New mining trends on the radar

Volume 4 / Issue 4 P35.00 ISSUE OCTOBER - DECEMBER 2021

Coal sales increase for Masama 10

Atlas Copco makes job site lighting easy 16

Robust screens custom-designed to suit the need 25

New mining trends on the radar

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3 www.botswanaminingreview.com Botswana Mining Review | October - December 2021

PublisherEvans Mumba

General ManagerArnold Chinyemba

Editor

Bheki [email protected]

Associate Editor

Ulla [email protected]

Editorial Contributions

Tsepang MohlabaneKotso RametsiMartin SibandaJeffrey Kgathi

Advertising Sales Noah Maposa

noahm@ botswanaminingreview.com

Joashua Chibwejoshuac@ botswanaminingreview.com

Jilowa [email protected]

Mdu [email protected]

Elvis [email protected]

SubscriptionsLoyce Zemeyi

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Contents Editorial CommentMore green shots for the mining industry : ...................... 4

Briefs : ...................... 5 Cover StoryNew mining trends on the radar : ...................... 6-7

General NewsBD protects interests in Thorny River diamond project : ...................... 8Coal sales increase for Masama : ...................... 10Diamonds sector rebound anticipated in Botswana : ...................... 12Kalahari Automation new distributor for Rockwell Automation : ...................... 13Projected Motheo copper output to increase : ...................... 14UMS assemble heavyweight team for Karowe... : ...................... 15

Industry Trends & TechnologiesAtlas Copco makes job site lighting easy : ...................... 16Equipment shortage threaten global green shoots : ...................... 17New Caterpillar mining shovel goes ‘green’, meets... : ...................... 20Miniature DIN-rail mount programmable transmitter on offe : ...................... 22

Regional NewsRobust screens custom-designed to suit the need : ...................... 25Sandvik upgrades SA presence with new facilities : ...................... 26Cummins expand footprint in Southern Africa region : ...................... 28Weba defies COVID-19 pandemic, quickly adapts : ...................... 29

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Editorial Note

More green shots for the mining industry

espite economic challenges that continue to envelope global economies, Botswa- na’s mining industry is slowly returning to a positive trajectory, as indicated by a number of developments in the sector.

Analysts have also affirmatively buttressed that the economy is on a recovery course buoyed by the mining sector. We celebrate these develop-ments and wish for more!

Severe and traumatic impacts have been depos-ited on the economy by the ongoing COVID-19 developments, including the restraining State of Emergency (SoE) that saw most businesses’

D

operations being negatively affected and min-ing was not an exception. With routine business trends returning on the backdrop of ongoing vaccination rollout, the mining sector should em-brace every opportunity on the radar and make it work for the economy.

Though authorities are making frantic efforts to diversify the local economy and possibly weaning it from its over dependence on mining, the sector is exhibiting signs of more positive growth, especially with the Kalahari Copper Belt projects on the pipeline.

The local economy is set to massively benefit from the taxes and royalties from the industry, adding to the already blossoming diamond in-dustry which is one of the highest contributors to gross domestic product (GDP), a development that supports the country’s infrastructure and economic development.

In this edition, companies like Debswana, Lu-cara, Khoemacau, Sandfire Resources, and Giyani Metals have been identified for making

headways, despite the ongoing COVID-19 pan-demic that has disturbed economies. As a result, the year 2021 has been considered better com-pared to the previous year in the mining industry.

It also encourages noting that the Botswana Chamber of Mines has encouraged miners to be innovative despite the challenges that may seem to swallow up the sector.

BCM should continue to implore miners to seek innovative ideas for the industry and getting their products to the market, for the country to main-tain some levels of economic sustainability

Let us all remember that the country depends to a large degree on international markets and if these markets are subdued then it places down-ward pressure on the economy.

Remember to send us questions, queries and comments.

Enjoy the read!

Bheki Fayayo (Editor)


Lucara underground project approved

Canadian diamond mining company Lucara has approved an underground expansion project (UGP) at Botswana’s Karowe Mine.

