SA Mining March/April 2023

The mining industry today faces challenges on all sides. In the face of the climate crisis, the world is making a concerted e ort to go “green”; supply chains are still struggling to recover, following the disruptions caused by COVID-19; and now the war in Ukraine is causing a crucial shortage of basic and precious metals.

The imposition of international sanctions on Russia has seriously a ected the metal markets –particularly base and precious metals. For one thing, the five base metals Russia produces on a vast scale – nickel, aluminium, copper, iron and zinc – have all seen dramatic price increases.

The challenge facing Africa is that whether these metals involve spare parts or new technologies, sanctions could have longer-term consequences for everything from the sustainability of mining operations to the functioning of the manufacturing base.

This deficit in global supply presents an opportunity for African nickel producers such as Zimbabwe and Botswana to step in and fill the gap. However, overcoming inadequate export infrastructure will be a significant challenge.

Africa’s mining sector is primed for growth in 2023, according to one mining expert, who suggests that a weaker rand, while less than ideal for the average consumer, is beneficial for exporters. He also predicts that there will be a pronounced increase in industry investment for the exploration of new mineral deposits, the founding of new mining operations, and the expansion of existing mines in the battery commodity market.

While it is suggested that most of the supply chain issues plaguing the industry will essentially continue through 2023, there are also indications

MIN NG

EDITOR

Rodney Weidemann

Tel: 062 447 7803

Email: rodneyw@samining.co.za

ONLINE EDITOR

Stacey Visser

Email: vissers@businessmediamags.co.za

ART DIRECTOR

Shailendra Bhagwandin

that – with the war in Ukraine set to further fuel the global shortages of commodities in 2023 – South Africa and the rest of the continent are well poised to help resolve growing global demand issues.

Speaking of supply chains and logistics, we take a look at how “road trains” o er significant payload increases, something that translates into decreased rates per tonne and reduced environmental impact and carbon emissions.

While greater payloads mean better cost e iciency, road trains also enable businesses to reduce the size of their fleets, with the potential savings here exceeding tens of billions of rand each year in fuel, reduced road damage, and fewer heavy vehicle accidents.

Safety remains an ongoing mining challenge, and here, technology is being leveraged to help significantly reduce risks in this environment. Mines are, for example, using drones, for both the purposes of surveying and to improve safety.

Drones are e ective for everything from looking for gas leaks in a blast face to providing intruder alerts and even sta head counts. They also provide miners with essential safety data in their day-to-day operations, like monitoring air quality or evaluating the impacts of rain run-o .

Surveillance is equally critical for safety purposes, with the latest innovations in cameras situated underground in mines, on board vehicles and even as body-worn, personal safety solutions.

Finally, in our cover story, AECI Mining’s Zero Harm safety initiative demonstrates that the company continually places safety at the centre of the business. In this way, it is able to make sure the business operates sustainably without harm to its people, the environment, the communities it operates in, and the communities of its customers.

Tel: 011 280 5946

Email: bhagwandinsh@arena.africa

ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS

Ilonka Moolman

Tel: 011 280 3120

Email: moolmani@samining.co.za

Tshepo Monyamane

Tel: 011 280 3110

Email: tshepom@samining.co.za

PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR

Neesha Klaaste

Tel: 011 280 5063

Email: neeshak@sahomeowner.co.za

SUB-EDITOR

Andrea Bryce

BUSINESS MANAGER

Claire Morgan

Tel: 011 280 5783

Email: morganc@sahomeowner.co.za

GENERAL MANAGER MAGAZINES

Jocelyne Bayer

SWITCHBOARD

Tel: 011 280 3000

SUBSCRIPTIONS

Neesha Klaaste

Tel: 011 280 5063

Email: neeshak@sahomeowner.co.za

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© ISTOCK –wallix

Endless Possibilities

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Email: info.msa@manitou-group.com www.manitou.com

FIRST 5G-ORIENTED SMART DIAMOND MINE PROJECT

Botswana’s Debswana and Huawei have jointly announced the world’s first 5G-oriented smart diamond mine project. Deployed at Debswana’s Jwaneng open-pit diamond mine, Huawei’s 4G eLTE private network solution provides stable connectivity for the Jwaneng mine.

The solution connects more than 260 pieces of equipment, including drilling rigs, excavators, heavy trucks and pick-up trucks. This enables interconnection between the mine’s production, safety and security systems.

According to Debswana’s head of information management Molemisi Nelson Sechaba, the solution connects mining equipment in a more stable manner, increasing e iciency through the ability to transfer data in real time, thereby increasing yield and reducing long-term OPEX.

“Furthermore, it helps improve safety, as real-time data collection, backhaul and interaction make the system more sensitive and accurate, ensuring that it provides more reliable protection for sta and vehicles,” he says.

The Jwaneng mine is the world’s first 5G-oriented smart diamond mine. This means the hardware equipment such as base stations used in the mine’s digital transformation solution support network upgrades to 5G. 5G features such as high bandwidth and low latency can support the application of cutting-edge technologies like autonomous driving, enabling more intelligent digital transformation of the mining industry in the future.

The Government of Botswana has stated that it will continue to put in place facilitation measures to further support the digital transformation agenda across all sectors, including the mining industry, and welcomes international companies, such as Huawei, to participate in this agenda. Measures already under way include a formulated digitalisation agenda, a 5G roadmap, and other supporting policies.

Xu Jun, CTO of the Huawei Mine business unit, adds that Huawei is committed to using its strengths in ICT technologies such as 5G, cloud, artificial intelligence, and internet of things to develop smart mine solutions that will continue to make mine production safer, more e icient, and more intelligent.

AFRICAN INFRASTRUCTURE BENEFITS FROM CHRYSO’S GROWING FOOTPRINT

With a firm base of technical expertise and infrastructure in South Africa, construction chemicals and admixtures specialist CHRYSO Southern Africa has been increasingly serving markets in Central, East and West Africa. The company’s active growth strategy into Africa over more than a decade means that customers there can expect the same high standards of product and support.

According to Armand van Vuuren, commercial manager exports at CHRYSO Southern Africa, the company’s expansion strategy has been pursued for almost a dozen years – with great results. There are now distributors in a range of key markets including Angola, Botswana, Ghana, Mozambique, Nigeria, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

“We also have an established o ice in Nairobi, Kenya, and are expanding into Tanzania,” he explains. “Through our extensive presence across Southern, Central, East and West Africa, we supply not just the ready-mix and precast sectors, but also specific construction and infrastructure projects.

“Africa is an exciting continent, and this is where future economic growth is going to come from,” he says. According to the African Development Bank, the expected growth rates in West and Central Africa are expected to be 4.2% and 4.6% respectively in 2023, while East Africa will reach 5.5% in growth terms.

“CHRYSO Southern Africa and our distributors have been working with a range of contractors and other businesses to ensure that their concrete meets the exacting specifications of the contract,” says Van Vuuren. “Whether the application is bridges, dams, mining infrastructure or precast manufacturing, we continue to play a vital and growing role in Africa’s development.”

METALS STREAMING SET TO SECURE AFRICA’S MINING FUTURE

Growth in emerging markets is creating demand for special metals and similar commodities. And with steady recovery in the mining industry over the past few years and a significant uptick in the commodity price market, there is an increased need for capital to fund these advances.

It is, however, increasingly di icult for mining companies to obtain traditional forms of lending from banks and equity financing. This is especially the case when political, economic and environmental risks are challenging and attract higher debt rates.

Coupled with this demand is the expected transition of large populations out of poverty and underdeveloped economies to become the next international trade leaders. This is where alternative financing mechanisms such as metals streaming and royalties provide feasible and attractive options for companies to fund new projects, and expand existing ones.

Alchemy Law Partner

In the past decade, these financing mechanisms have grown from US$2.1-billion to more than US$15bn, and are attractive to investors as they provide commodity price leverage and exposure to preexisting product and price movements. At the same time, delivery payments are predetermined and made only when they occur.

Financing in these instances is only applied to a single asset or “stream”. Further advantages of streaming are that it is scalable, financial systems are not needed, and it can be listed separately.

BESPOKE FINANCING

Metals streaming, in particular, has expanded rapidly in Australia, Canada and North America and is fast gaining traction in Africa in the junior mining sector where funding is needed to bring new products into the market.

For mining companies throughout Africa, these bespoke financing transactions are at the top of the agenda and create unique opportunities whereby the needs of both investors and mine operators are met. Both parties are able to achieve higher returns and continued growth, securing the future of the industry. Streamers also have an indepth knowledge of the industry and its challenges and through their type of transactions, they don’t get embroiled in a miner’s operational risks.

These types of contracts sell future production or revenue in return for an upfront cash payment, and are changing the face of the industry

globally by increasing available capital resources and promoting further production to meet growing demand.

Decision makers and business owners in the smaller mines need to start considering their options – not only for themselves but for the growth of the sector and continued support of the economy. They need to find the interplay between their equity, their stream and their lending mechanism.

If you’re a licensed junior miner and thinking about new opportunities – starting to break ground or building a new processing plant for example – consider streaming as a possible and credible funding option to get mining, or to expand.

These revolutionary financing mechanisms will undoubtedly play a pivotal role in shaping the future of the mining industry and bringing sustainable economic reform to the continent.

Alchemy Law, with its proven track record of providing exceptional legal advice to the mining industry and experience in metals’ streaming transactions, is well positioned to help smaller industry players navigate and set up the legal instruments for much-needed alternative funding to bring metal-streaming into the market. In partnership with financial doyens, the company can advise on these types of transactions in this increasingly competitive field.

WHAT ARE THESE ALTERNATIVE FINANCING MECHANISMS?

Under streaming agreements, investors purchase a portion of a mining company’s future production at a fixed price below market value and deals are settled by the physical transfer of metal. Companies that are diversified have a lean operating structure and acquire undervalued projects, have the potential to achieve higher returns, minimise regional, political and economic risks, capitalise on opportunities, and reduce waste. All of these create continuous improvement in operating e iciency.

