Modern Mining December 2022

MINING News

Go l d m i ne r, Ca l edon i a M i n i ng Corporation’s new solar plant at Blanket Mine has started generating power, the company said. Blanket Mine cur Solar plant powers Caledonia Mining’s Blanket Mine rently receives its power from ZESA, Zimbabwe’s national electricity supplier; however, in recent years this supply has been subject to load-shedding and

unstable power, which has economic and safety implications for an underground mine such as Blanket Mine. Recognising the economic, environmental and logis tical challenges of running large-scale diesel generators for extended peri ods, Caledonia started constructing the 12.2 MWac solar plant late in 2021. The solar plant now provides power to Blanket and will soon provide around 27 per cent of Blanket’s average daily elec tricity demand. Commenting on the announcement, Mark Learmonth, CEO, said: “With 21 per cent of Blanket’s on-mine costs relating to energy usage, this solar plant is a very important project for the company as it will improve the quality and security of Blanket’s electricity supply and provide environmental benefits through cleaner energy. The solar power will displace more expensive power from the grid and from diesel generators and is expected to reduce Caledonia’s consolidated cost per ounce of gold produced by approxi mately $37.” 

Solar plant powers Caledonia Mining’s Blanket Mine.

Emmerson in offtake MOUs with Keytrade AG and Hexagon Group AG

Moroccan-focused potash development company, Emmerson, has signed a Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) for offtake of potash and salt from its Khemisset Mine in Morocco with Keytrade AG for the sale of a minimum of 245 000 tpa of Muriate of Potash (MOP) for a period of 10 years; and with Hexagon Group AG for a minimum 245 000 tpa of MOP and a minimum of 500 000 tpa of salt product (NaCl), both for a period of 10 years. Graham Clarke, CEO of Emmerson commented: “I am delighted to present our first offtake MOUs to the market as we continue our pro cess of advancing towards construction readiness at Khemisset. These MOUs are an important milestone in this process and will account for more than 65% of MOP production and 50% of salt production.”  New Global MD for RMI Pressure Systems

Emmerson inks offtake agreements for product from its Khemisset Mine in Morocco.

Gas Transmission business, Keenan will oversee the sales, engineering, product management, operations and services func tions in the UK, EMEA, USA, China, India and Australia. “The business has aggres sive growth plans and a deep R&D pipeline, which is grounded in the voice of our cus tomers. I feel confident that the business has the right market focus and technical expertise to drive RMI forward,” Keenan notes. 

RMI Pressure Systems has appointed Joe Keenan as Global MD: Industrial Fluid Flow Solutions. Keenan brings with him over 25 years of experience in the mining industry, having held senior positions with companies around the world, including Orica Mining Services, where he served as Senior Vice President for USA and then President: Latin America. As the global leader for the RMI Pressure Systems’ mining and industrial business, and head of the North American

6  MODERN MINING  December 2022

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