about 2.7% of the total workforce, with a significant secondary employment effect. “Each miner supports a lot of other people.”

As a percentage of South Africa’s GDP, mining and quarrying contribute about 6% to the total economy. As a contributor to tax revenue, the figure is about 4%, or in terms of corporate tax alone, it is 11%. “The important number here is that, as a percentage of exports, mining, or mining products, make up 64% of our exports. If you compare that in an international context, it is quite interesting.

“Mining and quarrying generally are big employers globally, with their tax revenue depending on the GDP base of the country.

For example, we are more diversified into manufacturing and services, whereas Russia is still very dependent on mining, for example. For countries such as Peru, Chile and South Africa, mining as a percentage of exports is still very important, particularly in terms of the local exchange rate.”

South Africa’s fundamental economic dilemma boils down to the simple fact that the government is spending more than it is earning, which means it constantly has to borrow money in order to prop up this growing expenditure. “As a country, you are importing more than you are exporting, which means you also have to borrow more from international investors,” explained Kooyman.

Structural problem South Africa has a structural problem in terms of its current account deficit, which means it needs constant capital inflows, as well as fixed direct investment in order to grow the economy. This imbalance causes international investors to be jittery about South Africa. “If you have such a structural problem, meaning a deficit every year, and then the money stops coming in, your currency goes.” If the capital inflow reverses, it then has a dire impact on the local currency.

“So we are incredibly dependent on foreign capital for our ratings,” said Kooyman. “And you can see how, over the last five years, we have just gone one way… Press cuttings on mining read as a sad tale. I hope that what you are doing here gets through to government, as to how important mining is as a contributor to foreign exchange and what this means to the country as a whole,” said Kooyman.

Countries such as Thailand have successfully moved away from mining and built a manufacturing base. “Thailand does not have abundant natural resources, but what it did really well was grow its manufacturing base from 16% to 30%. If you look at the recent global financial crisis, the Baht was one of the currencies least affected.

“We, on the other hand, have actually maintained mining as quite a big percentage of our overall economy. As you can see, our manufacturing base has just about been decimated. So we are becoming even more and more dependent on mining. At the same time, we have also been reducing the importance of agriculture, so we are becoming ever more dependent on the service sector.

“Now this just means we are selling things to ourselves. You can see with the indebtedness levels that South Africans are experiencing that we are getting very good at selling services to people who cannot afford them, and that is no way to grow your competitiveness globally,” argued Kooyman.

MINING INDABA

Demographics While Nigeria is largely oil-driven, Indonesia on the other hand has grown its manufacturing base from 10% to 24%. The demographic profiles of African countries present a strong case for foreign investment, but this is tempered by the growing young population.

“Who is going to employ them all? The oil and gas cannot absorb more employees. You have got to create a manufacturing base, and Nigeria’s manufacturing base, as a percentage of GDP, has slumped to 2%.

“There are no factories. So Nigeria has a huge problem, and if does not solve this problem, it is going to have an Arab Spring of note. This has already starting, with an upsurge in terrorist activity, which normally happens when people are unemployed. The sad thing is that we are moving in the same direction,” said Kooyman. But the slippage, and the subsequent potential for economic disaster, has been restrained due to the continued economic relevance of mining.

“Why then does one invest capital? Over the long term, the market rewards good stewards of capital. The problem with mining… is that you need significant amounts of capital investment upfront.” Rational investors would also take into account the significant run-up to full production and productivity and ultimately profit. “In the meantime you have to contend with major labour issues, while you also do not really know what commodity prices will be or what the market will demand.

“Thus investors demand quite a high-risk premium when it comes to investing in mining, while the Warren Buffet type investors would think, what will be the return we stand to get over the next 10 to 15 years?” In the case of South Africa, Kooyman said “our government has been adding to the already high hurdles of uncertainty”.

Why would investors not invest in South Africa? “I know we punch above our weight in rugby and cricket, but we are a very small country. Our labour is expensive, and our government is unpredictable. Structurally

we have a weak currency, while geo-graphic distance from global marketss adds to the cost burden.

“We live in such a wonderful coun-try. But if you look at world distribu-tion of GDP, we are tiny. If you lookk at global internet users, the distribu-tion of arable land and the global dis-tribution of water resources – we aree h water-constrained. Even India, which n is very dependent on its monsoon rains, has more water than we do.

Labour costs “Labour costs have just been going up p and up, but it is more the quality of thee ty labour that is frightening. The quality t, of our education ranks between Egypt, hs Haiti and Libya. If you look at maths inand science, we are below the Dominican Republic, Yemen and Peru. If you ve a look at incidents of HIV-Aids, we have otho ‘circle of infection’ in Swaziland, Lesotho and Botswana.

“You have a labour force that iss poorly educated and difficult to nd train because of this legacy, and ng which generally does not have a long xlifespan. If you look at our life exth pectancy from birth, we rank with as Chad and Guinea. Afghanistan has h a higher life expectancy from birth nthan South Africa. And then, unfortunately, labour must have a liv-ing wage and be able to afford thee things that make for a good life.

“But somehow we have donee are our lasomething wrong. You can compare bour on an equivalent basis to any other country in a similar position, and you find that our labour is incredibly expensive.

Then if you look at our own demographic pyramid, you have the problem of a large, young, future worker base that is poorly educated and that is going to demand jobs and incomes. This means social grants increase, which pushes the budget deficit even higher, because someone has to fund those grants,

“We are not sure whether government considers mining a gainful activity or not.”

Bernard Swanepoel, CEO at Village Main Reef while at the same time your tax base is eroding as we struggle to find jobs for these people. And at the current cost of labour, this is not going to happen.”

South Africa may be part of the so-called ‘Fragile Five’ economies (together with

India Indonesia India, Indonesia, Turkey and Brazil) in terms of its high budget deficit, but Kooyman insists that this is an “unbelievable” country.

“We are blessed with a number of commodities, like platinum, where we have pricing power. We do have an abundance of mineral wealth, especially if you compare us to Brazil, Indonesia, India and Russia. We have incredibly good infrastructure – Transnet could do a bit better – but generally compared to those other countries, it is very good. Our regulatory and legal framework and banking system in the corporate sector are among the best in the world.

“Our accounting profession has been voted again at the top, and that is really why the JSE, to a large extent, is at its most lucrative since 1994. To a large extent, that does reflect the trust that the people have in South Africa’s management, governance and judiciary,” concluded Kooyman. “This is why the local mining industry is still in such a strong position.”

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MINING INDABA

T RENDS

Is mining the panacea for SA? The mining industry’s contribution to South Africa’s GDP has plunged, reports Gerhard Hope. Is it still a key enabler of economic growth? Tony Zoghby and Abrie Olivier from Deloitte look at the major trends likely to shape the industry.

S

OLVING SOUTH Africa’s problems cannot be placed at the mining industry’s door. This is the blunt message from Abrie Olivier, mining industry leader (advisory) at Deloitte South Africa, speaking at the launch of the company’s Tracking the Trends 2014 report into the global mining industry.

“Mining is such a pervasive industry, it is so visible, that it is seen as one of the ways of making things better in this country.

Mining companies are taking that responsibility as far as they can, but they also have shareholders. Certainly all parties recognise that dialogue, communication and a united front in the eyes of the international investor community is definitely the way to go,” said Olivier.

However, he urged that the problems besetting the South African mining industry need to be placed in a global context. “There is a global trend; it is not just a South African trend, and we often beat ourselves up about that. I do think that, notwithstanding some critical issues, especially on the labour front, there is a fair amount of goodwill between all parties to improve it.”

Tony Zoghby, mining industry leader (assurance) at Deloitte South Africa, said: “I think there is a growing realisation that there needs to be a meeting of minds on this. What surprises me, in engaging with mining executives, is how much talk is going on behind the scenes. I know we do not see it, and there are a lot of plans and strategy of which we do not see any execution.

“I can tell you that Anglo American and De Beers took the decision to invest in Venetia. There would have been a lot of talk about the future of the mining industry in

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South Africa and they would not have made empowerment and strategic minerals, for that investment without some assurance example. Zoghby acknowledges that while that there would be favourable policies goBBBEE might seem like a uniquely South ing forward.”

African issue, countries as diverse as Chile Thus the outlook for the mining indusand Columbia, and areas like South East try in South Africa is not nearly as bleak Asia, are dealing with similar problems. as some would have it. A striking feature “We talk about regulatory uncertainof Deloitte’s latest Trends report, which is ty – it is not just in South Africa. There is now in its sixth year, is that “we are not all regulatory uncertainty even in Australia, that bad in South Africa. I often only see and we starting to see it in the emerging mostly negative press around what is hapmining economies.” pening in South Africa. Dealing in the local Looking at the latest Trends report, Olenvironment, however, and if you look at ivier said that the main themes likely to things trending globally, one always needs dominate 2014 are that ‘the gloves are off ’, to put it into context.” as well as ‘embracing innovation to ensure Zoghby concurs: “Working with global the future viability of the industry’. “What companies in South Africa, we have the I mean by ‘the gloves are off ’ does not refer benefit of seeing how they operate.

I think we tend to think that the problems that exist here are unique to South Africa. If you travel around the world, Tony Zoghby, mining industry you will certainly see that those problems leader at Deloitte South Africa exist in one form or another wherever you go, be it South America, Australia or in South Africa.

We often tend to underplay that. It is the magnitude and how you deal with it that is different.”

This is despite peculiarly local and seemingly intractable issues such as

“The focus has now shifted to looking at corporate and overhead costs.”

MINING INDABA

exercise stripped out 51% of corporate overhead costs from Q4 2012 to Q4 2013.

Another compounding factor has been the legacy of unconstrained project development. “When commodity pricAbrie Olivier, advisory mining Ab es were high, everyone tried to industry leader at Deloitte in maximise output and producSouth Africa S tion. They started developing high-grade projects and trying to get as much into the market “In the past, the first default would be the as possible, because there was a demand for cost of labour.” Skills and labour capacity it. Possibly there was not that robust a reare increasingly becoming a scarcity, “so it view of projects at that point in time. We is not necessarily the right lever to pull for are starting to see the fruits of that now. productivity improvement and cost reducIf you look at the platinum sector in South tion,” says Olivier. “We are seeing a trend in Africa, where five to ten years ago they were that mining companies are adopting better bringing new projects on board as quickly analytics to understand the drivers of proas possible, now there is a focus on cutting ductivity and finding that there are many back and somehow trying to balance supply other areas within the productivity equaand demand,” says Olivier. tion that you can focus on, as opposed to Another important consideration is the just cutting labour.” global economy and China’s demand patZoghby elaborates: “For example, when terns. “China is talking about cutting the times are tough, you tend to look at operatcoal portion of its fuel mix from 70% to ing costs; you get down to mine level and cut 65%, which will have a significant impact as many costs as you can. The focus has now on the global seaborne coal market. The shifted to looking at corporate and overthermal coal market, where they are lookhead costs.” A good example is AngloGold ing to cut back, has been in oversupply Ashanti, where a recent cost optimisation since 2010.”

“Mining is seen as one of the ways of making things better in this country.” bette

to conflict; it is about getting one’s hands dirty. Mining companies have to take the gloves off and get into the detail to ensure that the future of the industry is viable and sustainable.”

Compounding challenges likely to linger into 2014 include cost inflation, supply and demand imbalances, decreased productivity and long-term commodity fundamentals. “As it stands, mining companies cannot wait out the current state of affairs and hope it will improve. Short-term actions are a key strength at the moment, and an increasing number of companies will then need to have a relentless focus on productivity in order to increase shareholder value,” says Olivier.