Royalty transactions involve a cash payment from an operator for a portion of the generated project revenue of minerals sold from production of the property to which the royalty relates.

Streaming and royalty agreements o er a number of advantages when compared to traditional financing arrangements. They apply to a single asset, are scalable, typically have longer payment periods, do not require fixed cash obligations thus incurring lower risk, have greater flexibility, and share production and operational risks across the value chain.

Renewed growth sentiment among miners’ management teams, and the rise of streaming and royalty financing globally over the past 10 years, suggests that these increasingly competitive alternative transactions are set for significant expansion over the next decade, particularly in Africa.

Morné van der Merwe

GIVING SMALLERSCALE MINERS A VOICE

Surface mining industry association ASPASA has adopted new and streamlined services, especially for smaller-scale surface mines, in order for them to better manage challenges and profit from opportunities as they arise.

“Your voice when it matters most” is being adopted as the ASPASA team’s slogan, so that it’s taken to heart and used continuously throughout their engagements with members at all times.

“We started with a membership survey in December last year to determine the service needs of our members. The resultant input was to move away from ASPASA’s original 18 focus areas, to just seven,” says newly appointed executive director Letisha van den Berg.

The seven areas include:

■ Legal – including opinion, updates, and royalties.

■ Safety and health – including audits, physical and mental health, training, and transport.

■ Environmental – including audits and training.

■ Technical – including audits.

■ Engineering – including ECSA.

■ Women in mining – including all aspects.

■ Liaison – includes internal (members) and external (government, MHSC, MINCOSA, junior/emerging mines, illegal mining, security, media, and other associations).

“In addition, we identified that training and development of our young members is an important factor and took the decision to bring back a process that had worked very well in the past and that is to manage all training through the Institute of Quarrying,” she says.

“Another key change will be the addition of a steering committee to help streamline specific regional issues and make dissemination of information easier.”

The new team has already hit the ground running, with valuable engagements in ground vibrations, noise air blast and fly rock dra Code of Practice, royalty updates and the way forward.

“ASPASA is looking forward to our future engagements with our members and external liaisons to make a positive contribution towards the small surface mining industry and to add value to all our members,” she says.

R50M DEAL BOOSTS MINING DIVERSITY AND TRANSFORMATION

Black female-owned private equity investor Moshe Capital has acquired a 20% stake in Pragma, which specialises in delivering enterprise asset management services and solutions to mining businesses. The R50-million deal was funded by FNB and takes black ownership of Pragma to 56.8%.

“Moshe Capital partners with African businesses that can compete internationally, so Pragma is an excellent fit for our investment portfolio of mining businesses that transform the sector. Pragma’s so ware and technology systems add tremendous value to asset-intensive businesses like mining and it o ers training to boost asset and operational management,” says Mametja Moshe, founder and CEO of Moshe Capital.

Pragma serves an asset-intensive client base. Founded in 1990, the engineering services business incorporates proprietary technology into operations to monitor the health of assets and more importantly, predict potential failures to act timeously and avoid downtime. Clients span the mining, manufacturing, public infrastructure, oil and gas and original equipment manufacturing sectors. Pragma’s clients include industry leaders such as Anglo, Syntegon and Shell.

“Having a 100% black woman-owned investment partner in Moshe Capital boosts the transformation of our business in terms of black ownership. It is an added bonus that we gain access to a forward-thinking female leader with valuable advisory experience, as well as expertise in sectors with good growth prospects,” says Adriaan Scheeres, Pragma Holdings CEO.

BETTER

BLASTING

BlastWeb is designed to enable the modern miner to digitally command blasting operations from a central point and give the user the ability to control important functions such as ventilation, vibration, seismicity and shift patterns. AECI Mining Explosives made the system flexible to allow the safe initiation of electronic as well as shock tube systems.

AT THE CENTRE OF AECI MINING PLACING SAFETY

Mining by nature can be considered a risky business and has always presented safety challenges to those participating in the industry. Yet, in modern times, mining safety has significantly improved thanks to progressive regulations, technological developments and increased commitment from stakeholders across the mining value chain.

Following the introduction of the Mine Health and Safety Act in 1996, the South African mining industry has made noteworthy progress in improving the overall safety, health and environmental standards associated with the sector. This improvement coupled with continued commitment of stakeholders has led to a reduction in miningrelated injuries and fatalities. AECI Mining’s CEO Mark Kathan notes that safety is a “team sport”, and while solid legislation provides the foundation for improved safety, business has an important role to play in not only ensuring compliance, but also prioritising safety within each organisation of the mining value chain.

“Safety is at the top of our priority list. To AECI, that means making sure our business operates sustainably without harm to our

people, the environment and communities in which we operate. This relentless focus on safety at all of AECI Mining’s operations has been entrenched into our culture and DNA,” he says.

A CULTURE OF SAFETY

Putting safety at the centre of the business has delivered pleasing results culminating in our best ever Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) of 0.1 in 2022.

TRIR1 is a safety measurement that acknowledges a company’s commitment to occupational health and safety protocols, and is based on the number of reportable safety incidents recorded against the number of hours worked by employees and contractors.

Kathan explains that this safety performance is a direct result of AECI Mining’s Zero Harm safety initiative.

“Leaders are accountable for managing and enabling SHEQ practices, but every individual in AECI is accountable for ensuring that we ‘do it safely, or not at all’. The successful implementation of the SHEQ framework depends on each of us applying its principles daily,” he says. “In fact, in 2021 we solidified Zero Harm and sustainability as one of three

strategic platforms in our growth strategy. Our vision is to deliver sustainable solutions for a better world, through innovation and excellence founded on good chemistry.”

AECI Mining is working towards what it calls “Better Mining”. Kathan explains this as “making mining safer and more circular” and says it starts with leadership, before cascading through every aspect of the business.

“To implement a successful occupational safety initiative, especially when operating in more than 24 countries with a sta complement of 3 800 employees, you most definitely need the support from executive leadership with safety as part of their DNA,” he says.

“At AECI Mining, I am fortunate to be a part of a leadership team that understands, supports and prioritises our goal of Zero Harm. This continued commitment to Zero Harm is critical to ensuring that the importance of safety protocol messaging throughout the company is heard. It plays a significant role to the continued provision of a safe working space for all of our people, whether they are on-site, in our operating plants or at the o ice.”

AECI Mining’s Zero Harm safety initiative ensures that the company continually places safety at the centre of the business to deliver positive results.

ESG IN FOCUS

Better mining and sustainability go beyond safety to encompass issues such as environmental, social responsibility and governance compliance (ESG). In terms of AECI’s ESG strategy, a key commitment has been made to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, through the adoption of a sustainability framework guided by six priority United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and 23 ESG indicators.

AECI is also working to align its reporting with the sustainability guidelines issued by the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) in December 2021 and has committed to reducing its Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions2

“This includes a large investment into our air emission abatement technologies, e luent reduction projects, and most recently, our investment into renewable energy sources to reduce our carbon intensity even further,” says Kathan.

“We will also be evaluating potential investments with industry partners in green ammonia, which speaks to our business aligning every operational decision and action with our ESG aspirations, in pursuit of Zero Harm to people and the planet.”

Kathan explains that using digitisation

to its advantage, AECI Mining has also made great strides towards implementing a system to track scope 3 emissions for raw material used at its plant, as well as goods sold to customers – one of the first industries to do so.

THE ROLE OF R&D

While AECI Mining’s Zero Harm and ESG strategies are internal initiatives, Kathan notes that the group works to contribute towards safer mining within the whole sector, through its products and services – specifically regarding research and development (R&D).

“We provide a mine-to-mineral solution for customers on a global scale, including commercial explosives, initiating systems, blasting services and surfactants for explosives manufacture, as well as chemicals for ore beneficiation and tailings treatment,” he says. “There is opportunity for innovation and for improved safety at every leg of this value chain.”

For example, he suggests, AECI Mining Explosives’ Emulsion Explosives Vertical Drop system has helped improve safety and optimise e iciencies, by allowing the blasting product to be delivered directly

GOING GREEN

AECI Mining is evaluating potential investments with industry partners in green ammonia. This is part of aligning every operational decision and action with its ESG aspirations and the pursuit of Zero Harm to people and the planet.

from surface to deep underground areas. This removes the need for other equipment that has traditionally been required for transportation, reducing emissions as well as fuel and electricity usage.

“Moving away from conventional industry practices of combining explosives mixtures of PETN and TNT in the manufacture of explosives boosters, our new PowerBoost® booster ingeniously creates a powerful booster from non-explosive raw materials. We’ve managed to successfully introduce a simplified, safer manner of manufacturing boosters, while still providing a premium o ering in the market,” adds Kathan.

“Collaboration with our stakeholders is key to successfully improving our safety practices, minimising environmental impact and developing innovative technologies –and this is something that will continue to drive our business into the future,” he says.

Mark Kathan.

We’ve managed to successfully introduce a simplified, safer manner of manufacturing boosters, which remains a premium o ering.

– Kathan

2 Direct emissions from owned or controlled sources and indirect emissions from electricity, steam, heating and cooling.

NO ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL

WHEN FUNDING RENEWABLE ENERGY POWER PROJECTS

As load shedding continues to bite, mines are seeking alternative, renewable energy partners. But how to obtain the funding necessary for such a project?

Driven by the challenges of climate change and ongoing load shedding, renewable energy solutions have moved from the fringe to the mainstream. Of course, implementing renewable energy projects at any scale requires funding – but not all such projects are equally likely to receive the investment they need from the financial sector.

RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTS CAPACITY

Amber Bolleurs, senior transactor in infrastructure sector solutions at Rand Merchant Bank (RMB), says the renewable projects the mining industry aims to implement vary widely. On one end of the scale are smaller, on-site, ground-mounted solar installations. On the other are large solar and wind projects that transmit power to the mine via the national grid – much like the Renewable Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme. Installations range between 80MW and 200MW per project – underscoring the extent of demand for renewable energy and for scalability of these projects.

