Modern Mining November 2018

MINING News

US$375 million Obuasi mining contract signed

tory in Ghana through its subsidiary African Mining Services (AMS), training approxi- mately 20 000 Ghanaians over this period. Combined, AUMS and AMS currently employ more than 1 800 people in Ghana across five projects (one AUMS, four AMS), of whom 95 % are Ghanaians. The two businesses have generated approximately A$2,8 billion of revenue in Ghana, with more than 78 % of profits reinvested into the country. UMA will provide the full suite of underground mining services at Obuasi, with major capital equipment supplied by AngloGold Ashanti. Works are expected to start in the first quarter of 2019. In encouraging the creation of the joint venture, AngloGold Ashanti says it is dem- onstrating its commitment to increasing meaningful local participation in the rede- velopment of the Obuasi orebody, which has 5,8 Moz of ore reserves and 34 Moz in mineral resource, and will have an initial mine life of roughly 20 years. Around 550 people, predominantly Ghanaians, will be employed and trained by the contrac- tors for the duration of the contract term, allowing for knowledge and skills transfer. “We’ve worked closely with the Government of Ghana to progress the redevelopment of Obuasi gold mine into a modern, productive operation, making it a key asset in our portfolio for the long term,” said Graham Ehm, AngloGold Ashanti Executive Vice President: Group Planning andTechnical.“This is also an investment in Ghana’s future, particularly in terms of local procurement, employment, training and development and overall mining capacity building, which will benefit the region and the economy for decades to come.” Obuasi, which has been primarily an underground operation, was placed on care and maintenance in 2016 pending the commencement of the redevelop- ment project. In June 2018, the Parliament of Ghana ratified the regulatory and fiscal agreements that cover the redevel- opment of the Obuasi gold mine and the Environmental Protection Agency issued environmental permits for the mine. The project implementation will be undertaken in two distinct phases, with stage one comprising project establishment, mine rehabilitation and development, plant and infrastructure

The Obuasi mine is more than a century old. Seen here is the George Carpendell Shaft ( GCS ) (photo: AngloGold Ashanti).

AngloGold Ashanti has announced finali- sation of a five-year underground mining contract at the Obuasi Re-Development Project with Underground Mining Alliance Limited (UMA), a joint venture between African Underground Mining Services (AUMS) and Accra-based Rocksure International, a wholly-owned Ghanaian mining contractor. The agreement, valued at US$375 million over five years, will help develop mechanised, underground mining exper- tise within Ghana’s local mining and

engineering sector, given that Rocksure, which has a strong track record in open-pit mining, will work closely with Australia’s AUMS, which has significant experience in underground mining. Rocksure will have a 30 % stake in the joint venture and AUMS the balance. Since commencing operations in Ghana eight years ago, AUMS has trained over 1 200 Ghanaians through a range of mining, engineering, and apprenticeship programmes. In addition, AUMS’s joint venture owner, Ausdrill, has a 27-year his- the lithium-ion battery industry,”comments David Flanagan, MD of Battery Minerals. “Montepuez will also benefit from its low capital and operating costs, the significant binding sales contracts which are already in place and the short lead time to production. “Given this outlook, we are continuing to make strong progress on several fronts at the same time, with development on the ground taking place in parallel with preparations to finalise funding, ongoing testwork and product marketing.” The tailings storage facility (TSF) is near- ing completion. Approximately 1 500 to 2 000 cubic metres per day of material is going into the wall construction through to completion at the end of October 2018. Other site earthworks, road construction and the installation of culverts are progress- ing well. Road works crews will demobilise in November 2018. 

Strong progress by Battery Minerals at Montepuez ASX-listed Battery Minerals report that strong progress was made at its Montepuez graphite project in Mozambique during the September quarter, 2018.

Battery Minerals secured a mining licence for Montepuez in late March 2018. This, combined with the success- ful A$20 million fund raising completed in early July 2018, paved the way for sig- nificant development activity during the September 2018 quarter. The company says that work on the site earthworks, its tailing dam and camp are well advanced and that Montepuez remains on track to export its first shipment of graphite concentrate within 12–15 months of project finance being finalised. “It is increasingly clear that Montepuez is set to be in the right place at the right time thanks to the strong increase in graph- ite demand which is forecast to stem from

16  MODERN MINING  November 2018