A key trend over the past three years has been cost escalation. “What we have seen is that business is doing something about it now,” says Olivier. “It is not only being talked about, but the mining industry is throwing its full weight at it in order to address it.” This has meant a focus on all input costs, and not just labour. “Statistics have shown that the average mining sector market capitalisation fell 21% in the last two years, and that has a lot to do with the productivity equation,” says Olivier.

The mining industry has also performed poorly compared to other major industries.

“What is interesting to note is that mining is now the lowest, compared to retail, real estate, healthcare, banks and technology. Where most of those industries have shown an upward trend over the last four years, mining has shown a decline globally, and is also on a very steep path going south. So clearly a focus on productivity is what is urgently required in the mining sector, not only locally, but also globally.

Therefore mining companies are now pursuing operational excellence as a key mitigation strategy for declining productivity. “There is a focus on efficiencies and on bringing technology to bear and adopting analytical approaches from other sectors to uncover the true underlying cost-drivers of mining,” says Olivier.

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 77

MINING INDABA

H DP E P I PING

‘Go-to’ piping product A piping product well-known and respected in the mining industry for its quality and robustness has been relaunched onto the market by Marley Piping Systems, Michelle Harding tells Gerhard Hope.

T

HE ‘GO TO’ product d t for high-density polyethylene (HDPE) piping in the mining industry has always been Megaflex. With Marley Piping Systems recently acquiring the original manufacturer, Petzetakis, this well-known, respected mining-industry product is available again, says Michelle Harding, GM of Africa operations.

Harding is a stalwart of the industry, having worked for 22 years at Petzetakis Africa, eventually becoming MD of that company. She left Petzetakis in 2009, with Marley Piping Systems acquiring the company in February last year. Today Marley Piping Systems comprises all of Marley’s assets at its Nigel, Johannesburg, premises, in addition to all of Petzetakis’s assets at its Rosslyn, Pretoria premises.

Petzetakis itself is a veteran 60-year-old company. Its previous owner was Murray & Roberts, which supplied piping to a range of industry sectors, with an emphasis on mining and infrastructure. Petzetakis had branches in most major mining towns, with a basket of products specific to the needs of the mining industry. “It catered for the day-to-day needs of clients for plastic pipe and fittings. It was also very strong

78 INS I DE MI NI NG 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

on project business, such suc as rehabilitating a pipeline for a specific mine,” explains explains Harding.

Now that Marley Pipi Piping Systems has acq acquired Petzetakis, the focus is back on mining. “Marley is now in the priv privileged position of having h 60 years of plumbing and building experience in its stable, together with considerable mining, general civil and even irrigation experience.”

She explains: “The services and products we offer into mining comprise all kinds of HDPE pipes. More than just the pipes and fittings, we can fabricate fittings from drawings, so it is not ‘off-the-shelf’, but is made to order. This brings us into a position where we are able to offer a total polyethylene solution.”

In addition to HDPE, the company can also offer PVC pipes and fittings, which are not often used in the mining industry and on a much smaller scale. This is because the material itself is not as applicable for many of the robust applications in mining.

In terms of mining hoses, Harding explains that Petzetakis had developed and manufactured the Megaflex brand since the 1950s and 1960s. “It was a strong brand name and a high-quality product that became well-known in the mining industry.

Obviously with the demise of the Petzetakis holding company, the Megaflex product could not be produced for about a period of two years. With Marley now having acquired that business, we are now back with the same range of Megaflex mining hoses.

A range of Megaflex flexible PVC hoses

“It is a new product for Marley, but it is not a new product for the industry, it just has a new holding company. It is now housed in Marley, but it is exactly the same product range the mining industry knows, and I do believe the product is well-respected for its robustness and quality. It has been developed for our mining industry, with specific abrasion-resistance and other qualities.

“We are ensuring that as we launch it back into the mining industry we use the original slogan for our marketing approach, that our trademarked stripe on the product is your guarantee. We are bringing that back,” says Harding. The Megaflex trademark has also been renewed.

“A lot of clients are excited to have the product back. We commenced with manufacturing in November last year. We are now in a position to sell and have stock in the stores and obviously we are ready to tender on annual contracts.

“There is an excitement with most of the older clients that our product is back, because they were battling to get good-quality hose while the factory was closed,” concludes Harding. “Our big opportunity is to position ourselves in the mining industry as a strategic and a serious player.”

Megaflex mining hoses were developed especially for South African mining conditions. Applications include compressors, jack hammers, pneumatic tools, highpressure air and water conveyance, and explosives loading.

The hoses are manufactured with a PVC inner liner, polyester reinforcing and a PVC outer cover. They are long-lasting, lightweight, flexible, cut- and abrasionresistant, oil-resistant and non-absorbent, tested for high burst pressures and are able to withstand temperatures ranging from 0˚C to 60˚C.

Y o u r

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MINING INDABA

C E LEBR ATING 50 GRE AT Y E AR S

Cheers to Delba Electrical South African electrical engineering company Delba Electrical is celebrating its 50th anniversary, reports Laura Cornish. To mark this major milestone, it is undertaking a massive expansion, including 7 200 m2 of heavy engineering workshop space.

T

HE COMPANY was founded in 1963, when it first started operating from an old bakery in Springs.

Three years later, Delba relocated to its current premises, which have expanded numerous times to facilitate its growing order book.

Armando Balocco, founder and executive director of Delba Electrical, attributes the company’s success to the inherent Delba philosophy of “respect and cooperation”, as well as its ability to “always stay one step ahead of the game in terms of quality and technology”. It was the first local motor repairer to be fully certified, audited and approved as an SKF motor rewinder and repairer. Delba is also a certified WEG premium efficiency electric motor rebuilder and last year was appointed as sub-Saharan African service provider for US-based Flanders electric motor range.

In September last year, SKF South Africa awarded Delba Electrical with its fourth recertification status. SKF’s distributor development manager, Anton Theunissen, explains that the rewinder programme is awarded every two years with the objective of improving motor repair effectiveness for enhanced motor reliability and improved mean time between failures.

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“Our certified rewinder programme is in line with our global commitment to sharing engineering knowledge with our customers to assist them in achieving the lowest total cost of ownership and rapid return on their equipment investments. The advantages of SKF’s ongoing commitment to excellence in terms of product quality, service and training are passed on to our certified rebuilders,” Theunissen said at the time of the recertification announcement.

Expanding for another half century Expanding multiple times and celebrating 50 years of successful business is only the beginning of Delba Electrical’s story. The first half of this year will see the company complete the expansion project that will include the latest technology and equipment.

Delba has taken cognisance of the national skills shortage, and has proactively implemented a comprehensive apprenticeship training programme. “Our new plant provides us with new capabilities that open up a whole new line of business opportunities in terms of much larger motor rewinds,” according to Delba MD David Balocco. “Coinciding with the opening of the new plant will be an approximate 20% increase in Delba Electrical’s staff complement, which will further

enhance our Level 4 BBBEE status,” continues Balocco. A restructuring of the current premises to better streamline processes and accommodate volume increases will follow.

With the new premises up and running, Delba will focus on its project work in Africa, including its field service capabilities. Delba offers its clients a ‘total motor solution’, which embraces experience, knowledge, 24-hour service and the latest technology.

The project is an indicator of the company’s commitment to operate in Africa, and highlights its capabilities to assist under urgent and difficult circumstances. It also demonstrates Delba’s confidence in the South African economy.

With 50 great years behind it, Delba Electrical looks forward to keeping the momentum going, growing its business further and delivering the quality service its name has become synonymous for.

Delba is inviting all of its clients to visit its plant and witness the dedication with which it conducts its business.

INSET Delba’s first official operating facility BELOW With its new premises up and running, Delba Electrical will focus on its project work in Africa, including its fieldservice capabilities

MINING INDABA

TA KI NG DE LIVE RY

Actros trucks are delivered

STRATEGIC PARTNERS

Two new Mercedes-Benz Actros road haulers have been delivered to Bell Equipment in Richards Bay.

B

ell Equipment, a manufacturer and distributor of articulated dump trucks (ADTs), got to feel the excitement of being at the receiving end in November when two new MercedesBenz Actros road haulers were delivered to the company’s Richards Bay factory.

The two Actros 2644LS/33 haulers are fitted with skeletal trailers, supplied by trailer specialist Afrit, and will be used to transport containers between the factory and the harbours of Durban and Richards Bay. Bell Equipment GM: Logistics Steve Martin says the two trucks join the company’s existing fleet of three Mercedes Benz eightton trucks, which are used to transport parts between the factory and offsite warehouses in Richards Bay, and are part of a drive to improve cost efficiencies and controls relating to logistics.

Bell Equipment group chief executive Gary Bell gets behind the wheel of one of the company’s two new Actros trucks, delivered in November last year as part of a strategy to reduce logistics costs

“Currently we receive about 60 containers a month from the Port of Durban.

These include various components that are imported, predominantly from Europe, such as tyres, engines and transmissions,” explains Martin.

“At the same time, we dispatch about 20 containers a month, which house semi knock-down kits of our ADTs for our Germany factory. Based on our business model, we anticipate a 15% to 20% cost-saving using our own Bell trucks to move these containers.”

The new Mercedes-Benz trucks are fitted with the Fleetboard telematics system, allowing Bell Equipment to monitor driver and vehicle performance. The system also allows the control room to have direct contact with the drivers. “We can send a SMS, and it will be displayed on the truck’s dashboard,” says Martin.

The trucks, each rated 36t, are powered by the Mercedes-Benz OM501LA engine – the same engine that drives the Bell B35 and B40 ADTs. The Mercedes-Benz Powershift G330-12 transmission features automated gear shifting, with manual override and extended cruise control.

Other features include a premium sleeper cab with top and bottom beds, an electrical tilting/sliding roof, Telligent brake system and Telligent lane assist. Fitted with the new RT440 hypoid rear axles, the Actros 2644LS/33 is regarded as the most fuel-efficient Mercedes-Benz 6x4 truck tractor to date.

The trucks were supplied by McCarthy Inyanga in nearby Empangeni. “We have a long-term relationship with MercedesBenz, as we have been using their engines in our ADTs for many years. We also appreciate the importance of supporting local suppliers, so we saw no need to look further than McCarthy Inyanga to meet our needs,” said Martin.

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Born and bred right here - Bell is Africa’s very own global equipment supplier. With Bell you get machines built tough for our harsh environment and support from Africa’s most comprehensive network of people dedicated to your success. Best of all, while you are creating infrastructure and jobs, so are we.

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Tel: +27 (0) 11 928 9700 E-mail: sales@bell.co.za www.bellequipment.com

MINING INDABA

NAT IO NA LISATION

Taxing year for mines In the next few months, South Africans are likely to hear more rhetoric about the mining sector being nationalised, but this is just ‘election noise’ and should not distract business from focusing on the real issues facing the country.

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PEAKING AT the annual Drilling and Blasting Conference of opencast mining explosives leader BME in Pretoria recently, political commentator and journalist Justice Malala reminded the approximately 400 delegates that property rights were entrenched in Section 25 of the Constitution. To change this section, a party would require a 75% majority in both the National Assembly and in the National Council of Provinces.

The party talking most about nationalisation – the Economic Freedom Fighters, launched recently by former African National Congress (ANC) member Julius Malema – would at best get just a few percent of the votes. “We forget that people like Malema come and go,” said Malala. “In the 1990s, Peter Mokaba used to say exactly the same things that Malema is saying; now no-one talks about Mokaba.”