Bolleurs says the challenges individual mines face in obtaining project funding depend on the power procurement process they wish to follow. In some cases, the mine prefers to own the renewable energy installation, although typically mines seek to buy power via an independent power producer (IPP) model.

MINE-OWNED AND -OPERATED RENEWABLE ENERGY INSTALLATIONS

“Mines wanting to own renewable energy installations themselves will procure on-balance-sheet funding, making them directly liable for any losses. Usually these installations are co-located on the mine’s

property and financiers will consider the mine’s balance sheet in making their lending decisions,” she says.

In the case of a co-located installation, this procurement route depends on the availability of land on which to build a plant and whether the availability of renewable resources (e.g. sunshine, wind) at the location makes the project viable. In choosing this path, the mine must accept all risk relating to ownership, construction, operation and maintenance of the installation.

“On-balance-sheet finance for on-site installations is available – but it may be constrained in terms of tenor of funding and, potentially, pricing. On-site installations may

to this, she suggests.

“For example, it enables mines to shi the ownership and operational risks of the renewable energy plant to the IPP, and simply agree to procure power from them at an attractive, predictable price path for a 15to 20-year period.

“It also doesn’t constrain or impact the debt capacity of the mine’s balance sheet and debt tenors can be stretched so that should the mine (buyer) default on its obligations to procure power, a third party can take over the contract – making the risk of loss for the bank lower and pricing more attractive.”

On the other hand, there are challenges inherent in the IPP model. First, power procurement agreements need to be well structured and include adequate risk allocation between parties. Second, since these projects rely on a wheeling framework, buyers with an Eskom connection can benefit from its established wheeling framework.

But those with municipal connections will struggle to procure power if the municipality through which they connect to the national grid does not accommodate wheeling. Currently, very few municipalities have such a framework in place.

not have a secured connection to the Eskom grid, which limits any lender’s ability to take a view regarding the installation’s security, and therefore its ability to sell power to a third-party buyer via a wheeling framework and stretch the tenor of the debt.”

THE IPP MODEL

Most mines would rather procure renewable power from an IPP. There are several benefits

Lastly, constraints on national grid connection and capacity mean that some areas of the country, such as the Northern Cape, have land and renewable resources (solar) in abundance, yet remain “sterilised” due to the lack of transmission capacity to deliver power to the rest of the country.

“We need to see more investment from Eskom as it is the baseload provider and grid owner. It is imperative that the grid be expanded and strengthened in areas where capacity is required to further open up the market and ensure that major industrial projects have access to the power they need to operate,” Bolleurs says.

Amber Bolleurs.

INVESTING IN AFRICAN MINING POLITICS, PRACTICE AND POLICY FOR SUCCESS

By Lili Nupen,

Africa has a remarkable mineral endowment that already provides many of the critical minerals needed by the global economy, but abundant natural mineral endowments do not automatically translate into successful and sustainable mining industries. This is especially true for junior miners.

To develop sustainable mining on the continent, Africa needs long-term, responsible investors who not only consider regulation, but develop a local minesupporting ecosystem to capture more of the value for its host communities.

At a recent panel held during the Mining Indaba 2023 these policies, practices, and politics were unpacked by Tebello Chabana, senior executive: public a airs and transformation, Minerals Council South Africa; Lili Nupen, co-founder and director of Mining and Environmental Law, NSDV; Antony Phillipson, United Kingdom High Commissioner to South Africa; Dr Thakane Ntholi, Council for Geoscience (CGS); and Miyelani Shikwambana, director, Brunswick (moderator).

WHAT DO GLOBAL ECONOMIES NEED FROM AFRICAN MINING?

Although we have this significant endowment of minerals, global economies need to at least be able to access these minerals considering the major demand for raw materials for the green revolution – minerals that Africa has in abundance.

This type of global access is currently policy-driven and no longer solely based on supply-and-demand economics. Look at the shi from the United States (US) previously focusing on China, to now focusing more on Africa. The politics matters and you can see this in the political and policy flux between China and the US.

Western economies are hedging their supply chain accessibility away from a single focus on Southeast Asia access and have come to Africa to strike up collaborative agreements for access to our minerals. The latest memorandum of understanding between the

US, Zambia and Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is just one example.

We have also seen an influx in interest through South Africa to places like the DRC for copper, Zimbabwe for lithium, and other countries like Zambia for access to green metals because of political demand for a “greener solution” worldwide.

WHAT IS NEEDED TO CREATE WEALTH AND TRANSFORM THE INDUSTRY?

We have all heard about the dysfunctional application system or more specifically the non-existent cadastre system. Wealth is literally leaving our shores given the complexity around merely determining whether there is an existing right for a certain mineral in respect of certain land.

Junior miners for instance – who could become a huge part of creating wealth through mining – are facing major issues with access to international and local finance once an application has been approved due to these challenges.

In most instances, SA’s Industrial Development Corporation will only fund a junior miner if there is an anchor investor already; and in most instances, international funders want to know why no one in South Africa will fund the project before they fund it, becoming a vicious cycle.

HANDS TIED

What this ultimately leads to is sterilisation of minerals and a group of junior miners who cannot properly extract and process the minerals without the requisite funding. This lack of funding stems from the perceived uncertainty regarding a strict regulatory environment and corrupt regulator (and the potential for the legislation to change on a whim), and all these issues I’ve just spoken about.

Aside from the above, we have found incredible success for junior (and major players) by nurturing our relationships with regulators, understanding their pain points, and collaborating to find solutions instead of escalating through unnecessary court applications.

Various amendments to legislation can assist in creating collaboration with regulators, junior miners, and majors to “o load” these assets onto operators who are able to fully process them. And where the majors are recognised by the regulator for these transactions, perhaps rewarded through compliance points, as an example.

Additionally, a more concerted collaboration with Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries regarding a regional policy whereby access to logistics, ports, rail, road etc. are considered and permitted transport of ore across borders where expert beneficiation should be considered. Ultimately less “stick” and more of a “carrot” approach in all regards is needed, with a bigger focus on the junior space and exploration of our resources.

DRIVING SUSTAINABLE NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

There’s a lot that needs to be done, but a lot that can be done in our current circumstances. We need greater transparency with regards to the cadastre system and working together with other SADC regions during the super cycle in a collaborative way.

We can also look at encouraging exploration in several ways. This can be from amending strict legislative requirements which apply to both majors and juniors, to encouraging investment in the junior space.

There also needs to be a greater ability for juniors and majors to collaborate –perhaps tax incentives for majors to assist juniors – collaboration, divesting of smaller assets in favour of juniors, or assisting with logistics, rail allocation etc. Essentially, we need a greater focus on the junior sector and how major players encourage and support mining and investment in this area.

NSDV, as the first fully integrated law firm specialising in mining, construction, energy, and environmental law, encourages collaboration on all fronts to achieve these goals.

In order for Africa to develop sustainable mining on the continent, it is imperative to have long-term, responsible investors and an effective junior mining sector.

NSDV

© ISTOCK –Cristian Martin

SIGNIFICANT GROWTH

FOR AFRICAN MINING IN 2023

By Benjamin van der Veen

Africa’s mining sector is primed for growth in 2023, according to Johann de Bruin, founder and CEO of Erudite, an engineering, procurement, and construction management company with operations across Africa.

“The mining industry has seen its fair share of incredible highs and lows over the past decade, 2022 being no exception,” says De Bruin.

“South Africa faced prolonged strikes early in 2022, as well as continued energy woes, higher-than-usual rainfall, global supply chain disruptions, and a volatile commodities market. The interest in commodities such as graphite, lithium, nickel, and cobalt, to name just a few, has re-energised the mining sector across the continent.”

He believes that exciting times lie ahead, and o ers four predictions for the mining sector in 2023:

EXCHANGE RATE SLUMP

The rand was 8.47% weaker year on year against the US dollar in December 2022. De Bruin notes that the ZAR/USD exchange rate will probably stabilise around current values over the next two years.

“While a weaker rand is less than ideal

for the average consumer, it is beneficial for exporters. Local goods and commodities become less expensive for our international trading partners to acquire, in comparison to competing markets, while the rand value for exporters is higher, which means that producers receive more for the same goods,” he says.

SUPPLY CHAIN RECOVERY

As the world enters the final recovery stage from the post-pandemic slump, and countries adjust to and find workarounds for disruptions caused by Russia’s war on Ukraine, as well as the lingering tail of COVID-19 in the East, De Bruin says most of the supply chain issues plaguing the industry will essentially continue through 2023.

A SURGE IN NEW PROJECTS

As other issues are resolved globally, he believes there will be a pronounced increase in industry investment for the exploration of new mineral deposits, the founding of new mining operations, and the expansion of existing mines in the battery commodity market.

INTERNATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

As De Bruin notes, extractive industries are driving the global post-COVID economic

resurgence, regularly revealing new opportunities in the market. Additionally, as the war in Ukraine seems set to further fuel global shortages of many commodities in 2023, South Africa and the rest of the continent are poised to help resolve growing global demand issues.

SURGE IN NEW PROJECTS IN THE DRC

The mining sector is a strategic market vital for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The country has mineral resources that are unmatched in the world: it is Africa’s largest producer of copper and the world’s biggest producer of cobalt. The economic impact of mining accounts for more than 25% of GDP.

Over the years, numerous multinational companies have established themselves in the DRC and contributed to developing genuine value chains.

Extractive industry value chains are connecting mining with other sectors. The availability of local financing also shapes their development. In the face of exponential growth in demand for the minerals needed for batteries, financing needs are increasing for exploration and operating companies.

The favourable climate for mined commodities – and battery minerals in particular – is giving the DRC great

Global impacts, including Russia’s war in Ukraine and a volatile commodities market, open the door for African mining entities to experience significant growth this year.

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opportunities to leverage its resource wealth; however, there are several burning issues that mining companies there are facing.

These include social and environmental impacts, mine closures, mineral resource and reserve estimates and skills development, says Wouter Jordaan, partner and principal environmental scientist at SRK Consulting.

