Modern Mining August 2019

MINING News

Voorspoed diamond mine keeps on giving

the end of its life, we will continue to imple- ment our Social and Labour Plan as agreed with our local municipalities.” Ratang Maqheku Centre currently oper- ates from three rented backyard rooms in Tumahole, Parys. The Centre caters for 30 elderly people daily, and provides food, primary health care services, physical exer- cises, as well as access to the local library to improve their literacy and writing skills. The new 470 m 2 facility will comprise two bedrooms, sick bay, workshop area, rest area, consultation room, three offices, dining area, kitchen with a pantry and laun- dry room, two ablution facilities, as well as a reception and waiting area. Ratang Maqheku will also receive a brand new 22-seater vehicle from De Beers Group to transport the elderly to and from the Centre. Speaking at the sod-turning event of the construction of the new facility, the Executive Mayor of Ngwathe Local Municipality, Cllr Joey Mochela, said: “We are standing on a construction site of a dream that will soon become a lasting legacy for our community. This event is proof that working together in partnership with the private sector can produce remarkable outcomes. On behalf of our Municipality, I wish to extend my heartfelt gratitude that today we are able to celebrate the beginning of a project that is so close to our hearts.” De Beers Group has a long-standing relationship with the communities of Ngwathe, which started 10 years ago when Voorspoed began operating in the area. Through its Social and Labour Plan, Voorspoed has spent R31,6 million in sup- porting Social Economic Development projects in 2018.  The evaluation process included the construction of a pilot plant at the on-site laboratory at the mine. Concurrently, Wood was appointed to carry out a definitive fea- sibility study (DFS) on the pilot plant design process. Subsequently, a demonstration plant consisting of multi-stage commercial scale processing units was constructed. Independent process reviews were con- ducted after the DFS was completed, based on the comprehensive demonstration plant results. The DFS results exceeded Tharisa’s internal required hurdle rate for invest- ment in new projects. The final process and engineering designs were used to indepen- dently calculate the capital requirement of US$54,2 million for the construction of a 500 t/h plant. 

Pictured at the sod-turning ceremony are (left to right) Pastor Anthony Molalugi; DMR Regional Manager Kalipa Kewuti; Social Development representative Ndumi Mayekiso; Executive Mayor of Ngwathe Municipality, Cllr Joey Mochela; and Voorspoed Mine General Manager Malcom Hendrickse.

the aim of leaving a positive, and lasting, legacy for mining communities to enjoy sustainable livelihoods beyond the life of its operations. Malcom Hendrickse, Voorspoed Mine General Manager, said: “Our Building Forever approach unites and compels us to create a better future for our people, and we have continued to select partners and projects that will help maximise our positive impact as an organisation. We are proud of the positive impact that the new old age home will have for elderly citizens for gen- erations to come. “While Voorspoed mine stopped mining operations in December 2018, as it reached “With the appointment of Wood as our EPCM partner and the project initiation in August 2019, Tharisa looks forward to delivering first chrome production from the Vulcan plant within our anticipated timeline of 15 months.” Tharisa’s R&D team has developed the Vulcan process to extract the fine chrome from current in line tailings from the com- bined feed of the Genesis and Voyager plants at its Tharisa mine at Marikana. The primary aim of the Vulcan plant is to increase chrome recovery from the current 65 % to 82 % at the Tharisa mine, capable of adding an additional 400 kt/a (ca 28 % of current production) of chrome concentrate output.

De Beers Group’s Voorspoed Mine has partnered with Ngwathe Local Municipality to create a better future for the elderly by committing to build a new old age facility for Ratang Maqheku Centre for the Aged in Parys, Free State Province. The project forms part of Voorspoed Mine’s Social and Labour Plan, specifically its Community Development Programme, which aims to uplift communities of the Free State Province and develop working partnerships to enhance and influence eco- nomic and social factors. Through its Building Forever strategy, De Beers Group is helping communities to access opportunities and thrive with

Tharisa approves construction of Vulcan plant Tharisa has approved construction of its Vulcan plant to further improve chrome recov- eries and deliver its Vision 2020 strategy. Commenting on the project, Tharisa's CEO, Phoevos Pouroulis, said: “The commercialisa- tion of the Vulcan process will unlock value and is a major step in achieving our Vision 2020 target. We have developed a propri- etary process using existing technologies to improve the chrome recoveries with the process having been rigorously tested and proven through pilot plant test work and the operation of a production scale demonstration plant. Profitability will increase withmining and processing unit costs being charged against the increased production volumes.

10  MODERN MINING  August 2019