Malala said it was unlikely that new political parties would draw much support away from the (ANC) in the 2014 election; also, new parties have had a very poor success rate since 1994, with most of their support dwindling rapidly in the years after launching. “We have done well in South Africa, but

not as well as we could have done,” said Malala. “We have big problems that we have not solved, so if someone like Malema scratches at these problems, he will get some traction and support.”

Malala urged business to be part of solving these problems, as there will always be political opportunists who use these issues to get votes. “Malema is really just a comment on the fact that we as the new South Africa have not done as much as we could to bring benefits to people,” he said. “So people like him will always come along; we cannot wish them away.”

He said the ANC had reiterated its stand against nationalisation at the Mangaung conference. “I do not think the ANC was ever going to nationalise [the mines],” said Malala. “However, they did take the decision to add some kind of tax on mining, and this will probably be introduced after the election next year.”

Malala said the pressures for government to raise revenue included the pending introduction of the National Health Insurance scheme and the 16 million South Africans on social grants. The economic growth rate remained a real concern, as this fell behind

even those of other less developed African economies. He reminded delegates that over half the number of young people in the country were without jobs, and many of them had even stopped looking for employment.

The other side of the employment coin was education; jobs were available, but matriculants were often not equipped to perform adequately. “We have got kids coming out of school with a very poor education – the quality of our maths and science teaching is rated 143rd out of 144 countries,” said Malala.

However, he did not believe that South Africa faced an ‘Arab spring’ scenario as a result of high youth unemployment. “This is because we are a democracy, and people can protest if they want to make themselves heard,” said Malala. “But we have to solve these problems, and the key to this is the National Development Plan.”

Comparing South Africa to faster-growing African economies, Malala emphasised the fact that many of these countries did not have democratic systems, and many had presidents or national leaders who had been in power for decades. South Africa, on the other hand, could boast a constitution with democratic institutions, making it difficult to compare our future trajectory with other states on the continent.

“The vital expression of our democracy was our regular change of leaders since 1994.

Despite our differences, though, the rest of the continent is growing economically – off a low base, perhaps – but catching up with us,” warned Malala.

He highlighted the growing role of China in the economics of South Africa and Africa generally, and had a clear message for the private sector: “China will continue to be a big influence; if you are not thinking about the impact of China, your business is going to suffer.”

Speakers at BME’s Annual Drilling and Blasting Conference

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MINING INDABA

DRILLING & BLASTING

AS S ET F UNDING

Lending spurs sales Around 70% of its Q1 2013 business came from the mining sector, according to Wayne Morris, head of Cat Financial.

A

t its inception in 2009, Cat Financial was concluding around nine credit transaction agreements a month, either for individual Cat machines or combined fleet orders. Today the average is closer to 50, peaking at 82 in September 2013, with the trend continuing upwards into positive territory.

This sustained market projection was supported by first-quarter results for the financial year commencing July 2013, when a record number of transactions were concluded. “In just three months, we achieved around 80% of the total revenues recorded for the previous 12 months to June 2013,” says Wayne Morris, head of Cat Financial. Around 70% of the Q1 2013 business came from the mining sector, either from contract miners or local and multinational blue chips. “Overall, market activity shows that credit is increasingly taking preference over cash, which follows the international trend,” notes Morris.

Underwritten by FirstRand Limited entity WesBank, Cat Financial is Barloworld Equipment’s asset-financing arm for the full Cat product range, which includes the underground mining sector. Barloworld Equipment is the Cat dealer for Southern Africa.

In October 2013, as testimony to its success, Cat Financial walked away with the ‘Best Business Unit’ trophy at WesBank Corporate’s prestigious annual Club of Ten Awards.

Adds Morris: “Cat Financial’s unique business model continues to lead the industry thanks to innovative in-house funding mechanisms, OEM support and highly competitive interest rates, whether for pure asset funding or off-balance sheet rentals.”

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The award-winning Cat Financial team are (from left): Jill MacInnes, territory manager; Wayne Morris, head of Cat Financial; Kenneth Masuku, operations manager; Barbara Tewary, marketing assistant; Virginia Mtanyelwa, credit analyst; and Mkhize Buso, territory manager

Follow us on Facebook Barloworld Equipment Southern Africa Follow us on Twitter @Barloworldequip

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MINING INDABA

R ENEWABLE S

Mining in the sun Spiralling fuel costs are set to impact the mining industry, which will be hard hit because of the large number of off-grid, industrial-scale base load power generation systems in use, particularly in remote areas.

By Jack Ward, MD of power provisioning specialist Powermode

W

ITH DIESEL generators being the only current baseload power option for many mines, high diesel costs are expected to make the extraction of known mineral reserves increasingly impracticable in many areas. There will have to be a swing towards renewable energy sources to boost the viability of many mines, particularly marginally profitable operations.

Fortunately, new developments in solar photovoltaic (PV) technology have made a timely arrival on the market and will help mines reduce dependency on diesel fuel, helping to insulate them from increasingly high and volatile fuel costs.

Solar PV/diesel hybrid systems are able to cut fuel bills by up to 50%, thus bringing unprofitable projects into the black, thanks to the quick payback of the solar elements of the systems – under three years, and most likely between 18 months and two years.

This calculation is based on diesel costs of around R9/litre, assuming specific solar irradiation, generator power and load profiles are considered to determine the optimal PV system to install. This translates into 22 years of profit, based on current component life expectancies.

Solar PV/diesel hybrid systems work in fully automatic mode by prioritising solar power. A software algorithm ensures the

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solar PV array operates at its maximum power output at all given solar radiation levels. Only when these drop below a specified point, or at night, are the diesel generators brought up to full capacity. The solar PV elements of the system are modular, and can be installed anywhere quickly, with only minimal maintenance required to keep them running.

A solar PV/diesel hybrid system typically supplies 40% of daytime energy demands using solar power, at the same time saving around an average of 35% to 40% of the fuel usage of traditional diesel-only generation.

A key feature of solar PV/diesel hybrid systems is reduced downtime due to generator failures and subsequent repairs since the systems ensure that all the components are used efficiently at optimum rates. What is more, because diesel generators are used more often at minimum specified load, the power generation operation itself is much quieter and more eco-friendly.

Apart from the obvious costs benefits gained by using solar PV power, making use of a clean energy source is a way for mining companies to lower their carbon and greenhouse gas emissions, and reduce other forms of environmental pollution such as land and water degradation and contamination – thus improving their image with local communities and the eco-friendly lobby.

Already in use at a number of sites globally, these scalable, fully automated hybrid systems usually comprise a number of solar PV modules, two diesel generators (for redundancy), a power conditioning unit (PCU) and other associated auxiliaries, including an inverter, which acts as the system’s ‘brain’.

While solar PV/diesel hybrid systems are ideally suited to the mining industry, they are increasingly finding favour in other applications with a day-time duty cycle, where diesel-powered generators are used for baseload power. These include high-flow ground water pumping for agriculture and municipal purposes and in energy-efficient buildings.

Already solar PV/diesel hybrid power generating systems with yearly yields of up to 2 GWh of solar energy have been commissioned worldwide, while solar PV marketplace penetration in the diesel base load generation arena is expected to reach 65% by 2015. This is calculated by comparing the ratio of solar PV usage to diesel generator capacity.

To realise the most benefits from a solar/ diesel hybrid system, the sizing of the various installations will need to be done on a case-by-case basis, as every application will be different depending on specific load profiles, solar irradiation and generator setup, influencing the power yield/ fuel saving calculation accordingly.

MINING INDABA

ACC ES S CONTROL

Biometric key system A recently-launched key licensing system from Booyco Electronics is already attracting widespread interest in the local mining industry.

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HE BOOYCO biometric key unit is the ideal solution where controlled access to moveable items such as earthmoving and mining equipment, blasting boxes and carts, as well as conveyor starter panels and sub-stations, is essential.

It eliminates the injudicious borrowing of keys or access cards, thereby limiting access to sensitive and critical equipment. The system requires dual verification through a smart card that contains the user’s detailed information and fingerprint.

“When the user’s fingerprint is presented to the biometric fingerprint reader, he will be verbally requested by the system to present his card to the key unit. Once the user’s identity and credentials have been authenticated, they will be permitted to open boxes or start up equipment,” explains Booyco Electronics MD Anton Lourens.

Information such as the user’s red ticket, vehicle licence, induction certification and other work-related credentials are stored on the Mifare proximity card. Should any of a user’s information be invalid due to expiry of certificates or possible suspensions, the user will not be permitted to access the specific equipment. This registration failure, together with other access data captured during log-in transactions, will be stored on the system for future downloading.

The system is housed in a robust metallic case ideally suited to the harsh conditions found on mining sites. The tamper-proof system, with an IP54 rating, is suitable for use in mining environments. Booyco also has an approved unit suitable for use in hazardous areas (that is, intrinsically safe).It incorporates an Ethernet connection for fast and seamless communication with computers and networks, allowing the rapid download of data for analysis.

The Booyco biometric key unit is the ideal solution where controlled access to moveable items such as earthmoving and mining equipment is required

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MINING INDABA

LI Q U I D SE PA RATION

Number one in customer satisfaction Filtaquip was established more than 30 years ago, focusing on liquid/solid separation technology and equipment in the mining, chemical, industrial and food industries. By Gerhard Hope.

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ILTAQUIP’S MISSION is simply to be number one in customer satisfaction. “We strive to achieve this by offering specialised knowledge and support to ensure that the customer’s dewatering problems are solved in the most productive, reliable and cost-efficient manner,” says Jacques van Rooijen, product specialist: capital equipment.

“We also pride ourselves on excellent after-sales service, ensuring long relationships with our customers. We believe that customer satisfaction can only be achieved by developing a true understanding of our

customer’s real requirements. The only way to achieve this is to form long-term relationships with our customers, which is only possible through service excellence.”

Filtaquip has specialised liquid/solid separation knowledge and the products to complement this, whether it be for a process separation application or the dewatering of a plant effluent to conform to the strict, newly imposed environmental requirements.

While Filtaquip designs and manufactures filtration equipment locally, it also partners with Matec of Italy to ensure the continuous evolution of the company’s technology and equipment. This filter-press technology allows a dewatering system performance unparalleled in the South African market.

“Our plate and frame filterpress design and technology permits the press to work at pressures of up to 18 bar, enabling the unit to process even the most difficult-to-dewater particles in slurries,” says Van Rooijen.

These presses function without the use of flocculants and are fully automated. Added benefits are the very short cycle times and increased water recovery (low cake moisture) as the dewatered fines are drier than those produced by other types of filter presses.

Filtaquip is primarily known in the mining industry for its complete turnkey dewatering systems, which includes thickeners, flocculant plants, filter presses and the complete turnkey process. “We perform the initial material testing through to planning and flowsheet design, fabrication, supply and erection, all the way to maintain and operate LEFT TOP A fully automated flocculation plant LEFT 16 bar double-cavity centrifugal filter feed pump

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contracts. Filtaquip also has the ability to offer plants on capital lease for a period up to five years,” says Van Rooijen.

Filtaquip recognises that pumps are the heart of any filtration application. Therefore the company has teamed up with one of the leading suppliers of pumps designed specifically for the mining industry.

“We are proud to say that we have formed a number of strategic supplier partnerships with key industry suppliers and mining companies. This ensures that our customers get the best technology and service all the time, as we get to know their standards, procedures and specific requirements,” says Van Rooijen.