“The DRC has long been an exciting mining destination, and our SRK Consulting Congo practice has seen considerable progress over the 10 years since its establishment,” he says. “Among the issues we are working on with clients is the relationship between mining companies and communities.”

Jordaan says increased exploration work in the country, both for new projects and to expand existing operations, has also heightened the need for independent and accurate mineral resource and reserve estimations. Depending on where the project owner is located or listed, various codes are used in the DRC.

COMMUNITIES, SKILLS AND BENEFICIATION

DRC President Félix Tshisekedi spoke about the mining potential of the DRC in his speech at Mining Indaba 2023.

“It is sad to note that this abundant

natural endowment (the mineral wealth of the DRC) has still not benefited the country, let alone Africa, because of issues of poor governance rooted for decades, but also insecurity cleverly orchestrated by dark powers greedy for our natural resources, as is currently the case in the eastern part of the DRC,” he said.

He told delegates of his idea for local industries to process mining products, to enable African populations to benefit more from the riches of their subsoil, through e ective beneficiation.

“The mining sector in the DRC can only be profitable for you, the investors, if it responds to the aspirations of the local communities a ected by the mining projects. It is in this … context that revenue redistribution mechanisms have been inserted into my country’s legislation, for the benefit of the populations impacted by mining projects.”

Tshisekedi said his government o ered investors a clean business climate, and ongoing and accessible development of special economic zones. He appealed to the global community for support for stability in Africa, and the DRC in particular, saying measures had been taken to end insecurity and help the Congolese benefit from their country’s mineral resources through rational exploitation.

FOUR PREDICTIONS FOR MINING IN 2023:

■ A weaker rand that is good for exporters

■ Recovery in supply chains

■ Growth in new projects

■ New international opportunities

Andrew van Zyl, SRK Consulting’s managing director, emphasises the speed at which mining has adapted to new challenges and expectations in recent decades. As the sector better understands its impacts, it is continuously improving how it runs operations – including developing local skills.

“Local regulations around Africa are now making the localisation of skills and supply chains more of a priority, like all the practices in our global network. SRK Consulting Congo is locally sta ed and owned, and builds its skill levels and disciplines on an ongoing basis,” he says.

Jacek_Sopotnicki

jasonbennee

Local regulations around Africa are now making the localisation of skills and supply chains more of a priority

DRONING ON ABOUT SAFETY

By Rodney Weidemann

Worker safety in mines has long been a challenge, owing to the hazardous conditions and functions of the sector. It is therefore in South Africa’s national interest, as well as that of the public and private sectors, that all options to ensure worker safety be considered.

Alana De Wet, mining vertical head at iOCO, a member of the EOH group of companies, points out that when it comes to safety, technology is most o en the answer. For example, she notes that mines today are using drones, not only for the purposes of surveying, but also to improve safety.

“There are many di erent applications of drones when it comes to mine safety. In some cases, drones are being used to look for gas leaks in a blast face, while in others they are providing intruder alerts and even sta head counts.

“Drones are also providing miners with essential safety data in their day-to-day operations, like monitoring air quality or evaluating the impacts of rain run-o . In fact, many mines now choose to use drones instead of helicopters or planes, as this enables them to get the data they need faster,” she says.

“For example, a dam leakage can be identified and dealt with in a fraction of the time, at a much lower cost. There are also drones that have been designed specifically for use underground, and these have become a vital tool in managing things like rockfalls, a er a blast. Some miners have even used drones to monitor zama zamas [illegal miners], ahead of police action to help ensure arrests are made.”

SUSTAINABILITY AND SAFETY

In surface mining, says De Wet, stockpiles create sloped terrain that requires

continuous stability monitoring. Drone data allows mine teams to detect early warning signs of instability, and thus mitigate the issue, keeping everyone safe while maintaining maximum e iciency with mining operations.

In underground mines, she says, drones can navigate dusty, wet, and rocky ore passes to locate blockages. In addition, sensors can create 3D models to identify hangups, fractures, and other geological features.

“Drones can get to even the most hard-toreach areas, whether they are underground, or contain hazardous materials or gases. This allows miners to get more safety information than they have ever been able to, and mitigate risks accordingly.

“Using drones rather than the helicopters or planes that were used in the past not only saves time and money, but helps with increasing environmental, social and

While safety remains an ongoing mining challenge, technology is being leveraged to help significantly reduce risks in this environment. We take a look at the important role surveillance – both in the form of cameras and mobile drones – plays in keeping mines safe.

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governance reporting requirements, by providing a greener alternative.

“Skills and compliance restrictions are the biggest challenges faced by miners. There are limited numbers of qualified pilots, mainly based within third-party operators – most mines do not operate the drones themselves.

“In addition, the current regulations require flight paths to be registered before the drones can be sent out, which makes it di icult at present to utilise autonomous drones.”

She suggests that an autonomous “drone in a box” solution would allow a mine to send the drone to wherever it is needed, whenever necessary, without needing a skilled pilot and without having to submit permit a er permit.

“There is pressure on government to adjust the regulations, so autonomous flights look set to become much easier – and far more common – in the future.”

Similarly, she adds, mines are currently limited to running one drone at a time. This makes it harder for organisations to keep an eye on their entire operation, as they have to prioritise where the drone will be used. In a future where swarming is allowed – once the regulations have changed – mines will be able to monitor even the most remote areas without having to ignore any other operational regions or zones.

“With drone manufacturers now adding features like lighting and voice capabilities, safety applications in mines will only increase. For example, drones could be used to drop safety equipment, while there are also drones being developed that might actually be able to li people.

“Drones are also helping to drive equality and inclusion in the mining industry, thanks to pilot training programmes like the one that holding company EOH has pioneered. This particular training programme

DRONE APPLICATIONS

■ There are many di erent types of drones, ranging from unmanned aerial vehicles to robotic devices that have been designed with specific applications in mind.

■ Those that are used underground have specifically been developed to be able to operate well in specialised environments.

■ For example, those operating in environments like coal mines have to be intrinsically safe to avoid accidental sparking, and most of these types of drones are built to disregard elements like cold, moisture and dust.

has graduate drone pilots that include handicapped people, as well as previously disadvantaged individuals,” says De Wet.

SAFETY IN SIGHT

While unforeseen accidents will always be a reality, mine operators are in a position to mitigate as many hazards as possible by installing solutions that help protect workers’ safety, says Marcel Bruyns, sales manager for Africa at Axis Communications.

“A key component of any mining outfit is for operators to have adequate oversight of their sta , assets, and facilities. Whether it’s equipment failure, sta injury, environmental challenges, or criminal activity, operators must be positioned to see everything

Mines today are using drones, not only for the purposes of surveying, but also to improve safety.

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happening on their sites. Video surveillance allows them to do that,” he says.

“We are talking about more than just a CCTV camera – innovations in video technology have given way to cutting-edge cameras and sensors that provide extensive coverage from several standpoints. For example, cameras enabled with infra-red sensors can provide coverage in low-light conditions, such as mine sha s.”

Bruyns says onboard cameras placed on machinery and vehicles can improve operators’ awareness, and when equipped with thermal imaging capabilities, improve drivers’ visibility when faced with obstructions or dust clouds. Image stabilisation technology also ensures that these devices are not impacted by vibrations and will provide consistently clear video quality.

“Video surveillance can even be applied right down to the individual mine worker. With body-worn cameras, operators will soon be able to monitor activity in real

CORPORATE PROFILE

time and use the footage for post-incident investigations.

“With the right deployments, operators can protect people by making sure they and other assets are where they’re supposed to be, alerting supervisors when they’re not.”

Advancements in video analytics and intelligence have also made it possible to identify and monitor behaviour patterns and trends, he says. By capturing data and learning more about the operation, cameras and sensors can help o icials make quicker and better decisions related to personnel safety.

“Keeping mine workers safe also entails keeping the mine itself safe and secure. Strategically positioned along a fence or perimeter barrier, fixed thermal cameras can provide long-range coverage regardless of lighting conditions.

“But it’s not just about video coverage. A mine can have multiple entry points with hundreds – if not thousands – of sta members and vehicles passing in and out

In 2022, the mining industry reported the lowest ever number of fatalities, with the largest contribution to its safety performance that year being a 70% decrease in fall-of-ground fatalities. On the back of this, during the 2023 Mining Indaba, the Minerals Council South Africa and its members committed e orts to achieve zero harm.

daily. Operators need to control access and can do that with solutions such as cameras equipped with licence plate verification so ware, and intercoms and card readers installed on doors and gates,” says Bruyns.

BME EARNS ZERO CASE RATE

In achieving a zero recordable case rate (RCR) for the past year, blasting and explosive solutions specialist BME, part of the Omnia Group, claims to have reached a critical safety milestone for the company.

According to Ramesh Dhoorgapersadh, BME’s general manager for Safety, Health, Environment, Risk and Quality, the company’s ongoing safety e orts are based on its Safety for Life brand. Its zero RCR was achieved for the year ending January 2023.

“We have built our e orts not only on sound policies and systems, but in the committed and practical application of safety principles every day,” he says, emphasising that safety systems and processes needed to be translated into action to be e ective.

“An RCR of zero does not happen overnight, and requires constant reinforcement from the highest level before it forms part of the prevailing culture in the workplace. Our safety protocols are driven by a range of safety interventions.”

These include working on visual felt leadership, process safety, near-miss reporting, driver awareness programmes and fatigue management. According to

including driver awareness programmes and fatigue management.

BME managing director Ralf Hennecke, it’s important for company leadership to play an active role in embedding the culture of safety.

“To leverage the power of visual felt leadership, there needs to be a daily commitment by senior executives to focus on how safety plans are being applied onsite. We align our safety e orts firmly with

the Omnia Group’s vision of zero harm and positive impact through responsible business practices,” he says.

While being an important milestone, the zero RCR is not an end point in the safety journey, says Dhoorgapersadh. “Rather, the challenge of safety is to continue finding ways to improve – to steadily reduce any risk of incidents.”

Explosives specialist BME has achieved a key safety milestone for the business.