The development comes after the miner secured a project financing debt package of US$220 million signed in July.

“We are delighted to have completed this significant milestone following the sign-ing of loan documentation in mid-July,” said Eira Thomas, President and Chief Executive Officer of Lucara.

Thomas said capital costs for the UGP totaling US$534 million, will be met with funds from a combination of the facil-ities and projected cash flows from the Karowe open pit mine during the under-ground construction period.

The miner said construction efforts have ramped up since the facilities documen-tation was executed in mid-July.

Five international financial institutions have committed to finance Karowe Mine’s underground expansion ambitions and the financial institutions are ING Bank N.V., Natixis, Société Générale - London Branch, Société Générale, Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and Afrexim-bank (Afrexim).

New drilling programme for Nxuu

Mount Burgess a subsidiary of Mount Burgess Mining has engaged a con-tractor to commence a further drilling programme at its Nxuu deposit, on the Kihabe Project PL43/2016, in Western Ngamiland.

The shallow basin-shaped Nxuu depos-it hosts zinc, lead, silver, vanadium and germanium mineralisation in a totally ox-idised quartz wacke formation, within a barren dolostone basin.

According to the company, the planned drilling programme has been divided into a NE Zone, a NW Zone and a SW Zone.

Sunland Minerals prospecting licences renewed

Botswana Diamonds’ said prospecting licences 232 and 235 of 2015, owned by its wholly-owned subsidiary Sunland Minerals have been renewed.

According to the company, the renewals

Briefs

were for a two-year period, adding that recent aeromagnetic and surveys, fol-lowed by targeted ground magnetic sur-veys and soil sampling, had identified drill targets on the licences.

Xaudum iron project receives positive results

Tsodilo Resources recently announced positive geotechnical lab test results for its wholly owned Xaudum Iron Project.

According to the company, the results are a first set of geotechnical lab tests con-ducted on the Xaudum Iron Formation (XIF) and indicate that the XIF materials are competent and have good to mod-erate strength properties and will result in a positive set of geotechnical parame-ters to be used in the ongoing preliminary economic assessment (PEA) of the XIF project.

The results were what we expected, they show that the XIF materials are all within standard mechanical rock property rang-es and that there will be no geotechnical issues arising from the XIF materials and confirm that the XIF will show ‘normal’ pit wall angles as assumed in the Compa-ny’s previous resource reporting,” said Tsodilo’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, James Bruchs.

The tests were conducted at the Botswa-na International University of Science and Technology (BIUST) by the Mining and Geological Engineering department.

Giyani Metals multiple projects on track

The latest update on exploration from Gi-yani Metals Corp. developer of the K.Hill manganese oxide project, Otse manga-nese prospect and Lobatse manganese prospect have announced that its multi-ple exploration programs remain on track

Robin Birchall, Chief Executive Officer of Giyani is optimistic the company will de-liver significant additional value to exist-ing resource for the K.Hill Project.

“The updated preliminary economic as-sessment (PEA) for the K.Hill Project, which was announced on April 12, 2021, was based on the previous inferred re-source of 1.7 million tonnes. Since then, we have upgraded 1.6 million tonnes to indicated resources and added a further 1.4 million tonnes in inferred,” said Bir-chall.

“With an estimated post-tax net present value (NPV) of USD332 million and inter-nal rate of return (IRR) of 80 percent, the K.Hill Project is already a highly attractive mining project in one of the most mining friendly jurisdictions in Africa,” he added.

Meanwhile Birchall said the K.Hill Exten-sion and Otse are showing the potential to increase the updated resource base significantly and the company is yet to assess Lobatse.

“The transformative additional scale of-fered by our exploration prospects could make our Botswana operations of far greater value as we continue to build the resource base.”

AMS clinch the US$496 million Motheo contract

African Mining Services (AMS), has been awarded the contract for open-pit mining services at Sandfire Resources’ Motheo copper project in Ghanzi, Botswana.

The contract, which is yet to be finalised, has an estimated value of $496 million over an initial seven-year-and-three-month term with a provision for a one-year extension.