For example, Pemo Perissinotto has more than 50 years experience in abrasive liquid pumping in the filtration industry. These pumps were designed from the start for high-pressure applications and for liquids with high abrasive properties.

The Filtaquip pump range includes submersible pumps, vertical spindle pumps, rubberised submersible pumps and special filter press booster pumps. Its double-cavity centrifugal pumps are equipped with a single drive and have the ability to produce up to 18 bar in delivery pressure.

Filtaquip’s flocculant plants are fully automated, very simple to operate, reliable and cheap to maintain. Its high-rate thickeners are made from 304 stainless steel and 316 stainless steel, depending on the environment.

“When the mining industry is struggling financially, the need to develop a ‘mean and lean’ business model becomes essential. We have established a financial lease division that can supply a plant for up to 60 months, to approved customers, on a capital lease contract,” says Van Rooijen.

17 Bisset Road Hughes Ext 5 Jet Park

Complete dewatering systems

MINING INDABA

F INANC E

Funding requirements become more stringent In the current financial climate, raising funds for industry projects has become considerably more challenging compared to the pre-global economic crisis era, says Terence Osborn, capital sales and marketing manager at FLSmidth.

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HILE FUNDING avenues are still available to mining companies, the requirements have become very stringent, reflecting the low-risk appetite prevailing in today’s banking sector.

Against this background, a fundamental game changer for FLSmidth is its ability to help clients raise a portion of the necessary finance through Danish export credit agency EKF. EKF is owned and guaranteed by the Danish state, but operates as a modern financial enterprise. The agency assists Danish companies to make it possible and attractive for customers abroad to purchase Danish products by helping to raise financing.

Osborn explains: “For the past three years, we have been implementing and informing the market about our ‘One Source’

FLSmidth Site Services offers a complete range of on-site services to help maximise plant availability

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capability. ‘One Source’ highlights FLSmidth’s promise of being a complete solutions supplier to the mineral industries, including after-sales service and support.

“We own complete suites of technology across core mineral flow sheets, and the ‘One Source’ objective is to take the same concept forward by offering complete solutions in these core mineral industries.

“There are a number of industries around the world that have moved through a life cycle of product supply, to island supply and then to full solutions supply. We have seen this happen, for example, in cement and pulp and paper, and now there is a trend towards full solutions in the minerals-processing arena,” says Osborn.

“FLSmidth is seeing tremendous growth in our portfolio in this regard, and our success is being underpinned by the unique market differentiator of being able to help our clients access to EKF financing.

“As a Danish company, we can approach EKF on their behalf to consider underwriting finance on projects they would view as worthy of making an investment in. Dependent on our equipment sourcing, we may also have the flexibility to introduce other relevant export credit agencies. The larger the FLSmidth scope is, the larger the export credit involvement may be,” says Osborn.

FLSmidth is geared to market complete solutions capabilities to the copper and associated base metals sector, including platinum, as well as the gold, coal, iron ore and fertiliser sectors. The

company has made significant investments into completing the flow sheets for minerals-processing solutions associated with each of these commodities, and is now in a position to offer complete solutions, together with the aftermarket life cycle and service support into the future.

“In the event that a customer wishes to partner with FLSmidth on a complete project solution, we are willing to become a long-term stakeholder in that project,” says Osborn. A key element of this involvement is the possibility of EKF assistance or other export credit agencies, if relevant.

“EKF’s approach is the same as any other financial institution. The agency conducts a due diligence of a project along similar lines to the approach taken by banks. If, after this, EKF is interested in supporting the project, it will underwrite a portion of the finance, and this is linked to the proportion of the scope of the FLSmidth contract.

“Since it is a Danish entity providing the underwriting, the advantage to our customers is the additional credibility attached to their project that often helps them to go to the market and successfully raise the remaining funds necessary.

“In essence, it de-risks the project to a certain extent. Obviously the client company then has to make its own evaluation as to whether the funding arrangement EKF offers is feasible to its business circumstances,” says Osborn.

“These deals are relatively new, and there are not many multinational organisations in South Africa capable of presenting this type of solution, which makes this an interesting option in the local mining industry, particularly to junior and mid-cap miners,” he concludes.

One Source

Many Solutions

FLSmidth is your One Source for crushing, grinding, classifying, thickening, clarifying, slurry handling, flotation, mine shaft systems, pyroprocessing, material handling, automation, screens, centrifuges and complementary products, engineering, metallurgical testing and modernisation services. FLSmidth offers you a complete line of equipment and services with proven reliability and enhancing performance from the leading brand names of ABON, Buffalo, CEntry, Conveyor Engineering, Dawson Metallurgical Laboratories, Decanter Machine, Dorr-Oliver, EIMCO, ESSA, FFE, Fuller-Traylor, KOCH, Knelson, Krebs, Ludowici, Maag Gear, Mayer, Meshcape, MIE, Möller, MVT, PERI, Phillips Kiln Services, Pneumapress, RAHCO, Raptor, Roymec, Shriver, Summit Valley, Technequip and WEMCO. Enjoy increased recoveries while saving time and money on your next project! Let us help you tackle your specific requirements.

For more information contact us Tel no. +27 (0)10 210 4000 • flsm-za@flsmidth.com • www.flsmidth.com

MINING INDABA

I NDU S T RY PA RTICIPATION

Showcase offering Murray & Roberts Cementation believes that a company’s success is not built solely on the projects it undertakes, but similarly on its participation in industry events.

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HE COMPANY IS repeating its attendance at Mining Indaba, reputed to be the world’s largest gathering of mining’s most influential stakeholders and decision-makers vested in African mining.

“We recognise that Mining Indaba is Africa’s premier mining event. We have been involved with the event for many years, and have derived a great deal of value from our participation,” says Allan Widlake, Murray & Roberts Cementation’s business development executive.

Widlake adds that one of the basic tenets on which Murray & Roberts Cementation bases its decision to have a presence at the event is the incredible exposure the conference provides. “If you consider that Mining Indaba is an event at which all mining houses are represented, it is clear that this presents companies with the perfect opportunity to interact with the major decision-makers in the industry.

“The representatives who attend the event not only provide us with valuable information on imminent and future investments, but we are also exposed to investors and commodity advisors. The chance to interact with them further provides us with access to forecasts concerning the conditions likely to prevail in the industry in the coming year,” says Widlake.

“As a service provider to the industry, rather than an equipment or consumable supplier, Murray & Roberts Cementation gains maximum benefit from the Mining Indaba through the key analysis of current and future trends. The information and intellectual knowledge that is shared at such an industry event is invaluable to us in our forward planning,” says Widlake.

While the company will present its standard offerings to the market, it will Work under way on Murray & Roberts Cementation’s contract at Lubambe

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also utilise the event as a launch-pad for its representation in the oil and gas construction services market. This means that all four Murray & Roberts platforms will be showcased: Construction Australasia Oil & Gas and Minerals, Engineering Africa, Construction Africa and the Middle East and Construction Global Mining.

Construction Australasia Oil & Gas and Minerals consists of the Murray & Roberts Group’s direct investment in Clough, an integrated engineering, procurement and construction contractor focused on oil and gas in Australia and Southeast Asia.

Through this comprehensive basket of offerings, Murray & Roberts will be able to demonstrate its ability to mobilise suitable divisions or companies within the group to execute unique projects within the diversified sectors.

“Dealing with one reputable group of companies that can handle all eventualities within large projects is a desire often voiced by major companies. Through our collaborative group efforts, we are able to provide clients with a focused, yet

extremely comprehensive, service across mining infrastructure, building and civils, as well as the energy sector.

“We see growth into sub-Saharan Africa as critical to our sustainability, which is a major reason for our ongoing attendance at Mining Indaba. One example of our confidence in the African mining sector is the opening of a permanent Murray & Roberts operating base in Kitwe, Zambia, late in 2013,” says Widlake.

Murray & Roberts Cementation has worked on several major projects in Zambia, including its current shaft-sinking and equipping contract for the Synclinorium Shaft for Mopani Copper Mines (MCM). More recently, the company secured a contract to sink a man/ material and rock-hoisting shaft at MCM’s Mufulira mine.

“In addition, as part of our African growth strategy across the construction and engineering group, Murray & Roberts has also established a permanent presence in Ghana. Our next focal area is the setting up of offices in Mozambique.”

MINING INDABA

S EALS A ND BE A RINGS

A proving ground Virtually any type of mining condition or application is present in South Africa, which makes it an ideal environment for innovation, Coenie van Deventer and Ian Robertson from Bearings International tell Gerhard Hope.

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ROM SOFT TO hard material, most types of mining are represented in South Africa. “Some countries have some of them; South Africa has most of them. It is a good proving ground for a lot of innovation to happen here. And not just in South Africa – a lot of the growth and innovation is happening north of our border. Africa in general is a big target market for OEM manufacturers,” says Ian Robertson, director of bearings and allied products at Bearings International.

Mining has been struggling of late. “It has affected us, obviously. When you derive a large percentage of your historical business from a single sector, and that sector goes quiet, it does have an impact. However, I think we were able to diversify as best we could last year and move some of our focus into other industries such as cement, steel and metal-processing. We were able to change focus mid-stream, without taking the full focus away from mining, because mining will come back, and it will be a major focus going forward.”

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Indeed, a significant portion of the group’s total revenue is derived from mining. With Bearings International falling under the Hudaco umbrella, mining will conIan Robertson, tinue to be a key sector. “Hudaco director of bearings and allied products at is quite vast and diversified, and mining is a big sector for Bearings Bearings International International,” says Robertson.

This belief in the continued relevance of mining is driving the group’s foray the state of the market. “We have made asinto Africa. sumptions about how the marketplace will “Moving into Africa was a given, but the consolidate and grow going forward. But we question was whether we do it on a decenbelieve we are well-positioned. We believe tralised basis according to sector divisions, we have the best product range available of or whether we do it under the ambit of any of our competition in South Africa. And Hudaco as a larger group. The consensus is I say that without impunity. We have the that Hudaco needs to be the vehicle to take best mix of brands available in the country, us into Africa,” says Robertson. and I think with that kind of product mix, and with the skills and support team we Hudaco Zimbabwe have on-board, we are confident and upbeat In line with this strategy, a sales office we will make it happen in 2014.” has just been established in Zimbabwe, Product manager Coenie van Deventer trading as Hudaco Zimbabwe. “The model points to the Schaeffler range as a prime going forward is that we will do the same, example of technical excellence. In terms the benefit simply being that Hudaco is a of mining specifically, he says the main foholding company and it allows the divisions cus is the larger-size bearings, especially to be on-board or not, depending on what with large conveyor applications. “This is the market holds for us and what kind of a big market we penetrate, and the focus opportunities there are. In Zimbabwe, we has shifted to coal. It is one of the emergcertainly are a major player. ing markets worldwide, especially with EsSuch expansion is a reflection of the kom’s expansion locally.” group’s confidence in the market. “We are Cooper split roller bearings very upbeat; we have set an aggressive Robertson says that Schaeffler is the budget. We spent a lot of 2013 putting peogroup’s main driver in the mining sector ple and systems in place. Hence we regard“simply because of the quality of the proded last year as a development year to some ucts and the extent of the range”. In adextent. We have a lot of additional support dition to this, Bearings International also systems and correct product ranges in stocks specialist products such as Cooper place. This is why we believe we are going to split roller bearings. “I think Cooper comes have a successful year in 2014.” into its own. It does give you the useful feaCommenting on the challenges facing the ture of being able to unscrew the cap and group, Robertson says it all boils down to base, and you can have a visual look at the rolling elements. You cannot do that with Ian Robertson (left) and Coenie any other bearing assembly unless you take van Deventer (right)

“Africa in general is a big target market for OEM manufacturers.”