BME’s safety protocols are driven by a range of safety interventions,

FOCUS ON ZERO HARM

Video surveillance can even be applied right down to the individual mine worker, via body-worn cameras.

“

SUSTAINABILITY, SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND SUCCESS

Following the acquisition of Kgatelopele (KP) Lime from PPC Lime in 2021 by IMR Resources, the global commodities trader with ownership of mining assets and steel production facilities, along with a consortium of investors, the company is excited about the sustainability and community focus of the project.

The name Kgatelopele is shared with the local municipality in which the mine is located. It was deliberately chosen to symbolise an intention to embrace the employees as well as the broader community as partners, as new life is breathed into the operation and the region to progress the mine forward.

KP Lime is focused on ensuring the socio-economic development of surrounding communities, as well as providing employment and educational opportunities. The company currently employs some 250 personnel, with contractors being used for drilling operations and security services.

In line with the organisation’s strategic imperative of upli ing the surrounding communities, a number of corporate social responsibility initiatives have been implemented.

Included in these are sporting facilities, such as multifunctional (netball and tennis) courts in Lime Acres and Danielskuil, and two free-to-use swimming pools in Lime Acres. The company also supplies electricity to 200 rural houses and contributes to the school, which impacts about 700 students yearly, and a community library.

KP Lime has a firm focus on producing sustainably, and there are various initiatives in place to ensure sustainable mining operations that minimise the impact on the environment. These include reducing CO2 emissions, the treatment of waste water and the remediation of polluted soils.

partners such as JJJL Mining, and the largest black shareholders, namely Kolobe Nala Investment and Proprietary Limited.

The company has access to extensive reserves of high-quality metallurgical-grade limestone and dolomitic stone deposits, and this – coupled with its kiln technology – is the key to consistently supplying products of high quality. These are designed to meet di erent customers’ specifications, making KP Lime a supplier of choice to the market.

Thanks to a strategically located depot, KP Lime is uniquely positioned to enable a quick route to local and export markets, while also being able to o er security of supply, as its current capacity is capable of catering to the existing market demand.

The company is focused on its approach to sustainability, and the work done to contribute positively in terms of stakeholder relations. While the focus on CSR and sustainability is critical, KP Lime nonetheless remains one of the most technologically advanced lime producers in the world, while also being one of the largest suppliers of metallurgical-grade lime in Southern Africa.

KP Lime comprises a consortium of investors including IMR and South African

The company’s Bowden pit is expected to have around 12 to 14 years of mine life in its reserves, but KP Lime is looking to expand its mine with a second pit operation. This has an anticipated mine life of 60 years, and is expected to be built close to the currently in-use Bowden pit. This will enable KP Lime to continue to supply the market with a product that’s in demand for use in key local industries.

It is worth noting too that since acquiring the mine, and despite macroeconomic challenges that have been experienced across the globe, KP Lime has been performing well and is proud of the progress to date. Moving ahead, all strategic decisions will be underpinned by a vision of contributing positively on a local and national level, while remaining conscious of the need to produce sustainably.

KP Lime’s new ownership aims to remain a supplier of choice to the market, while simultaneously focusing on sustainability and the local community.

KP Lime is focused on ensuring the socioeconomic development of surrounding communities, as well as providing employment and educational opportunities.

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SAFETY

IS THE NUMBER ONE PRIORITY

Safety

The mining industry, together with all its participants, takes safety very seriously. However, as a relatively new company in the African environment, Enaex Africa has the advantage of approaching safety on the continent from an entirely new perspective.

A Chilean-based company with over 100 years of experience, the Enaex Group is the third largest mining explosives company in the world. As an international company, it has access to research, product development, and innovation from all its businesses around the world.

According to John Schulze, COO and Safety, Health & Environment (SHE) director at Enaex Africa, the company’s values are aligned within the group, especially its commitment to safety. Thanks to this, he says, Enaex is able to share learnings and technologies across the group, directly enabling it to implement best practices across all areas, including safety.

“Being a locally managed operation, Enaex Africa is very selective in its safety initiatives, focusing only on those that will

have a direct impact on the wellbeing of all stakeholders. We are also a very agile company that can act quickly when the need arises,” he says.

“At Enaex Africa, safety is our number one priority, and is a constant part of everything we do. This means that safety takes priority over any processes or procedures that are in place. It is about changing the way we live and do things. It is about creating a true safety culture at work and home. Everyone must be mindful of it, all the time.”

The company understands that fatalities and serious injuries within the mining industry can be devastating, and may have long-term e ects on employees and their families. That is why the focus is placed on human reliability, says Schulze. It is Enaex’s responsibility to highlight potential risk factors and eliminate them through technology.

“We pride ourselves on having a mining zero fatality rate in the month of January, and we will strive to keep it at zero with our innovative solutions. Furthermore, we also aim to be the leader in innovation – with

a strong focus on ensuring our blasting operations are fully automated in the future.

“We believe that by being consistent in our approach to safety, this will set the standard at which to operate in the future.”

INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY

One of the core values at Enaex, he says, revolves around innovation and entrepreneurship, and the company culture is based on leading technologies and entrepreneurship in the industry. The driving force behind these innovative solutions, says Schulze, is to humanise the mining industry, have fewer people underground, and have more safety for the industry in general.

“Innovation is essential, because it is the motivation behind all that we have done up to now. We have invested a lot of time and money to develop these leading industry technologies – and to innovate and enhance corporate culture, while focusing on humanising the mining industry.

“We are living in a rapidly changing technological world, which is why we believe that completely tele-operated mines are the future of the industry. At Enaex, we have

takes pride of place for explosives manufacturer Enaex Africa – but that doesn’t mean it loses focus on key areas like education, communities or innovation.

already begun implementing real teleoperations in Chile with one of our mobile mining unit trucks.

“Part of the deployment of this technology will include robotics, to demonstrate how robots will replace areas of manual labour in opencast mines. We have also completed the first successful trials to undertake 100% tele-operated operations underground.”

He says the impact of such an approach is extensive. Not only does this take people out of the danger zone, but at the same time we are upskilling them because teleoperating a truck is not the same as actually driving a truck.

“This will not only enhance job security thanks to the additional technical skills, but will also be safer for employees. Our upskill programme in this regard focuses on computer science and programming,” he says.

“The world is changing, and Enaex will move with it, as the types of jobs and skills required for these jobs continue to change. Technology is already part of the present day, and the current generation is leading

these changes and enabling a technologydriven future. As a company, we will always focus on decreasing mining risks, just as we focus on keeping our employees healthy and safe.”

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

According to Schulze, Enaex recognises that mining can have significant environmental impacts, and the company works to minimise these by developing innovative blasting solutions.

“We take the risk by solving problems, and with our long-term mindset, we prioritise innovation through tele-operations and robotics, with a view to protecting employees from the dangers in the mining industry. Through upskilling and innovation, we safeguard both the environment and our workforce.

“Our innovation and entrepreneurship values are motivated by our corporate social responsibility (CSR) and environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives, as these initiatives are crucial to us leaving a positive impact, everywhere we operate.”

As a good corporate citizen, Enaex is

increasing its e orts to address the high levels of socio-economic issues that South Africa is facing, by leveraging technology and the organisation’s global reach to prioritise community needs within the industry.

“Our unique blasting solutions provide complete accuracy to eliminate unnecessary environmental damage. We provide our customers with a flexible and managed range of quality services and products, while our team assists with sustainability and environmental management throughout the entire blasting process.

“Our mission is to limit our carbon footprint, and we can achieve this with control tools, expert explosive placement, and innovative technology for the mining industry.

“To this end, we are currently optimistic about the use of green ammonia, and Chile is currently in the process of starting a project to create green ammonia. Using green ammonia, we will be able to make a positive impact on the environment and limit our water wastage and carbon footprint,” he says.

ISTOCK –Martin Barraud

True safety is about changing the way we live and do things, and creating a safety culture at both work and home.

A consistent approach to safety.

COMMUNITIES AND ESG

Schulze is adamant that the company’s main priority is life. Life and land are linked and that is why Enaex also focuses on protecting the environment and surrounding communities. This is another area where the business can use technology to its advantage, to protect life through sustainable mining.

“A good example of the responsibility we take as a company is the initiative we have launched to sponsor an early childhood development school. We believe at Enaex Africa that education is an essential pillar for Africa,” he says.

“To change the lives of children for the future, we need to tackle the importance of education before the age of five now. That is why Enaex Africa supports early childhood development at a pre-primary school in Limpopo. This support manifests as upgrades for the infrastructure and technology, along with the provision of additional skills for the teachers.”

He notes that this is a long-term project, with the follow-up goal being to focus on developing a primary school too. Ultimately what the business wants to achieve is to provide the educational foundation to give these children the opportunity to go to university – and to potentially return to work for Enaex someday.

“Through community development of this nature, we can improve the impact of our environmental sustainability plans, as the community itself will have the necessary skills to use our tele-operation and robotic solutions. You could say we are building the future of safe mining with our innovations in robotics and tele-operations,” says Schulze.

“Enaex does in fact have a dedicated team looking at its corporate social responsibility initiatives, to ensure these continuously improve the lives of the communities in which we operate.

“Furthermore, we have another dedicated team that is specifically focused on the environment and sustainability of our business, which is also of the utmost importance.”

ESG and CSR are closely linked to the focus on building projects that empower communities while promoting a zero fatality rate, he says. Innovation, on the other hand, is largely driven by the need to minimise the impact on the environment and sustainability, and to improve the wellbeing of the people involved in the industry.

“These ESG initiatives are based on creating a safer environment that protects our employees from fatalities, while guaranteeing customer satisfaction. We have also taken the initiative to increase our hazardous waste management, which

TAKING THE LEAD IN RESPONSIBLE MINING

■ Enaex Africa is committed to ESG and empowering all African mines with cutting-edge technology and innovation, through teleoperations and local distribution centres.