Under the terms of the Mining Services Contract, AMS will identify a suitable lo-cal Botswana company or companies as a joint venture partner for the project and transition to the joint venture before the commencement of mining in early 2022.

Finalisation of the contract is contingent on the satisfaction of two primary con-ditions, namely Sandfire being granted a mining licence for the project; and fi-nalising the terms of the Mining Services Contract.

Motheo is in the Kalahari Copper Belt, an emerging and relatively under-explored copper producing region. It is around 200 km to the southwest of the Khoemacau Zone 5 project, where Perenti, through its subsidiary Barminco, is currently en-gaged to undertake underground mine development works.

Motheo is held through Sandfire’s subsid-iary, Tshukudu Metals, and was approved for development by Sandfire’s Board of Directors in December 2020 following completion of a definitive feasibility study (DFS) on a base case of a 3.2 Mt/y oper-ation with expansion potential.


he mining industry has been one of the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. It left dire consequences especially for diamond production and it presented unexpected hurdles that mining companies have to deal with. However, things are looking up as Botswana prepares to exit the State of Emergency (SoE), which came to an end on 30 September 2021.

The pandemic has created an opportu-nity for the mining industry to introspect, adapt to the new normal, and look at long-term transformation strategies. With that, there are growth prospects hence mining companies need to rethink their supply chains especially as the Africa Continen-tal Free Trade Area (ACFTA) will assist in accelerating intra-Africa trade. Collabora-tive efforts for a highly monitored action plan are key for mining growth.

In the case of Botswana, 2021 has been a better year in the mining industry. Com-panies like Debswana, Lucara, Khoema-cau, Sandfire Resources, Giyani Metals, to mention a few, are making headway. The diamond revenues are prudently and transparently, contributing to sizable savings that can be used to stabilise the economy in case of a downturn and save for investments and future generations.

Recently, S&P Global Ratings (S&P) re-leased an update of the sovereign credit rating for Botswana. The rating agency maintained the country’s sovereign cred-it rating for long and short term foreign and local currency sovereign credit at “BBB+/A-2”. However, S&P revised the economic outlook from negative to stable

T on account of anticipated rebound in Bo-tswana’s economic growth, partially led by the diamond mining recovery.

According to the President of Botswana, Mokgweetsi Eric Masisi, the country has experienced logistical challenges for ex-porting minerals while in some instanc-es markets have shut down completely, which resulted in great losses. Masisi fur-ther said the pandemic diminished reve-nue in some countries and continued to pose challenges for the diamond industry.

As Botswana relies heavily on diamond production, it may only extend for anoth-er 30 years. In addition, Botswana has a small domestic market, which constrains the long-term success of a development strategy based on diamonds and the ex-pansion of the public sector. So, in the period ahead it will be essential to foster the development of the private sector and diversify exports.

To this end, Botswana needs to improve its business environment and the quality of the labour force to attract more pri-vate investors. The first goal requires the removal of bureaucratic regulations and impediments, the adoption of policies that promote competition, and the priva-tisation of inefficient state-owned compa-nies. The second goal requires improved policies to build skills and work ethic in the labour force together with the remov-al of restrictions on visas and permits for skilled workers. Botswana’s medium-term economic prospects depend on the suc-cessful implementation of key reforms, some of which have been part of the agenda for some time. Recent announce-

ments by President Masisi of the govern-ment’s intentions for the re-set agenda, the removal of burdensome regulations, relaxed restrictions on permits, and visas for foreign workers are encouraging.

“The ACFTA will boost mineral-rich coun-tries’ trading positions in the global mar-ket as well as strengthen Africa’s common voice and policy space in global trade ne-gotiations. With a combined population of over 250 million and vast natural resourc-es, Southern Africa Development Com-munity (SADC), offered important market opportunities for its member states. The region also has opportunities to attract investment in the extractive industries,” said Masisi.