MINING INDABA

the whole assembly off. It is business in South Africa, quite unique in that aspect.” and one of the reasons they Van Deventer says that launched the new SNS housCooper split roller bearings ing range. South Africa is defihave found their particular nitely the target market.” niche in platinum mining, The benefits of the new Coenie van Deventer, where they gave been dehousing include an online ployed on conveyor systems condition monitoring sensor. product manager at Bearings International for some of the top mining This is an industry first, and projects in this sector. Robthe benchmark for condition quite a high complement. Their main funcertson adds that aftermarket is an impormonitoring going forward, says Van Devention internally is to offer technical support tant growth area for Bearings Internationter. The technology won a major European and a better understanding of our product al. “Obviously our focus from head office is innovation award last year and has been ranges. So it is a good team effort. I do not into the OEM and contractual business on well-accepted in South Africa to date. “We think we would have been nearly as successprojects. Our branch network focuses enare working on local case studies,” reveals ful as we have been without the skills and tirely on maintenance, repair and overhaul Van Deventer. expertise of the support team.”

(MRO) replacement business.”

The benefits are that it can be monitored Looking at some of the latest trends and within the actual application by the client, Premium brands developments, Van Deventer says that which is an especial advantage if the appliRobertson says this is related closely to Schaeffler launched its new housing range cation is in a remote location where manBearing International’s business philosoespecially for the conveyor industry in power is limited. Feedback can be transmitphy and approach to the mining industry in South Africa at Hanover Messe. “The Gerted on a regular basis for analysis and verifiparticular: “We come to the market as a ‘valmans were quite interested when they saw cation, while a trip switch can switch down ue add’. We never portray ourselves as the our sister company Bosworth, one of the the entire system if anything untoward hapcheapest, and we do not want to be there. biggest pulley manufacturers in the southpens. “It is really innovative, as it provides We have premium brands. We are running ern hemisphere. It was quite an eye-opener direct feedback that is not based on being with 17 support personnel now, which is for them to see the extent of the conveyor directly hands-on,” says Robertson.

“The focus has shifted to coal. It is one of the emerging markets worldwide, especially with Eskom’s expansion locally.”

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MINING INDABA

R AU BEX INFRA

Infrastructure division makes its mark With the Raubex Group well-entrenched in the roads construction industry, Raubex Infra was born out of a group vision to create an infrastructure division that specialises in other types of civil construction, including roads and earthworks for mining infrastructure.

R

AUBEX INFRA offers multidisciplinary solutions in predominantly four key operational areas: rail and rail-related infrastructure, roads and earthworks for mining infrastructure, fibre and GSM telecommunications, and electrical and alternative energy infrastructure. The backbone of these services is the division’s specialised capabilities in civil construction and earthworks.

Dirk Lourens, MD of Raubex Infra, says the most gratifying development in the new division’s growth has been the rapid uptake of the services offered by its renewable energy unit. “The market is starting to recognise these specialised capabilities.

We are currently working on seven Round 1 and Round 2 projects in the renewable energy arena.

“This is an exciting achievement, considering that we are the new kid on the block, competing in this sector against international competition, as well as the major local construction companies. We are now positioning ourselves to offer the complete scope of energy project services in-house, from civil and electrical to mechanical work,” says Lourens.

Among the renewable energy projects being implemented by Raubex Infra’s dedicated Power and Energy Infrastructure Projects unit are two contracts by Norwegian solar energy provider Scatec Solar to provide civils and electrical work for its two new photovoltaic (PV) solar power plants.

The two plants, Linde near Hanover in the Northern Cape and Dreunberg near Burgersdorp in the Eastern Cape, will generate a combined 115 MW under the second round Earthworks for the Linde photovoltaic solar farm

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of the South African Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme. Work on the projects is already under way, with the plants scheduled for completion in mid-2014.

Raubex Infra is also currently involved in one major project in the mining infrastructure field, two big projects under the telecommunications banner and one significant rail infrastructure project.

“These early successes can be attributed to the amount of preparation undertaken before we opened our doors,” notes Lourens. “We did our homework thoroughly, identifying potential customers and projects, and this enabled us to hit the ground running.

“One of our biggest assets is our people, who have been hand-picked for their depth of knowledge and hands-on skills in these niche markets. We opened for business with 30 personnel and, with a steep curve of contracts awarded almost immediately, we have since increased this number to more than 400 people.

“Having the backing of the Raubex Group has also given us the critical mass to be very competitive in these markets. It provided a major stepping stone to make an entry at a very high level, in terms of the provision of funding,” says Lourens.

“I also feel that our passion to deliver services that are out of the ordinary has been another success factor. We are

not a run-of-the-mill group of engineers with tunnel vision – we provide a service to the customer that is tailor-made to fit the project.

“We are already becoming known for our ability to constantly shift the boundaries on niche projects with high time constraints and difficult terrain, or projects that are technically complex. Wherever possible, we prefer to become involved in a project at a very early stage to help the customer develop the project in the most efficient and cost-effective way.”

Raubex Infra is currently in the process of establishing a presence in the Northern Cape that will have a primary focus on serving the mining environment in that region by supporting existing projects and providing a local point of contact.

The division is ISO 9001:2008 certified and has started to work towards OHSAS 18001:2004 and ISO 14001:2004 certification, which is expected to be achieved during the course of this year.

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MINING INDABA

L EAD T IME S

Ghana warehouse serves West Africa Multotec has established a bonded warehouse at Tema Port on the Atlantic coast of Ghana that will drastically reduce its equipment-supply lead times to mining operations in Ghana, Burkina Faso and Mali, all of which are within 2 000 km of the new facility.

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L

EAD TIMES IN the pressurised African mining industry have become a decisive differentiator for suppliers. “For many years, the West African mining industry has faced lead times as long as seven months for imported items of consumable equipment. The move to establish a stockholding at a more central location is long overdue,” says Multotec’s Kris Vergote. “We identified Tema Port as the ideal site for such a warehouse, which will be managed by our office in Accra, just 25 km away.

“We have already begun the process of negotiating supply contracts with customers in

Ghana, Burkina Faso and Mali, who recognise the significant value to be gained from being able to access the consumable equipment they need in a matter of weeks. At present, 99% of this type of product is imported from Europe, Australia, South Africa or other manufacturing hubs, and takes months to arrive on site from the date of order.”

The Multotec bonded warehouse will concentrate on supplying consumable equipment such as mill linings, trommel panels, vibrating screen panels, interstage screens, ceramic tiles and adhesives. Vergote says this fulfils the ‘speed to market’ commitment within Multotec’s consumables supply model

MINING INDABA

that seeks to respond as quickly as possible to customers’ needs.

There is a clear intention to identify opportunities to establish similar warehouse facilities in other mining centres on the continent during the course of 2014. Also in Ghana, Multotec has launched a dedicated service for the installation of mill liners, screen panels, and the servicing and calibration of ore samplers.

“Offering increasingly better services in the local market is key to our building a business in this region, and part of our value proposition is to help our customers optimise their existing plant assets,” says Vergote. “We currently have more than 80 samplers operating at mining facilities in West Africa, so it makes absolute sense to introduce a maintenance service that will ensure that these critical units function optimally.

“A sampler is essentially a tool used to collect samples and produce data that has to be relevant and consistently accurate.

The need for samplers worldwide has seen a surge for two reasons. One is the need to underpin the mining operation’s contractual obligation to deliver the required grade of

ore to its clients, and this is achieved by online sampling of the product being shipped.

“The other reason is to ensure that ore processes are optimised, so sampling information must be quickly obtainable and accurate, allowing this information to be fed back into the plant to guide process adjustments,” says Vergote. Multotec has trained

The Multotec bonded warehouse will concentrate on supplying consumable equipment

and employed a Ghanaian technician to service its sampling equipment, which Vergote says is also making a contribution to developing local competencies.

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MINING INDABA

LOG I S T I CS

Supply-chain initiatives Weir Minerals Africa is beginning to reap rich rewards from a two-year campaign implemented to transform the company’s relationship with its main suppliers from simply transactional associations into fully fledged strategic partnerships.

T

HE COMPANY’S aim has been to align its suppliers with the corporate Weir Production System to motivate them to manufacture products that are increasingly more cost-effective and in line with its quality standards, according to Wim van Vliet, supply chain director. Feeding out of this is improved on-time delivery and stock management.

This is the result of several long-term initiatives. One example is the introduction of barcode labels. “Working capital is a key measure of our business, and we have needed to optimise our inventory holding.

To achieve this, we have enabled about 20 companies in our supplier base with the facility to download and print out barcode labels associated with the parts they manufacture for us,” explains Van Vliet.

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“The key issue is that, in order to prevent our suppliers from delivering these parts too early and in too large batches, they are only able to download and print a barcode label for a part when that part is due for delivery. This system has given us a lot more control over how and when we receive these components.”

Anoth Another initiative has foo the company’s logiscused on in tics infrastructure – moving p parts once they have been picked and despatched from the Alrode warehouse to the end customer as quickly as possible.

In some cases, lead times have been reduced by 50%. For example, sending parts Wim van Vliet, to customers in Zambia used to take two to three supply chain director at Weir Minerals Africa weeks, but today Weir Minerals Africa is able to Another initiative that has optimised the get parts to a customer within a week. company’s inventory holding is its Just Parts are shipped to customers throughIn Time (JIT) production strategy. For inout Africa. The company has brought about stance, Weir Minerals Africa’s fastener supsubstantial improvements by carrying out plier holds all fastener stock on its premisits own freight forwarding, using a dedicates, and when pump parts are pulled into ased outsourced internal freight forwarder sembly on a specific day, the fastener parts operating from the company’s Alrode site. are delivered on that same day.

This effectively gives the company full con“To further optimise our inventory holdtrol over the process. ing, we are also looking at consignment “From a broader perspective, being a holding,” says Van Vliet. “This is a complex best-in-practice supplier is not just about concept still under development, but in babeing low-cost at source. Very often the sic terms it means that we would hold stock cost is negligible compared to the imon behalf of our suppliers on our premises, pact of extended lead times and poor and only pay for parts when they are conon-time delivery, so we are experiencsumed for production. ing a definite trend in which the focus of “We have made an enormous investment the major mining houses has shifted to into building a best-in-practice warehouse operational efficiencies. at our Alrode site. In 2008, we were ship“Any sort of downtime far outweighs the ping an average of 2 500 parts a day; this cost of components or parts; therefore, has increased to 8 000 parts a day in 2013 in addition to trying to reduce the overall – a dramatic velocity improvement. Rathcost of our products to these customers, er than keeping all inventory in stock, we we are committed to ensuring that parts have doubled our inventory turn rate since are available when they are needed,” says 2008,” says Van Vliet.

Van Vliet. “This commitment has allowed us to improve our overall lead times across Africa to an average of about 90%, which is The new best-in-practice warehouse at world-class.”

Weir Mineral Africa’s Alrode facility.

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MINING INDABA

WOR LEYPA RSONS RSA

Taking the reins F Digby Glover, the incoming CEO of WorleyParsons RSA, talks to Gerhard Hope about diversification into Africa.