■ The company is leading the way towards a secure and socially responsible mining future, by implementing its core company values wherever it operates. Enaex’s tele-operation and robotic solutions guarantee responsible mining, by focusing on human reliability that teaches employees new skills to manage the trucks from a safe distance.

once again will increase our environmental protections, including water optimisation.”

Enaex also places great value on protecting the environment and implementing water sustainability. Water is an essential resource that clearly needs to be protected from the hazardous waste that is linked with mining explosives. The organisation’s water optimisation initiatives are implemented to protect and limit its water usage on a global scale.

“In the end, Enaex Africa understands the value of both clear environmental policies and strong safety measures, and we place these first in everything that we do. Not only do we want to keep our employees safe, but we also want to do so by using innovation to drive our leading technologies even further, while empowering our employees, upskilling them and encouraging them to always adopt a safety-first mindset,” says Schulze.

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Enaex places great value on protecting the environment and implementing water sustainability.

“ “

Innovative blasting solutions.

TACKLING LOGISTICS

CHALLENGES WITH ROAD TRAINS

By Benjamin van der Veen

Road trains or land trains, also known as long combination vehicles, are most suitable for countries with large expanses of remote land, such as Australia, the United States, Canada, South Africa, other African countries (including Malawi, Zambia, Tanzania, Mozambique, Namibia and Madagascar), and some parts of Europe.

Road trains are becoming a more common feature in the Southern African mining landscape, as they can e iciently transport raw and treated minerals over distances from 5km to 100km.

Unitrans’s mining division strives to be the safest and most innovative operator in the industry, with a proud track record that proves this. In addition to significant payload increases in its transportation methodology, this translates into decreased rates per tonne and reduced environmental impact and carbon emissions.

INCREASED PAYLOAD CAPACITY

In 1984, road trains were a new concept that Unitrans’s mining division implemented by enlisting 18 road trains in its service. Five years later, the mining division upgraded

these road trains. Kobus Burger, operations executive of the mining division, says: “We added a dolly to a bottom dump interlink trailer combination in 1989, which increased the payload from 34 tonnes to 45 tonnes.”

The idea was based on reducing the number of trucks on the road. “By increasing payload capacity, we have decreased the size of our fleet. This has reduced the onroad risk and the number of trips – we were using dirt roads and travelling in the rural areas surrounding the mines at the time,” he says.

Burger says while the idea originated in Australia, the vehicles are built in South Africa. “We have done a lot of development since inception. In 1994, we introduced four-trailer road trains measuring 42.7m in length for one of our key mining clients. Due to the increased payload, this reduced their fleet from 16 vehicles to nine – cutting it by almost half.”

Australia has road trains with five to six trailers, and they run simulations on safety, speed and capacity before the vehicles are approved and built in South Africa to comply with performance-based standards.

Road trains vary in configuration, depending on the job’s requirements and

the country’s regulations. The basic design is a lead truck or conventional tractor unit –called the prime mover – with one or more trailers attached.

Trailers can be fitted with steering axles, allowing the rear axle on each trailer to pivot slightly while turning. This prevents rubbing the edges of the tyres due to the heavy loads placed on them. Road trains (especially in Australia) can be up to 53.5m long, and about 10 car lengths.

ROAD TRAIN BENEFITS

In Africa we use them to transport products ranging from livestock to grains, fuel, salt, ore and construction materials.

Some of the key benefits of using road trains include:

■ Greater payloads = better cost e iciency With the vastly increased carrying capacity, delivery e iciencies are greatly improved. High transportation and fuel expenses comprise a significant portion of logistics costs in Southern Africa.

■ Reduction in fleet requirement

Suppose a road train vehicle can be used optimally. In that case, the potential savings could exceed tens of billions of rand each year in fuel, reduced road

Road trains are a means of transport that offer significant payload increases, which translates into decreased rates per tonne and reduced environmental impact and carbon emissions.

damage, and fewer heavy vehicle accidents.

■ Decreased emissions reduce environmental impact

A single-engine (on the lead truck) for a similar size load that would traditionally take various trucks means a direct – and significant – reduction in emissions.

■ Decrease in rate per tonne

It is more environmentally friendly and leads to a decreased unit cost per tonne, which can positively influence margins throughout the supply chain.

■ Increased safety standards

Current road regulations define a “prescriptive box” that vehicles must fit into (height, width, length). Trucks and trailers must pass 16 performance tests comprising low- and high-speed manoeuvres, such as emergency lane changes, turning circles, acceleration and braking.

WHAT ARE THE SOLUTIONS TO ROAD FREIGHT PROBLEMS IN SOUTH AFRICA?

The increased use of road freight in South Africa comes at a cost. Roads are damaged more o en, and the lack of infrastructural development in the country means repairs seldom follow. This in turn leads to added vehicle maintenance costs for freight companies, while also posing a threat to the lives of drivers carrying the cargo from one destination to another.

When asked about the most significant challenges South Africa faces with its road, rail and shipping networks, Relog chairman Gary Benatar says: “Rail is an essential transport and logistics option in terms of the mode of transportation. This must happen if one assumes that private operators can o er a better and more reliable service.

“Rail is also much more environmentally friendly, as it uses much less energy and has a lower CO2 per kg transported or per

Proper development and maintenance of the roads and connectivity to other regions can help overcome several challenges that freight transportation companies face, leading to:

■ Reduced cost of vehicle maintenance

■ Reduced time in moving the cargo from one destination to another

■ Fewer hijackings due to bad roads

■ Fewer accidents caused by bad roads

■ Less insurance costs on cargo and driver

container moved. So, in addition to the economic benefit and the ability to make transport cheaper and more e ective, it is more sustainable.

“As the economic hub of South Africa (Gauteng) is the furthest from any navigable water compared to any other country in the world, we face a major disadvantage. We only have road and rail as our transport modal options.

“Unfortunately, since the deregulation of Transnet in the 1960s and the lack of focus on rail, the majority of transport to Gauteng has switched to road, which is the most expensive and environmentally ine icient option. However, it is currently the most reliable and fastest,” he says.

ROAD MAINTENANCE

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Rail is much more environmentally friendly than road, as it uses much less energy and has a lower CO2 per kg transported or per container moved.

– Benatar

HK MINING SOLUTIONS ADDING VALUE AT EVERY LEVEL

HYDAC, along with its economic empowerment partner, has established a 51% black-owned company dedicated to delivering solutions to South Africa’s mining industry.

In 2022, HYDAC Technology’s German owners, along with HYDAC South Africa, decided to adopt transformational change in SA by looking for a black economic empowerment partner. The company that was formed, HK Mining Solutions, is 51% owned by Uven Moodley, the new company’s MD and B-BBEE partner, and this business will be ring-fenced for the mining industry.

In their search for a partner, HYDAC Technology’s German owners were looking for someone who could add value at every level in their partnership, and they are confident that Moodley fits this mould with his experience.

As a local player with a global reach, HK Mining Solutions is equipped to be able to o er countrywide services to South Africa’s mining industry.

“In terms of an overseas original equipment manufacturer being in a minority partnership with a local BEE entity, I think HK Mining is unique in the hydraulics industry,” says Moodley. He says the company will initially be registered as an exempted micro enterprise, with views to rapidly grow into a qualifying small enterprise.

He believes that with a partner of HYDAC’s global stature and presence in countries that are strong in mining, HK Mining Solutions will be able to add value and improve reliability of mining operations to the local mining industry, leveraging its local and international team expertise.

“One of the barriers for B-BBEE companies is finance. However, with the strength of a partner like HYDAC, HK Mining will bring comfort to mining houses in terms of project execution due to financial backing,” he says.

successful companies. In 2018 he became part of the newly formed management team of HYDAC Technology.

“I feel like I have circled back to engineering, where my passion lies, which aligns with HYDAC’s core business: turnkey mobile and industrial hydraulics, along with lubrication and filtration solutions as well as diesel and process filtration. And now, with HK Mining Solutions, we are looking to extend our scope and range to customers specifically in the mining sector,” says Moodley.

He says he will be ably supported by general manager Eddie Jacobs, who has been involved in the hydraulic industry for over 20 years. “Eddie has vast hydraulic knowledge and experience. He is an industry expert in mining, having built a career developing and implementing new turnkey hydraulic systems and refurbishing and upgrading existing ones.”

HK Mining Solutions also has shared services, including engineering design o ices, assembly, and refurbishment workshops. It also has the support of HYDAC International, based in Germany.

Moodley has been part of the local engineering industry for some three decades, starting his career in a clerical position. Thanks to a bursary, he became a diplomaqualified mechanical engineer. He has since held positions at engineering, management, director and shareholder levels in several

As part of HK Mining’s growth strategy, it will be looking at expanding its footprint into mining areas by either direct presence or partnering with local complementary engineering companies while leveraging o HYDAC Technologies’ shared services, among other engineering entities and workshops.

Uven Moodley and Angus Beveridge.

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Vladimir_Timofeev

GATES GOES TO NEW LENGTHS FOR BELT DRIVE APPLICATIONS

Gates, a leading global provider of application-specific fluid power and power transmission solutions, is adding new lengths in both 8MGT and 14MGT formats to its class-leading PowerGrip GT4 range of synchronous timing belts.

The 8MGT belt range includes 14 new lengths. Many of these introductions fill important gaps between pitch lengths of 976mm and 2 080mm, providing operators with increased flexibility to address

application e iciencies and running costs. The 14MGT range adds one new length with a pitch of 4 004mm.

Overall minimum and maximum lengths remain the same – 328mm to 4 400mm for the 8MGT and 966mm to 6 860mm for the 14MGT. The expansion of new sizes o ers greater scope for both new applications and replacement in maintenance repair and operations situations.

Since its launch in 2020, PowerGrip GT4

has helped transform belt drive applications across numerous industries. Our solutions support a broader range of industrial applications that are o en designed with narrower drives. With its market-leading power-carrying capacity, larger temperature range and improved chemical resistance, it produces outstanding all-around performance.

