Modern Mining July 2024

ENERGY

ZAC’s Mngeni shaft begins production Zululand Anthracite Colliery’s (ZAC) newest shaft, Mngeni, produced first product in the first week of April, a key achievement for the project located in Emakhalathini, about 100 kilometres from Richards Bay in northern KwaZulu-Natal. The Zululand Anthracite Colliery is South Africa’s sole producer and exporter of prime anthracite coal.

ZAC General Manager Wiets Beukes.

Z AC is majority-owned and operated by Menar, a South African-based investment company focused on mineral resources. The mine operates four shafts: Ngwabe, Outcrop, Deep E, Maye B and now, the Mngeni shaft. Its product is characterised by minimal ash content and low volatility. The construction phase of the Mngeni project started towards the end of 2022. According to ZAC General

and effort to ensure that the project achieved completion. Mngeni will produce between 120 000 150 000 tons run-of mine anthracite annually once it reaches steady state production,” Beukes, tells Modern Mining . ZAC’s life of mine has been extended to around 2032 while the Mngeni project has a life of mine of around seven years. The shaft incline is about 240 metres long and 34 metres deep, with seam thicknesses from 2.3 m to 2.6 m. In context of the ZAC reserves, Mngeni is a high seam shaft, with a resource of 1.2 million tons. About 60% of the anthracite mined from the Mgeni shaft is meant for the local market, with 40% earmarked for export. The intention behind the development of Mngeni was to balance the production shafts to offset the high cost of low seam operations. Discussing the importance of the latest initiative, Beukes says the Mngeni shaft is an important part of Menar’s diversification strategy, which involves expanding the company’s production capacity on existing operations, like ZAC, and developing new projects from scratch. “The stability of the mine’s output means ZAC can continue to contribute to the economy through job opportunities, and initiate procurement opportunities for local businesses. For instance, two local companies, namely Kulu Mining and Landa Ilanga, played a major role in the construction of the Mngeni shaft.”

Manager, Wiets Beukes, the adit was strategically built to expand operations and help ZAC maintain production levels. The company

The stability of the mine’s output means ZAC can continue to contribute to the economy through job opportunities, and initiate procurement opportunities for local businesses.

invested R137 million in the establishment of the shaft, including preparation of

earthworks, mining of the box cut, erection of major infrastructure and new underground production equipment. The installation of main infrastructure includes potable

water supply, dirty water management drains and pollution control dams as well as the installation of electricity supply systems. “This is a significant milestone for our team, which spent a considerable amount of time

A bird’s eye view of ZAC’s processing plant, which is fitted with a filter press.

ZAC Siding: Views from the Zululand Anthracite Colliery siding.

10  MODERN MINING  www.modernminingmagazine.co.za | JULY 2024