Modern Mining February 2020

Sibanye-Stillwater has announced that its SA gold operations achieved 10-million fatality free shifts on 26 January 2020. This is a significant milestone, which has never been achieved in the history of these gold operations, nor in the history of the SA deep level gold mining industry. The SA gold operations are among the deepest in the world, extending to more than 3 km below surface, which makes it a truly worthy achievement considering that it was accomplished by 30 000 employees and contractors working safely for 8,5 hours a day over a 519 day period since 25 August 2018. “Milestones like these illustrate what can be achieved when all stakeholders contribute constructively and work together. Special appreciation goes to our workforce for working safely and living our CARES values (commitment, accountability, respect, enabling, safety),” says CEO Neal Froneman. “Our intense focus on safe production across the group continues, with the implementation of longer-term safety and cultural interventions a strategic priority. We continue to pro- mote meaningful engagement with all our stakeholders, as part of the safety improvement journey and in the development of our safety culture.”  Sibanye-Stillwater’s SA gold operations achieve safety record

Positive developments in Katoro Gold’s JV with Blyvoor Katoro Gold (AIM: KAT), the gold and nickel focused exploration and development com- pany, has transferred the initial tranche of R5-million and has completed a corporate, legal and technical due diligence investiga- tion in respect of Blyvoor and the Tailings and Rights. This follows Katoro’s announcement on 30 January 2020 regarding the agreement

Louis Coetzee, executive chairman of Katoro (photo: Katoro).

with Blyvoor and target to form a joint venture to exploit potentially via- ble deposits of gold and any other minerals from six gold tailings dams owned by Blyvoor in South Africa. The initial tranche will allow the JV partners to now continue and accelerate work on the confirmatory test work to optimise the financial projections and conceptual designs for the processing plant as the com- pany seeks to secure the requisite funding for the project. “I am pleased to confirm that we are now underway with the JV and the start of what Katoro are aiming to be a highly exciting journey into near term gold production,” says Louis Coetzee, executive chairman of Katoro. “This is a substantial opportunity for Katoro. The size and scale of the project means we have lots of work to do and I look forward to keeping shareholders updated on our progress.” 

The feat was accomplished by 30 000 employees and contractors working safely for 8,5 hours a day over a 519 day period since 25 August 2018.

Banro seeking sale of Congo gold mine amid security concerns Toronto-based Banro is looking to put its Namoya gold mine in eastern Congo up for sale at a significant discount, citing the government’s failure to improve security in the area. The deci- sion comes on the back of repeated attacks by armed rebels, most recently in September, forcing the mine to halt operations. Prior to that, four Banro employees had been kidnapped in July and held for several weeks before being released. The company is seeking complete from the DRC, having already sold its Twangiza gold mine to minority shareholder Baiyin International of China for just US$1. The Twangiza mine, which became the first commercial gold mine to be built in the DRC in over 50 years, is located 45 km to the south-west of the city of Bukavu. 

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