OLLOWING THE acquisition earlier this year of project house TWP by global professional services firm WorleyParsons, it was recently announced that Digby Glover, previously CEO of TWP Holdings, would be taking over the reins at WorleyParsons RSA. Glover has been employed by the TWP Group since 2001 and has extensive experience and knowledge of local conditions and trends in the mining, minerals and infrastructure industries. “Since the acquisition in March, I have retained responsibility for the Johannesburg operations while assisting TWP to integrate with the local WorleyParsons business,” explains Glover.

WorleyParsons RSA will be unveiled at the Investing in African Mining Indaba in Cape Town from 3 to 6 February. “It is not really a launch, it’s more of an evolution or a refresh, as the businesses already exist,” notes Glover. The new entity combines the strengths of the existing WorleyParsons business in South Africa, focused mainly on infrastructure, power and the hydrocarbon sectors, with that of TWP, focused mainly on mining.

“It is taking two relatively large businesses of similar size and combining them into one.

ABOVE Impala 17 shaft

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Yes, the process has been challenging, but it has gone relatively well. The businesses are a good fit, from both market and cultural perspectives, and we are continuing to integrate them seamlessly, into a single business, when viewed both externally and internally,” says Glover.

Explaining the rationale behind the amalgamation, Glover says: “WorleyParsons wanted increased capability in underground mining and precious metal processing. TWP was looking to improve its international footprint. WorleyParsons’ purchase of TWP meets both these objectives and opens up new opportunities previously not available to either company individually.”

Different markets “WorleyParsons is focused on delivering projects to the resources sectors including oil and gas, and mining, minerals and chemical industries. In addition to the resources space, we have a very strong infrastructure and power capability. This is a large market on its own, and is particularly important in supporting the resources sector as projects become more and more remote and complex.”

Looking at the new entity’s potential involvement in Africa, Glover says this will be driven by resources demand. “DeltaAfrik,

MINING INDABA

WorleyParsons’ Nigerian entity, is an established market leader within the Nigerian hydrocarbons sector, offering world-class services using local resources. We have a presence in Angola, as well as Mozambique. Then on the mining side we have numerous projects throughout Western, Eastern and Southern Africa, in all stages of development, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Mauritania. So, yes, we have a big presence in Africa, and it is certainly a strategic drive for us to increase our work there,” says Glover.

In terms of South African mining at present, Glover says that “many of the major players have suffered significant challenges of late. They have also had recent leadership changes, so it is expected that there is a period of consolidation. Locally we have some additional socio-political challenges.”

However, Glover points to the considerable capital commitment

by Anglo American to expand the Venetia diamond mine to show that the South African mining industry is not moribund. “Even though things are constrained, there are certainly highlights. In terms of when mining will boom again, I’m not sure, there are many opinions about exact timing. However, there is no doubt that the next phase of the cycle will commence within the short to medium term and things will once again be on an upswing. We have been through this many times before,” comments Glover.

During the integration period it has been “business as usual for the most part,” he is quick to add. “We have a very hungry animal, so we certainly do not have the luxury of being able to turn off the taps and spend too much time thinking about it. We operate on a model of high utilisation, but the market being less frenetic has allowed us to focus a little more inward to bring the businesses together.”

Projects From the new Shondoni project for Sasol Mining to No 17 Shaft for Impala Platinum, the company is involved in some of the most prestigious mining projects under way in South Africa at present.

“We are fairly fortunate in that we are exposed to a broad commodity range and that has very much been the intent. We are also fortunate in that a lot of those are longer-term projects. Therefore even though the market is a little bit tighter, we still have a great base load of work.”

Glover says the biggest opportunity posed by the amalgamated entity “is that we have access to a global footprint through the larger WorleyParsons Group,” which employs about 38 000 people in 43 countries, making it one of the largest engineering concerns of its kind in the world. “It is certainly at the forefront of global engineering and project delivery. That is a massive opportunity, because what it offers in terms of our specialist skills such as deep-level mining or precious-metals processing is a conduit to convey those services to a global market. Similarly, we now have access to skills that may well serve our traditional markets that much better – for example, world-class rail or ports and harbours expertise – that does not necessarily need to reside within this location, but if the work is there, we can pull it in. That is incredibly exciting.”

Glover says the main challenge is that “we have gone through a fairly significant period of change, and the business is still adapting to that, and then obviously the global market is something we continually need to keep a lookout on.”

From a personal point of view, it is a challenge he relishes. “It is going to require a lot of focus and energy, and I certainly have every intention of making a success of it,” concludes Glover.

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I N S I D E M I N I N G 0 1 | 2 0 1 4 101

Mining & Mine Development

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MINING INDABA

M I NER AL SIZE RS

Major export order A R12 million export order for equipment for a new gold mine in Indonesia has been secured by Johannesburg-based Osborn, reveals marketing director Martin Botha.

I

T IS THE company’s first business in Indonesia and also represents the first foray of its mineral sizer into the gold-mining industry.

Traditionally employed in coal-processing, the Osborn mineral sizer has been proposed for this application due to the wet, sticky mining conditions in Indonesia. “Mining here is characterised by an abundance of mud, clay and rainfall,” explains Botha.

“The Osborn mineral sizer can work at a crushing ratio of up to 6:1 and can cope

easily with handling very soft, sticky material, as well as dry and soft rock types. All kinds of applications have been presented to the Osborn mineral sizer, due to its ability to exceed 10 000 tph with material feed size over 2 m3, but this is its first venture into gold.”

The Osborn mineral sizer is designed for installation in primary and secondary applications, with a final output feed size of nominal 50 mm. Only twin-shaft roll mineral sizers are offered by Osborn. A 550 model

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will be shipped to Indonesia (550 mm shaft centres and 2 000 mm-long case).

In addition to the mineral sizer, this export order also includes an Osborn apron feeder and Super King screen, as well as a horizontal shaft impactor manufactured in the US by Osborn’s Astec Industries sister company KPI-JCI. “This order is providing us with an exciting opportunity to take a multi-company approach, combining high-quality equipment offerings from Osborn and our fellow Astec

MINING INDABA

group companies, in order to meet the customer’s requirements,” says Botha. “It is an Osborn and Astec collaboration, driven from South Africa by Osborn.”

The company is the official Southern African distributor for a range of Astec Group equipment, including vertical and horizontal shaft impactors from KPI-JCI, hydraulic rock breakers from BTI, high- and multi-frequency screens from Astec Mobile Screens and the Roadtec shuttle buggy for asphalt operations.

Equipment for this Indonesian order will be shipped by Osborn to the Port of Jakarta, Indonesia. “The order opens up new opportunities in gold for the mineral sizer, and we aim to use this site as a showpiece, to demonstrate to other prospective customers what this robust, adaptable sizer is capable of,” comments Botha.

In other news, Osborn wrapped up 2013 with a healthy order book, including orders for eight apron feeders and two Osborn modular plants. Four new stockpile apron feeders – 1 500 mm x 6 000 mm in size – are to be supplied to the Kansuki Sulphides expansion project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, reports Botha. The company secured this order based on the quality of its apron feeders, which are renowned for their performance and durability, he notes.

Four apron feeders also form part of an order awarded to Osborn by long-standing customer Petra Diamonds. The machines are to be employed at the Koffiefontein Mine in the Northern Cape, along with two new Osborn 3648 modular jaw crusher plants that have been ordered and which will be utilised underground.

The two Osborn modular crushing plants each include a 35 t capacity truck dump hopper, a 48" x 16' vibrating grizzly feeder, a 36 x 48 Telsmith jaw crusher and a 1 200 mm-wide discharge conveyor mounted onto a modular frame. The four Osborn Hadfields (1 200 mm x 8 000 mm) apron feeders will be feeding into the hoppers mounted on the modular frames.

Botha explains that the Osborn modular plants offer substantial benefits for customers like Petra Diamonds. The predesigned modules reduce the engineering requirement for new plant construction. A further advantage is that the plant can be disassembled quickly and relocated to another site.

Its features include a heavy-duty modular frame. The standard discharge conveyor is 7 m-long. “However, we have manufactured an 11 m-long discharge conveyor to meet the client’s requirements,” adds Botha.

The two modular plants, each weighing 70 t, will be dismantled and transported by road to the mine. The scope of Osborn’s order includes the supply of the equipment, its re-assembly underground and commissioning.

“Our long-term relationship with Petra Diamonds, the quality of our equipment and the fact that it is 100% South African manufactured contributed to Osborn’s success in securing this order amid competition from other players,” comments Botha.

“Bearing testament to the success of our modular plants are installations that we

have at Okorusu in Namibia, Diro Manganese in the Northern Cape, at Cluff Gold’s Kalsaka Mine, Matty Investments in Zambia, MGC Crushing in Mozambique and at Storm Diamonds’ Kao Mine in Lesotho,” he concludes.

TOP Osborn marketing director Martin Botha stands on an Osborn 3648 modular jaw crusher plant ABOVE A primary mineral sizer

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MINING INDABA

EXPANS ION

Production facilities get a major boost Polyurethane expert UMP has substantially increased its existing production capabilities, while expanding into engineering and fabrication services, as a result of its advanced new R12 million manufacturing facility in Johannesburg.

T

HE UPGRADE OF the ISO 9001-accredited factory, which was opened at a ceremony hosted by the company in November last year, has resulted in UMP’s scope of polyurethane supply expanding to include rubber lined, ceramic and fibreglass products, in addition to fabricated steel components.

UMP director Trevor Carolin explains: “In the past, complex moulding required the client to supply steel inserts for their polyurethane. These inserts are now fabricated and machined on premises, before being cast

with a specific urethane or rubber-lined, then bolted, assembled and crated for delivery.”

Carolin highlights the fact that the factory upgrade also formed part of UMP’s ongoing plans for expansion in South Africa and beyond. The expansion has resulted in the UMP factory more than doubling in size from 2 300 m2 to 5 000 m2, which has allowed for the creation of additional workshop space and new machinery for the polyurethane and engineering divisions.

As a result, the UMP engineering and fabrication division is now able to service

“Africa is the most prospective market for new projects and growth.”

Trevor Carolin, director at UMP

considerably larger projects. “We now have the ability to lift components that are up to 12.5 t in weight and up to 10 m in height under one crane. In the past, these types of projects would have been outsourced, as a result of our limited capacity. We are in a position to manufacture anything from machines to structural components,” says Carolin.

The increased capacity offers clients a value-added service offering, as everything is completed according to the company’s exact specifications under one roof. Improved internal manufacturing capabilities lower the cost of production, thanks to an increase in volumes, while improving quality control, as a result of all processes remaining entirely in-house.

Carolin added that UMP will increase its focus on pipelines, as well as expanding into export markets across Africa, North America and South America. “UMP is currently in the process of establishing a dedicated North American branch in Ontario, Canada, to service the well-established mining sector in the region. With development taking place in the South American mining market, I believe that UMP can gain market share in the region by consolidating on its success in Canada.”

From a local point of view, Carolin pointed out that the South African market remains relatively subdued, despite showing signs of recovery. “Africa has been identified by UMP as the most prospective market for new projects and growth possibilities. As a result, we will continue to place a high emphasis on expanding our reach in this market moving forward.”

LEFT UMP’s newly upgraded factory

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MINING INDABA

M AINT ENA NCE

Arresting safety Specialist engineering company Horne reports positive market acceptance of its improved Technogrid energy-absorption system.

T

HE SYSTEM IS used widely for arresting failed conveyor belt counterweights, runaway gantry cranes, mine cages in over-wind or under-wind conditions and runaway underground trains.