Gates utilised its extensive knowledge to deliver the kind of design flexibility that plant and equipment manufacturers require to respond to the need for increased power capabilities that also meet stringent emissions control regulations. The PowerGrip GT4 reflects the company’s dedication to innovation in materials science and process engineering.

The ethylene elastomer (EE) formulation of the PowerGrip GT4 belt delivers a much higher performance over several belts in the current market. Having pioneered EE technology in automotive markets with its line of Micro-V® belts, Gates has been inspired to apply that success to the PowerGrip GT4 for industrial markets.

CRISIS: DISASTER OR OPPORTUNITY? ENERGY

Amid worldwide e orts to go green, high demand for basic and precious metals, supply chains that a pandemic has disrupted, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the mining industry faces significant challenges.

As the disruption in energy supplies continues to make waves throughout the world’s economies, another equally insidious disorder is unfolding: shortages of crucial basic and precious metals.

Fluctuations in the oil and natural gas markets, followed by those in agricultural commodities, have dominated the headlines since international sanctions were imposed on Russia earlier this year. But the preoccupation with these shocks has obscured how sanctions a ect the metal markets – particularly base and precious metals.

Whether they involve spare parts or new technologies, sanctions could have longer-term consequences for everything from the sustainability of mining operations to the functioning of the manufacturing base. Apart from recovering from COVIDrelated interruptions, these supply chain disruptions are compounding the price pressures associated with the global shi to a renewable economy.

THE LONG REACH OF SANCTIONS

In early 2022, just as the world economy rebounded from COVID-19 and production operations resumed, commodity prices spiked, although they soon began to stabilise. Then Russia invaded Ukraine, and as the conflict erupted, sanctions were triggered on an unprecedented scale and speed on one of the world’s biggest exporters of raw materials.

from raw materials to semi-finished products (such as rolled steel and copper rods) to finished products (such as wire).

Bans pinch the supply of spare parts for aircra and heavy machinery, including hauling and loading equipment, tractors, assembly line machinery, and drilling equipment.

Igor Hulak, a partner at Kearney, says: “The sanctions against Russia – one of the world’s largest exporters of raw materials – is causing knock-on e ects that are rippling throughout many spheres of business, from the sustainability of Africa’s mining operations to the stable functioning of the manufacturing base.”

OPPORTUNITY FOR AFRICAN PRODUCERS

By November last year, Russia had been hit with more than 12 000 sanctions – four times the number imposed on the next-most penalised country, Iran. The sanctions have a ected leading logistics companies, such as Maersk, MSC, and CMA CGM, which transport solid commodities throughout the globe,

Due to foreign shipping operations being suspended, a chaotic domino e ect has been triggered, causing a drastic worldwide shipping container shortage. This collection of dramatic sanctions and shutdowns looks set to continue to a ect Africa’s consumers, leading to increased prices for food and fuel.

Further adding to this tumultuous time for the industry, over the past 12 months, the five base metals Russia produces on a vast scale – nickel, aluminium, copper, iron and zinc – have all seen dramatic price increases.

The numerous disruptions experienced across the world, as renewable usage grows in response to the climate crisis and the globe deals with the fallout of Russia’s war on Ukraine, open up new opportunities, among the many challenges.

By Benjamin van der Veen

The sanctions against Russia – one of the world’s largest exporters of raw materials – is causing knock-on e ects that are rippling throughout many spheres of business.

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Nickel, a critical ingredient in lithium-ion batteries and essential for global energy transitions such as those in Africa, is in short supply. Russian companies such as Norilsk Nickel, the world’s largest nickel producer, have historically supplied global markets. However, the sanctions have made Russia, which accounts for roughly 10% of the global share of nickel, unable to meet this global demand.

This deficit in global supply presents an opportunity for African nickel producers, such as Zimbabwe and Botswana, to step in and fill the gap. However, overcoming inadequate export infrastructure will be a significant challenge, requiring government buy-in and a collaborative multi-sector approach.

According to Hulak, market and pricing drivers indicate long-term price increases for the platinum group metals. This presents a golden opportunity for South Africa, still the world’s largest producer of these metals, to step in and fill the supply gaps. Moreover, this is a unique opportunity for the country to leverage its already strong position, and expand its operations in the sector to meet the escalating global demand.

“Traditionally a reliable safe-haven investment, gold (of which Russia is a major producer) is likely to see moderate price

increases. This could work in favour of Africa’s gold production powerhouses like Ghana and South Africa,” he says.

AN ALTERNATIVE IN GREEN HYDROGEN

While the shortage of critical base minerals might derail the energy transition within South Africa and other developing countries, South Africa may turn to its green “hydrogen valley” as the solution to its current energy problem.

The so-called hydrogen valley is a planned integrated hydrogen ecosystem, stretching from Mokopane – where platinum group metals are mined – to Johannesburg, and finally ending in Durban. It was first proposed in 2020, with various feasibility studies conducted in 2021.

The valley will ultimately stretch approximately 835km, and present massive employment and investment opportunities, all while working with the greater strategy of moving away from a dependence on coal.

Hydrogen is categorised into three broad types: grey, blue and green. Where most investor attention is focused on green hydrogen, this production method uses electricity generated through renewable energy (wind, solar or hydro). It splits pure water through an electrolysis process into hydrogen and oxygen molecules.

As the cost of renewable energy and electrolysis technology has plummeted in recent years, green hydrogen is increasingly reaching parity with its more carbonintensive counterparts. Green hydrogen has

already become the preferred investment choice in countries with high renewable energy potential, such as Saudi Arabia, Australia and Chile.

As South Africa has world-leading solar and wind resources, these early mover green hydrogen-producing countries have important implications for the future of the South African economy. Suppose South Africa can properly leverage these resources and combine them with a fertile investor and regulatory environment? In that case, the country could transition to an exporter of green energy to the world, while decarbonising large economic sectors.

According to PwC energy lead James Mackay: “Hydrogen is receiving an unprecedented level of international traction as the cost of renewables declines and carbon emissions are increasingly penalised.”

Global momentum is growing across the hydrogen industry, he notes, with few sectors likely to remain untouched by this upcoming energy revolution. At the beginning of 2020, the global hydrogen project pipeline across grey, blue and green projects stood at $95-billion. The carbon reduction of the blue and green hydrogen projects in this pipeline will be significant enough to offset the annual carbon emissions of Nigeria.

“As part of South Africa’s economic recovery plan, the country needs to develop new competitive industries in the global markets. Hydrogen can fulfil that role and in a complementary manner to other initiatives and sectors,” Mackay says.

Hydrogen is receiving an unprecedented level of international traction as the cost of renewables declines and carbon emissions are increasingly penalised.

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UCT TESTS NOVEL ‘GREEN’ ZINC ORE REFINING PROCESS

The University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Department of Chemical Engineering, under the leadership of Professor Jochen Petersen, is undertaking a concept study into the development of a mini-scale, simple, green and energy-e icient process to recover pure zinc from polymetallic South African ore concentrates.

Generally, processing zinc into a pure form is complicated by the fact that the ore invariably contains other chemical elements, such as iron and sulphur. Traditionally, the zinc ore concentrate is roasted in hot air to remove the sulphur as sulphur dioxide (SO2), which is then captured.

However, the elevated temperatures required for roasting fuses some of the zinc and iron into an insoluble chemical compound (zinc ferrite). Hot sulphuric acid leaching then follows the roasting step to convert the zinc into a water-based solution from which it is then recovered as pure zinc metal by a process called electrowinning.

“In this process there is always a significant loss of zinc while a lot of the iron is dissolved at the same time,” notes Petersen. Separating the iron has always proven problematic, especially as it cannot be used in any kind of iron smelting process and invariably ends up in waste dumps.

He says as some of the zinc is captured in the iron precipitation process, disposal of the residue poses both an environmental hazard and a loss of valuable metal. In addition, producing high-grade zinc through

electrowinning is energy-intensive.

“What we proposed was to go back to the drawing board and rethink the entire process in terms of its basic chemistry. While using an ammonia medium for base metal processing has been well established, it has yet to be applied to zinc refining. The particularly interesting thing about ammonia is that it does not dissolve the iron, which simply remains behind.”

can be recovered through electrowinning. UCT’s Department of Chemical Engineering has already proven the e ectiveness of this process on the copper mineral chalcopyrite.

“It works beautifully in that it can extract the copper almost selectively, which of course is of great interest in the context of zinc refining. The zinc still needs to be recovered, but that is relatively straightforward. It would need to be transferred back into an acid-based system, achievable through solvent extraction or ion exchange. We are still exploring these di erent separation techniques,” says Petersen.

“The important thing to understand is that the ammonia itself is not consumed and simply acts as a complexing agent. Once the zinc is recovered, the ammonia is liberated and can then be recycled.”

NOVEL SOLVENT EXTRACTION

Backed by the International Zinc Association (IZA) Africa, the focus of the concept study is direct alkaline ammonia processing of the ore concentrate, to dissolve zinc and sulphur in a benign form and leave the iron in the residue. Novel solvent extraction then produces a very pure zinc stream that

He points out that the electrowinning required for this process operates at low voltage and direct current, which presents the exciting possibility of linking the process directly to using electricity generated by solar power. What is more, the production of green hydrogen by electrolysis can also be used to produce the oxygen required in the leach process.

“The idea of twinning the metallurgical production with the concept of solar hydrogen is quite interesting to explore. It also reduces the large-scale electrical infrastructure required for electrowinning. However, it is only a concept at this stage,” says Petersen.

UCT’s Department of Chemical Engineering is testing a unique method of processing zinc that is both green and energy-efficient.

While using an ammonia medium for base metal processing has been well established, it has yet to be applied to zinc refining.

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SUCCESSFUL OVERHAUL OF SASOL’S SECUNDA GAS TURBINE

The Sasol Secunda plant uses a feed stream of natural gas piped from Mozambique to drive the two 147MVA turbines and generators. After approximately 100 000 hours’ runtime, a successful general overhaul (GO) of Sasol’s Secunda gas turbine-driven 147MVA (120MW) generator was performed jointly by Marthinusen & Coutts (M&C) and ACTOM Turbo Machines.

