Modern Mining April 2019

feature MODULAR PLANTS

APT thrives in a downturn Somewhat paradoxically, modular process plant supplier APT (Appropriate Process Technologies) has not only managed to survive the mining downturn of the past several years but has actually thrived, with 2017 and 2018 being its best-performing years ever. Modern Mining’s Arthur Tassell recently visited the company’s premises near Johannesburg to view the company’s facilities and to speak to Business Development Manager Gary McFarlane.

ca. Although it is based in South Africa, over 90 % of its business is outside the country’s borders. Within Africa, the company has sup- plied its equipment to almost every country on the continent with only five exceptions. Explaining the current health of APT, McFarlane says that the drying up of funding for new mining ventures has forced miners to downscale their projects and to search for the most economic solutions to exploit their deposits. “This has benefited us greatly,” he says. “Our customer base has always included the artisanal and small-scale miners, as well as many smaller formal sector miners, but we’re now also receiving orders from listed juniors, who want to get into production at the least cost but who, at the same time, want proven solutions.” He adds that another major drawcard is the short lead times provided by APT. “Time is

F ounded 14 years ago to supply mod- ular minerals processing solutions to junior, sub-junior and artisanal miners around Africa, APT has since grown substantially in size – it now has an employee complement of around 70 people – and has diversified geographically into areas such as Europe and South Ameri-

34  MODERN MINING  April 2019