The improved product, introduced in 2011 as a development of the original South African design, is smaller and lighter, with higher energy absorption per unit mass. Recent sales have included several hundred units to platinum mines, with further orders from Mongolia and Mexico.

Technogrid functions by absorbing a moving body’s kinetic or potential

energy through deformation of a metal grid of known design and characteristics.

The product comprises a series of multi-bar units connected in a staggered grid shape which, upon impact, allow the metal bars to yield and deform under double curvature bending, opening up the units and absorbing the impact energy through strain hardening.

The product is easy to install, maintenance-free and can absorb any impact as long as the catch framework is designed to put the grid into tension. In the case of a conveyor counterweight, for example, the Technogrids are simply positioned

vertically next to or below the counterweight, with a catch frame attached to their lower ends and positioned just below the lowest point of normal vertical movement.

Should the conveyor belt fail and the counterweight fall into the catch frame, the Technogrid units will stop its fall, absorbing all impact energy. Individual Technogrid units can be designed to absorb energies from 24 kJ to over 40 000 kJ, and impact speeds of up to 120 km/h.

Safe deceleration and high end forces can be calculated for a wide range of energies, allowing optimum unit configuration for a specific application.

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MINING INDABA

AC C O M MODATION

300 modular units delivered to Xstrata Kwikspace has delivered 300 units to four different camps for a site management services company at the Xstrata Lion ferrochrome complex Phase 2 expansion project. By Gerhard Hope.

K

WIKSPACE BUILDING Products is the largest mobile unit rental company in South Africa and continually adds new units in order to keep its fleet looking new and fresh.

The mining industry “is very important to us as it accounts for a large portion of our market,” a Kwikspace spokesperson tells Inside Mining.

The company’s products are built around supplying quick accommodation, specifically for projects where a full camp and offices are required (namely, accommodation, ablutions, change houses, kitchens, diners, laundries, clinics, offices, etc.) “Major mining projects require these facilities, and it is for this reason that we are able to add value by supplying products to meet the need for each of these requirements.”

Kwikspace is also very active in Africa, and has just opened up a factory in Tete, Mozambique. “While the Nacala Corridor Project, one of the largest mining and BELOW Kwikspace supplies quick accommodation, specifically for projects where a full camp and offices are required

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construction projects to take place internationally, has been under way in Mozambique, we have been involved in the delivery of a 700-person camp at Nacala, having been contracted by a large international mining company.

“We also completed the erection of two accommodation camps in Malawi as part of the same project. We have delivered services to Guinea, Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia over the years.

“In terms of the Xstrata project, Kwikspace began rolling out the bulk of the units at the beginning of January 2012. They were delivered to four different camps, namely Tau (labour camp), Ibubeis (supervisor camp), Serabi (management camp) and Ngala (artip for exsan camp). The units varied per camp: ave en-suite it ample, the management units have ablutions and the supervisor units have shared en-suite ablutions, while the laons. bour units have communal ablutions. te ser“Our relationship with the site vices company that won the tender p ggoes oess oe for the management of the camp d ttheir heir he back a long way. We understand in market and what they require off uss in

order for them to be successful, that is the availability of units, on-time deliveries and service back-up.

“We continually supply units, generally offices or ablutions, to the mining sector, at various mines across South Africa. Our next major project will be the Anglo redeployment of workers from Rustenburg to Amandelbult. This should kick off shortly and will involve the supply of 420 rooms,” reveals the spokesperson.

In terms of latest developments, the company introduced its new Zozo units in 2009, which are becoming increasingly popular due to their versatility. These are modular units that can be joined numerous times, either on the width or length side, to form the required building size. The units can also be p to three storeys y high. g stacked up

MINING INDABA

B E LT C O NVE YOR DRIVE

Success in China Voith fluid couplings are being used on a 4.8 MW belt conveyor drive in China, delivering top performance as demanded.

T

HREE VOITH 866 TPKL fluid couplings are being used underground in the 4.8 MW drive of the main belt conveyor in the Xiegou No 12 coal mine in Shanxi Province, China.

Three 1Â 600Â kW drives power the 1Â 900Â m long main inclined belt conveyor. This conveyor transports 3 800 tonnes of coal every hour. The mine operator is satisfied with the performance of the 866 TPKL. In contrast to other solutions, the compact fluid coupling is also capable of withstanding extreme environmental conditions such as dust, dirt, moisture, heat or cold. Until now, the coal mine has been operating at the initially

planned production capacity of 15 million tonnes of coal a year. The operator plans to increase production capacity in the next one to two years. This will require the main belt conveyor to be upgraded with a fourth drive. For this, the operator plans on installing an additional 866 TPKL fluid coupling from Voith.

Voith Turbo, a group division of Voith GmbH, is a specialist in intelligent drive solutions and systems. Customers from diverse industries such as oil and gas, energy, mining and metal processing, ship technology, rail and commercial vehicles rely on advanced technologies from Voith Turbo.

866 TPKL Fluid Coupling from Voith

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IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 107

Protect Your Belt Conveyors with Voith Fluid Couplings.

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MINING INDABA

S M EC

Consultancy firm gears up for 2014 Internationally recognised consultancy firm SMEC will be attending the Mining Indaba, which is being held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre from 4 to 7 February.

T

HE MINING INDABA is recognised as the largest mining investment conference in Africa – and one of the largest in the world.

The event serves as the ideal platform for SMEC to highlight the capabilities of its various divisions and service offerings to high-profile decision-makers from hundreds of mining companies worldwide, giving particular focus to established regions such as South Africa, Namibia and Botswana, in addition to booming regions such as West and East Africa.

GMC Global’s regional manager for Africa, Schalk Prinsloo, says: “This is an event that brings together the mining industry in a global forum and, from a business point of view, it is able to create an extensive networking environment on a large scale, giving us an excellent opportunity to speak with top executives in a short space of time.”

At the 2013 Mining Indaba, SMEC launched its mining, oil and gas division, which was established to consolidate the company’s expertise in providing extensive consulting services to the mining industry, by coordinating skills and expertise to ensure that value-added and holistic project

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management, infrastructural development and mining productivity solutions are provided to mining operations located across Africa and the globe.

“We have seen measurable success since the launch of our mining, oil and gas division at last year’s Mining Indaba. This year we mainly want to show that we have established our brand in Africa, in addition to opening our GMC Global Africa office in 2013, which has also seen the company experiencing growth to date.

“With the company being through its paces, we would like to take this opportunity at the Mining Indaba to connect with mining executives and decision-makers to make them aware of the services offerings that we can provide,” says Prinsloo.

SMEC’s stand will be co-branded with SMEC Africa and GMC Africa. In addition, the company will also include other divisions that operate within SMEC and its service offerings, such as Soillab, a testing services provider in the local and international civil engineering industry.

Prinsloo highlights the fact that, with the world becoming a much closer interwoven community, events such as the Mining

SMEC launched its mining, oil and gas division at last year’s Mining Indaba

Indaba make it possible for companies such as SMEC and their customers to come together from all corners of the world and share experiences, as well as lessons learned in the mining industry.

“The Mining Indaba encourages companies to engage in discussions and share various ideas that can assist in improving and growing the industry as we know it.

The ideas shared can be brought into and used in the African mining community, and so-called ‘best practises’ can be applied.

We know that Africa is in the boom phase, and we need these previous experiences to harness the potential on this continent,” says Prinsloo.

“We hope to meet with a number of decision-makers whose attention we can attract with our capabilities. We hope to engage people and build up a network which can be supportive when it comes to our capabilities and their needs, all in a framework of return on investment. We also want to keep people informed of new developments and success stories,” concludes Prinsloo.

MINING INDABA

U NIQ U E ENGINE E RING

Generic components The generic replacement component market is booming. By Gerhard Hope.

A

CCORDING TO Unique Engineering sales director Peet Hartman, “in some instances, customers are saving as much as 40%. We do believe that this is due to the weak rand and that the trend will continue. It is where we are experiencing a good increase in sales at this point.

“Over and above the high cost of imported products, the locally manufactured products perform equally well, and in some instances better,” said Hartman, “as these are designed to operate under local conditions.” The company manufactures the Wilfo double diaphragm DD 25 and 50 pumps, known as the ‘workhorses’ of the mining industry. Developed locally almost 30 years ago, these have

always been 100% locally manufactured, which has been integral to their success.

Last year this product was redesigned, making it a ‘lube-free’ unit. This is a major benefit and makes these pumps environment-friendly and non-hazardous. No oil is required to run them, thereby also reducing costs.

The company is renowned in the mining industry, where it has operated for many years with a range of products, including pumps. It launched the Eco range to mining and general industry in 2007 and now has units operating in various areas other than mining; such as sugar, pulp, paper, water, sewage, effluent, dosing plants and the explosives industry.

IN SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2014 109

MINING INDABA

Africa ’s leader in natural resource and development solutions

Tel: + 27(0) 11 441 1111 www.srk.co.za

SRK C ONS ULTING

Vested interests Barriers to collaboration within and between African governments need to be overcome.

T

HE RECENT slowdown in mining development as commodity prices soften has heightened the need for better coordination as the high cost of large, game-changing projects demands more parties at the table.

SRK Consulting’s corporate consultant and chairman, Roger Dixon (right), says the annual Investing in African Mining Indaba, to be held in Cape Town in February, is an ideal forum for this issue to be explored in more detail. As a regular exhibitor and sponsor at the event, SRK uses the occasion to engage with high-level policy makers from both the public and private sector.

“We look forward to seeing more creative and constructive suggestions from government officials and mining executives on how to turn good intentions into action,” says Dixon. “There is plenty of talk about collaboration, but we need more practical commitment to the details.”

As a consultancy with projects and offices all over Africa, SRK is very familiar with the hurdles faced by both project developers and government agencies in getting mining projects planned and implemented.

“One of the unspoken issues is the difficulty of achieving better coordination between neighbouring countries – and even between different government departments within one country – so that efficiency and shared responsibility can improve a project’s chances of being viable,” says Dixon.

“The lack of enabling infrastructure makes it difficult to develop stand-alone projects in just one country. But often there are vested interests in governments and their departments that resist collaboration.”

Dixon highlights the frequent need for greenfield initiatives to be accompanied by substantial infrastructure development, adding huge costs and logistical demands to the usual challenges faced by mining companies.

110 I N SID E M IN IN G 0 1 | 2 0 1 4

He cites a common example of a minerals project comprising of a mine to extract the material, a rail line to transport it and a port to access global markets.

“It is unlikely to find one funder for all aspects of this kind of project – it is simply too large.”

“So it has to be split up, perhaps even across borders, requiring governments and private funders to come on board in a complex, collaborative effort.” An important iron ore deposit, for instance, lies on both sides of the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Cameroon.

John Kwofie, SRK country manager in Ghana, says the issue applied equally in West Africa. “There are many outstanding deposits receiving attention,” says Kwofie. “The secret is getting all the interested and affected parties to sit down and agree on a solution for how best to exploit these deposits, in a way that serves the best interests of all stakeholders and the region as a whole.”

With improved collaboration, countries within regions could plan their infrastructure together, to help lay the groundwork for private sector-driven investment and job creation, Dixon explains. “While most countries will present a good story about the projects they plan to develop, they seldom talk to their neighbours about how such projects could be jointly tackled to best effect.”

Alongside the need for better power and transport infrastructure, there still remains a lack of government institutional capacity to attract and manage investment within a clear and predictable framework.