Mike Chamberlain, M&C’s marketing and commercial executive, who projectmanaged the GO, says that in addition to the ACTOM bid being competitively priced, he believes the good track records both M&C and ACTOM Turbo have independently established with Sasol, on a variety of projects, played an important part in its decision to award the GO contract to them.

M&C was appointed lead contractor on the GO for the 147MVA generator, and took direct responsibility for all the electrical work involved. ACTOM Turbo was charged with the responsibility of executing all the mechanical work. “Our two organisations have successfully worked together on a

substantial number of projects in the past,” says Chamberlain.

The core portion of the contract was carried out during a 34-day shutdown period late last year, when the generator’s 34-tonne 9m-long 1m-diameter rotor was removed and transported to M&C’s Benoni Power Generation workshop. Here, the rotor’s coil retaining rings were removed and inspected, and the windings and overhangs cleaned,

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while high-speed balancing of the rotor was also done, before being returned to site for reinstallation.

“At the same time, testing and cleaning of the stator windings were carried out on-site, and loose wedges were repaired. We also did in-situ Partial Discharge and Tan Delta testing, as well as end-winding resonance frequency tests on the 11kV stator,” he says.

Working together, M&C and ACTOM Turbo Machines have completed a general overhaul of Sasol’s Secunda gas turbine-driven 147MVA (120MW) generator.

MINING INDABA 2023 A MASSIVE SUCCESS

By Benjamin van der Veen

Since 1994, the Investing in African Mining Indaba has been the place for deal sourcing and corporate matchmaking for the African mining industry. It has been the most comprehensive investment, finance, innovation, and transformation gathering, one that supports end-to-end value creation.

Mining Indaba continues to drive the economic and sustainable development of Africa and the mining sector. Below is a summary of what happened at the 30th anniversary of the event.

PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESSES

The Indaba hosted South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) President Félix Tshisekedi. The two discussed strategies on how to grow their two countries’ economies through the mining industry.

Ramaphosa said mining had been the “bedrock of African economies for millennia” and was a critical aider in “development and industrialisation across the continent”. He also said there was a long way to go until Africa’s mining sector reached its full potential, citing the current obstacles holding it back.

These included power shortages, illegal mining, and logistical problems stemming from issues with rail and port services, which Ramaphosa said made for a less favourable economic forecast for 2023.

However, he outlined a plan of action to tackle these and other issues to pave the way for the growth of African mining.

Meanwhile, Tshisekedi emphasised the need for a focus on green metal exploration and announced the imminent commencement of new nickel and chrome exploration projects in the DRC.

ESG DEMANDED IN CRITICAL MINERALS MINING

The United States (US)-led Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) members and key minerals-rich countries held a vice-ministerial meeting on 7 February in New York to discuss priorities, challenges and opportunities in responsible mining, processing and recycling critical minerals.

MSP partners participating in the meeting included Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, Korea, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, US and European Union. Additional countries in attendance included Angola, Botswana, the DRC, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.

MSP partners announced support for several principles for a shared commitment to high environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards. This announcement was made at the Indaba conference.

This marks the public commitment to fully integrating ESG standards into the MSP’s

work, intending to achieve an equitable and just energy transition. The MSP will support socially responsible projects that meet recognised international ESG standards.

Under these basic principles, the MSP will support projects demonstrating responsible stewardship of the natural environment, and those engaging in consultative and participatory processes concerning land access and acquisition.

ESG AWARD WINNERS

The Mining Indaba Sustainability Committee handed out several ESG awards in various categories to organisations that had demonstrated an outstanding commitment to incorporating ESG into their companies’ frameworks and sustainability.

The 2023 edition of the Mining Indaba witnessed many mining companies claiming ESG among their top priorities.

THE WINNERS INCLUDE:

GEM DIAMONDS LIMITED, WINNER OF THE JUNIOR ESG AWARDS FOR WATER 2023

This British-based international company, which owns diamond mines in Botswana and Lesotho, was recognised for its dedication to water sustainability, ensuring local communities close to its mines have access to clean water. This involves ensuring the quality of water leaving its mines, recycling water on-site, and other sustainability approaches.

Back in its original yearly slot, and building on the success of last year’s

first post-COVID meeting, the 2023 Mining Indaba proved this to be the African mining event leader once again.

AKOBO MINERALS, WINNER OF THE ESG NATURE AWARD 2023

Akobo Minerals is a Scandinavian-based Ethiopian gold exploration and boutique mining company. It was acknowledged for its ESG-centred activities programmes, which its CEO states are on a “community, country and global level”.

BANNERMAN ENERGY, WINNER OF THE JUNIOR ESG AWARD FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

This Australian mining development and exploration company, a 95% stakeholder in the Etango uranium mine in Namibia, took the award for its Early Learner Assistance programme in Namibia, which benefits communities in the region.

FORMER ESKOM CEO APPLAUDS COALTO-RENEWABLES INITIATIVE

André de Ruyter, who recently resigned as Eskom’s CEO, sat for a fireside chat on the second day of the Mining Indaba with Roger Baxter, the outgoing Minerals Council South Africa CEO. De Ruyter commended a coal-to-renewables initiative by Seriti Green, a subsidiary of Seriti Resources. Seriti Green, a 91% black-owned and -controlled South African company, is constructing a 900MW wind farm that will be used to power Seriti Resources’ coal mines, with the aim of lowering the carbon footprint of the company’s operations.

Not only does this initiative work to decarbonise coal mining, but it does so while providing coal for Eskom’s power stations, which have been struggling for years to meet the country’s power demands.

De Ruyter and Baxter concluded in their discussion that the country needs greater power capacity, as has been the case for decades.

SUSTAINABILITY AND DEVELOPMENT

On 7 February Mining Indaba held a Sustainability Day involving talks on everything from sustainability governance to circular economy, communities, and more.

Ivanhoe Mines founder and CEO Robert Friedland told the Indaba that renewable energy capacity would increase by 8% to 320GW this year. He spoke to guests at an event themed on the comment of former US president John F Kennedy, who said the moon launch was being undertaken “not because it was easy, but because it was hard”.

With increasing levels of opportunity within the infrastructure development space, solutions-driven infrastructure development firm Bigen Group outlined its strategy, which is focused on expanding into the rest of Africa to participate in similar such projects.

Accordingly, Bigen has developed a strategy focusing on localisation, which saw regional o ices being established in Kenya, Botswana, Namibia and Ghana so that the

ESG AWARD WINNERS AT INDABA:

■ Gem Diamonds Limited

■ Akobo Mineral

■ Bannerman Energy

company taps into these markets through an increased focus on providing professional services while also identifying investment opportunities.

WOMEN IN MINING FRONT AND CENTRE

Women in Mining UK and Women in Mining SA (WIMSA) had a presence at the Indaba that was focused on celebrating the representation and achievements of women in the mining sector.

WIM100 women (individuals recognised as globally inspiring women in the sector by WIM) were among both the attendees and the speakers.

The managing director of Women in Mining UK, Stacy Hope, moderated an allfemale panel at the Indaba that centred on enhancing the mining value chain, through sustainable mines and the growth and retention of the female talent industry.

The 2023 Mining Indaba was a success in myriad ways, from the discussions around the serious concerns faced by the country with its power constraints, to the strong focuses on ESG, sustainability, development, and renewables, and its overarching success bodes well for 2024.

Mining is a critical aider in development and industrialisation across the continent.

– Ramaphosa

KANU ACQUIRES KEMACH

Kemach Equipment South Africa is pleased to announce that the shareholders of Kanu Equipment have entered into an agreement to acquire the local company, subject to regulatory and internal approvals.

A focused dealer of distinguished equipment and support, Kemach Equipment operates throughout the country and continuously strives to put the customer at the heart of its business, focusing on meeting each client’s unique needs.

Kanu is the largest distributor of Liebherr, Bomag and McCloskey equipment in Africa, and Kemach distributes the same brands within South Africa, in addition to Bull TLBs and Kemach Forkli s. The synergies are obvious, and of ultimate benefit to its end customers.

Kemach remains confident that under the direction of the Kanu management team, these premium brands within the Kemach stable will receive the dedicated support they deserve. In addition, existing Kanu customers across Africa will benefit from the new resource available in South Africa.

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Increased synergies will benefit end-customers.

Resources 4 Africa is pleased to announce the 9th edition of its annual Junior Indaba, a popular meeting place for junior miners which is enjoyed by all for its incisive, informative and frank discussions tackling the challenges and opportunities for exploration and junior mining companies in South Africa and elsewhere in Africa. This year discussions will centre around the critical factors for junior miners to succeed; the outlook for commodities in 2023; the battery hype and the policy and regulatory environment. We will feature a number of junior mining success stories, as well as our regular features - Myth Busters and a showcase of presentations from junior miners across the continent.

Lead Sponsor:

Mining Industry Partners:

Sponsor:

For more information please contact, Carina Willemse: Tel: +27 (0) 61 421 9492 Email: carina@resources4africa.com or Stuart Alderson-Smith: Email: stuart@resources4africa.com

We are delighted to announce the launch of the Inaugural London Indaba on “investing in resources and mining in Africa”, taking place on 26 & 27 June 2023 at The InterContinental Park Lane London. Brought to you by the organisers of the renowned Joburg Indaba, the 2023 London Indaba will focus on Africa’s critical role in the minerals and metals of the future.

Africa is home to many of the world's essential minerals and metals including PGMs, gold, copper, cobalt, nickel, lithium, graphite, rare earths, vanadium, manganese, to name but a few. Over two days, The London Indaba will discuss these minerals and metals, their current and future supply and demand and interrogate the opportunities for African countries to provide a reliable, ethical and environmentally sustainable supply to both meet global demand and satisfy what investors are looking for when investing in African projects and mining companies.

The 2023 Junior Indaba, for explorers, developers and investors in junior mining, is brought to you by Resources 4 Africa, the organisers of the Joburg Indaba.

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