Modern Mining February 2019

MINING News

DRA and SENET enter into merger agreement

panies will retain brand autonomy and operational independence, while leveraging value enhancing capabilities. “Although our team of professionals continues to grow, our purpose remains the same – to create tangible value for clients through excellence in project delivery, asset optimi- sation and operations management.” SENET’s MD, Darren Naylor, added “The merger of our two companies just makes good business sense, and we are excited by the prospects and many ben- efits for the industry at large. “The similar corporate cultures, syn- ergies and the potential to create an

Global engineering, project delivery and operations management group DRA has entered into a merger agreement with SENET, a leading African project manage- ment and engineering firm, to create one of the largest project delivery and opera- tions management companies on the continent. SENET specialises in mineral processing project delivery and has successfully deliv- ered gold, copper, cobalt, uranium, and iron ore projects throughout Africa. The merger in Africa continues DRA’s international growth and significantly strengthens its service offering across min- ing, project delivery (EPC and EPCM) and process plant operations andmaintenance. The merger transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions and appli- cable regulatory approvals, and is expected to complete towards the end of Q1 2019. The combined DRA and SENET will have in excess of 3 000 employees in Africa, making the combined business one of the largest project delivery and operations management businesses on the conti- nent, further enhancing the group’s ability to effectively compete on the global stage. Wray Carvelas, CEO of DRA Global, com- mented: “The merger of DRA and SENET in Africa is a logical fit that will bring together two exceptionally successful companies, with complementary skill sets. The merger will bolster the offering to clients in the African projects market and across our global geographies. “It is our intention to enhance our deliv- ery to clients through this merger and, as such, current and future projects will benefit from the strength SENET brings to the Group. We envisage that the com-

Darren Naylor, MD of SENET. Wray Carvelas, CEO of DRA Global. engineering group that can offer bespoke client solutions on a global scale, yet still specifically target clients with assets in Africa, will undoubtedly present a formida- ble option for mining clients of all sizes.” 

Australia’s Birimian appoints newMD ASX-listed Birimian, which is developing the Goulamina lithium project in Mali, has appointed Chris Evans as Managing Director. He is an experienced project delivery and operational management expert who was most recently the Chief Operating Officer of Altura Mining where he was responsible for all aspects of project development, con- struction and bringing into operation the Pilgangoora lithium mine.

Comments Mark Hepburn, CEO and Exec­ utive Director of Birimian: “One of the key goals of the new board has been to appoint a Managing Director of the calibre of Chris Evans. We are thrilled that he has elected to join Birimian and that he shares our enthusi- asmand vision for our world class Goulamina lithium project. With Mr Evans’ very recent experience in building a producing lithium operation from the ground up, we see him as the ideal candidate to step into the role of Managing Director of Birimian as Goulamina moves into the development phase. I’m con- fident our shareholders will be extremely pleased with his appointment.” 

Evans has a Bachelor of Engineering Degree with Honours and a Master of Engineering Science in Construction Management from the University of New South Wales.

February 2019  MODERN MINING  7