Even in countries with existing frameworks, it is not uncommon to find ‘competitive legislation’ that demands conflicting compliance requirements.

“Resolving these ambiguities takes real leadership from government and requires high-level political intervention to align departmental priorities with national imperatives,” says Dixon. SRK is already involved in one such initiative the Cameroon.

MINING INDABA

WAT ER TRE ATME NT

Water plant for Kansanshi copper mine A South African company is supplying a containerised water-treatment plant to a Zambian copper mine.

K

ANSANSHI, NEAR Solwezi in Zambia aims to grow its annual copper output from 340 000 tonnes in 2013 to 400 000 tonnes by 2015. Veolia Water Solutions & Technologies South Africa is supplying the plant in six 40-foot shipping containers.

“As the world’s eighth-largest copper mine, the new Kansanshi smelter has very specific requirements for boiler feed, process and drinking water,” says Nigel Bester, project engineer at Veolia’s Engineered Systems & Services division. “The result is a flagship water treatment solution that upgrades river water to match each requirement exactly, with guaranteed availability due to a duty standby design on all process streams.”

Veolia will completely manufacture, test and certify the plants at its factory in Sebenza, Gauteng, before they are transported to site. The 40-foot containerised plants are designed to be linked up to one another on-site, and will operate as a single plant with multiple output streams to produce a combined 42.5 m3 of treated water per hour.

“The plant has been designed to ensure maximum viability, so we have taken a high-end engineering approach to match each treatment stage’s water with the mine’s requirements. This means that boiler feed water, for instance, is not subjected to all the treatment steps necessary for drinking water, which is much more viable than treating all the feed water to high-quality drinking standards regardless of its application,” says Bester.

After clarification, iron removal and sand filtration, the drinking water train consists of activated carbon filtration, polishing and ultimately UV disinfection. The boiler-feed water will be subjected to the same initial processes, but will be diverted for carbon filtration, double-pass reverse osmosis, passed through a polishing filter and continuous electro deionisation after passing through the initial sand filtration skids.

The softened water for use in the smelter’s processes will be

I N S I D E M I N I N G 0 1 | 2 0 1 4 111

diverted from the demineralisation stream before the second pass reverse osmosis membranes.

Veolia’s position at the upper-end of the containerised plant market secured the contract against international competitors. The company’s Engineered Systems & Services division uses only best-of-class componentry, and is highly specialised within the smaller-scale water and wastewater treatment market. “We have an extensive footprint throughout Southern Africa, which means we can service our clients comprehensively. As part of the global Veolia, we have access to some of the best technologies, which means that overall we provide the entire, fullyengineered package that provides long-term benefits,” says Bester.

MINING INDABA

OU T S TANDING CONTRI B UTION

Wits mining professor honoured After 27 years as a full professor at the School of Mining Engineering at the University of the Witwatersrand, Prof Huw Phillips has been honoured with the status of Professor Emeritus for his outstanding contribution to the institution.

P

ROF HUW Philips was also recently named as the 2013 winner of the South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy’s prestigious Brigadier Stokes Memorial Award for his unique input to the industry over many years.

“Phillips has excelled at everything he had been asked to do within the school, and was appointed Head of Mining Engineering from January 1986,” says Prof Fred Cawood, current Head of School. “His main contributions are in the areas of research – where he successfully supervised 19 PhD and 40 MSc degrees.

“He gave the school tremendous service during his 25-year tenure as Head of School.

His standing in the profession is extremely

high, and he was recently honoured by the Institute of Mine Surveyors of South Africa, the Mine Ventilation Society of South Africa and the International Society of Mining Professors.”

Phillips had stepped down as Head of School at the end of 2009, but had since continued as the Chair of Mining Engineering until his retirement in 2012. He continues to work in a post-retirement capacity, supervising postgraduate students, implementing the new mine ventilation area of postgraduate specialisation and serving on the school’s executive committee and editorial boards.

He began his career with an electrical engineering degree, working for the National Coal Board, the agency tasked with running the coal mines of the UK. He soon returned to his studies, this time in mining engineering at the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

His work focused on improving the productivity of the country’s collieries through mechanisation – at a time when some underground operations still used pit ponies to haul coal and equipment. He then became involved in research into tunnelling, a field in which important strides were being taken at that time.

Underlying much of his growing expertise was a preoccupation with health and

safety. Phillips had grown up in a village just 6 km from Aberfan, where a tragic coaltip slide in 1966 killed 144 people – 116 of them schoolchildren. He had arrived home from university on the day of the disaster for a family function and was part of the recovery operations alongside hundreds of local residents.

When he took up a lecturing post at the University of New South Wales in Australia, this provided an outlet for these concerns. While productivity in the Australian coal-mining industry was much higher than in the UK, this had also resulted in growing health and safety hazards such as higher methane and dust levels, and even underground explosions. Phillips began working on designs that would address these health and safety issues.

After spending his sabbatical leave in South Africa in 1981 with the Chamber of Mines Research Organisation (COMRO), he returned in 1985 as Chamber of Mines Professor of Mining Engineering at Wits, becoming Head of Department later the same year.

“There was overwhelming support in the School Executive to recommend the awarding of Professor Emeritus status,” says Cawood, “and it is befitting that the university has now bestowed this honour.”

TOP LEFT Prof Huw Phillips receiving his Professor Emeritus Certificate from Head of the Wits School of Mining Engineering, Prof Fred Cawood LEFT Seen at the celebratory function (from left) are: Michael Livingstone-Blevins, Chairman METF Committee; Prof Frederick Cawood, Head of the School of Mining; Prof Emeritus Huw Phillips, School of Mining Engineering; Beatrix Phillips; Prof Ian Jandrell, Dean, Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment

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MINING INDABA

NELS O N MA NDE LA , 191 8- 2013

Mining industry pays tribute to Madiba Anglo American executive director in South Africa Khanyisile Kweyama has praised former South African President Nelson Mandela for his “visionary, inclusive and even-handed leadership”, notes Gerhard Hope.

I

N A STATEMENT released to the media, Anglo American executive director Khanyisile Kweyama paid tribute to Mandela’s leadership “as truly the building blocks on which our thriving democracy was built, and the political sacrifices he made during his lifetime continue to benefit everyone in our country.

“The history books will view Madiba in a favourable light and generations of future

“There are no words to describe the enormity of what Mandela represents to the world and how his legacy will impact an infinite number of generations to come. He is a symbol of peace and freedom, and embodied the struggle of equality not just for South Africa but for everyone around the world,” said Mining Indaba MD Jonathan Moore.

“It is hard to grasp a world without Madiba. His legacy touches all four corners of the earth, his struggles and achievements will be unequiv“The South African mining ocally the greatest contribution sector will immortalise his to our history, and he will be greatly missed by all.” spirit by following his legacy The Chamber of Mines reiterand living up to the political ated that the mining industry sacrifices he endured to make remains committed to following Mandela’s legacy. “As we recomSouth Africa a better country mit the South African mining for all.” Chamber of Mines sector to doing more and working tirelessly with all stakeholdstudents around the world will be taught ers both in government and civil society to do about his immeasurable legacy to both South more, we shall draw from his visionary and p p Africa and the world. He will be remembered leadership panache,, which is undoubtedlyy for his determination to achieve equality for the foundation on which the South African all our citizens, the conviction he displayed mining industry seeks to build on.”

The Chamber of Mines said in a statement throughout his life, and his dedication to uplifting society’s most vulnerable. on its website: “During his term as our coun“As the largest mining company in South try’s first democratically elected President, Africa, Anglo American will constantly strive he raised the stature of South Africa as a to emulate his achievements by committing leading nation in the world and as a secure wholeheartedly to making a real difference destination for hope, growth and investin the prosperity and sustainability of our ment, especially in the mining sector. “In citizens.” Anglo American CE Mark Cutifani an address to the Chamber of Mines said in a statement on the company’s webFormer South African president site: “Anglo American will continue to do its Nelson Mandela passed away utmost to shadow Madiba’s legacy by making peacefully at his Houghton a real and lasting difference to the prosperity, home, in the presence of health and well-being of all our stakeholders family, at 20:50 on Thursday, in South Africa.”

5 December 2013

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shortly after his election in 1994, Mandela said the following about the South African mining industry: ‘You have the capacity not only to be a reliable economic generator for South Africa and the region as a whole, but also to contribute to the building of a society freed from the faults and fissures which marred our past.’

“As both a politician and a statesman, President Mandela has been, and will continue to be, an inspiration to all. As we have affectionately called him, Madiba was, and will always be, the iconic figure of peace, reconciliation and unity.

“His immeasurable legacy to both South Africa and the world will live on in the history books, and future generations will learn from his example. As one of the most recognised icons and strongest unifying national symbols, Tata is the perfect epitome that leaders should emulate. The South African mining sector will immortalise his spirit by following his legacy and living up to the political sacrifices he endured to make South Africa a better countryy for all.”

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MINING INDABA

P IP ES AND HOSE S

Pipes for Senegal A new large-scale mineral sands project in Senegal represents Weir Minerals Africa’s largest pipe contract in Africa.

S

ERVICE DELIVERY, relationship building and quality products have seen Weir Minerals’ initial project involvement expand substantially since its first order and initial project involvement.

Weir Minerals first became involved in the project after the client requested a quotation to provide rubber lining for some of its process equipment. “We immediately mobilised a team to site, including a technical manager, and did an audit on the equipment and provided a scope of work. We were awarded the contract,” says Weir Minerals’ rubber products manager, Ronald Govender.

It was, however, the contracts that followed that have shown the company’s true capabilities in delivering above and beyond for its clients. These included the supply of a 1.1

m (internal diameter) self-floating dredge and pre-formed hose bends in 2012, and all pumps, including one of the largest mill circuit pumps in its range, the Warman MCR 750 pump.

Weir Minerals is currently rolling out its rubber lining range to all of its African branches and service centres.

Weir Minerals Africa staff alongside the recentlycompleted Warman 750 MCR mill circuit pump at the Weir HBF facility. This picture was captioned incorrectly in Inside Mining Nov/Dec 2013, p64-65.

Inside Mining apologises for any inconvenience caused

INDEX TO ADVERTISERS 5th Annual Women in Mining Africa

69

Filtaquip

87

Osborn

103

Adapt IT

52

FLSmidth

89

Sandvik Mining

IBC

Aquatan

73

Group Five Projects

29

SBS

Atlas Copco

71

Hansen

105

SRK Consulting

110

Barloworld Equipment

83

Johnson Crane Hire

102

Tega Industries

95

BBE Projects

43

M&J Engineering

10

ThyssenKrupp

IFC

Bearings International

93

M3 Construction

37

TradeCorp Logistics

31

Bell Equipment

81

Marley Pipes

79

Unique Engineering

109

Marsh Africa

55

Vermeer Equipment Suppliers

113

BHL Logistics

57

MineRP

23

Vital Engineering

Booyco Electronics

85

Mintek

59

Voith

Discovery Drilling DRA Mineral Projects ELB Equipment Emerald Risk Transfer

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OBC 21 115 46

Model Maker Systems Multotech Group Murray & Roberts Cementation NuWater

111 96-97 15 7

11

68 107

Weir Minerals

99

Women in Mining

69

WorleyParsons Zest WEG Group

101 91

DIAMOND DRILLING 2500m DEEP AND RC DRILLING

HEAD OFFICE SOUTH AFRICA Tel: +27 14 573 3444/666 Fax: +27 14 573 3555 www.discoverydrilling.co.za E-mail: info@discoverydrilling.co.za