Botswana has historically enjoyed strong and stable growth since independence, with sizable fiscal buffers and prudent policies playing a key role in shielding the economy. More recently, however, the limitations of Botswana’s diamond-led development model have become more apparent: growth is slower, inequality re-mains high and job creation is limited. At the same time, increased diamond market volatility—including growing competition from synthetic diamonds, reduced South-ern African Customs Union transfers and fiscal expansion have resulted in eroded fiscal buffers.

The World Bank report reveals that COVID-19 has exacerbated existing growth challenges, leading to an estimat-ed real gross domestic product (GDP) contraction of 7.9 percent in 2020 (the largest on record). The contraction reflects the impact that reduced global demand,

Cover Story

New mining trends on the radar By BMR CORRESPONDENT


travel restrictions and social distancing measures have had on output in key pro-duction and export sectors, including the diamond industry and tourism. Botswa-na’s fiscal deficit is set to widen to 11.3 percent of GDP in FY2020/21, from 5.6 percent in FY2019/20, reflecting a sharp decline in mineral revenues, a sticky pub-lic sector wage bill, and the impact of the COVID-19 spending.

Similarly, the current account deficit is estimated to have widened to eight per-cent of GDP in 2020 following the sharp decline in diamond exports. In addition, the developments in the global diamond industry will have a telling impact on the short-term recovery, given the country’s dependence on the commodity. While recovery is expected in 2021 due to a fa-vourable outlook for the diamond indus-try, the economic impact of COVID-19 is likely to be deep and long-lasting.

For Botswana Chamber of Mines (BCM) Chief Executive Officer, Charles Siwawa, the performance of the mining industry in Botswana can be described as fair. Siwa-wa highlighted that it could be better if the commodity markets offered conducive conditions. In addition, he said that the COVID-19 pandemic affected the industry in the same manner that the rest of Bo-tswana was affected.

“The COVID-19 protocols to be observed as a result of the pandemic in the mining industry are quite stringent and have to be adhered to by all employees. This then meant that some of the operations had to minimise infection rates through deploy-ing less people at a given time. Fortunate-ly, there were no employees retrenched as a result of the pandemic. Botswana as a country consumes a lot less minerals pro-

duced than what it exports.

“The country depends to a large degree on international markets and if these mar-kets are subdued then it places down-ward pressure on the levels that the min-erals can be sent to the end consumer. In order to maintain some levels of econom-ic sustainability the industry had to be in-novative on how to reach the consumer. Subsequent to these innovative ideas the mining industry was able to get its prod-ucts to the market,” explained Siwawa.

He further shared that some of the strat-egies that have been created for the suc-cess of mining in Botswana include ob-servance of COVID-19 protocols meant the risks of infection were reduced, seek-ing alternative channels to market the minerals was also a positive success, strong linkages with logistics channels into the country for effective supply chain management, virtual platform communi-cation played a big role whilst physical engagements and travel logistics were limited. When it comes to the long term solutions for transformation in the mining industry, Siwawa noted that segments of the min-ing process are amenable to ‘working from home’ concept. This idea will to a large extent formulate the strategy trans-formation into the long term. In terms of how the mining industry has embraced automation, he revealed that there is al-ways apprehension towards new con-cepts particularly changes in technology. Automation in the industry has its place but this has to be balanced by the norms and culture that has been historically adapted and used with high levels of suc-cess. “The industry is certainly gravitating towards new thinking in the supply chain.

Quality of product plays an important role whilst the focus is shifting towards local supply chain. This has to be supported by local manufacturing strategies with the aim to conserve funds within the country which can be used to boost the economy in a different way. The industry would wel-come the end of the state of emergency. It will assist in ensuring the supply chain is disrupted to a minimum. This also means that consumables within the industry and mineral products to the market have a predictive pathway,” said Siwawa.

Interestingly, Absa Bank Botswana Man-aging Director, Keabetswe Pheko-Mosha-gane noted: “Botswana’s economic re-covery is underway with an improving outlook for diamond demand buoying medium-to longer-term prospects. Rough diamond prices are recovering in line with stronger demand in key markets such as the US and China, and signs of a recovery in India. However, the economy continues to face risks and uncertainties because of the pandemic. Botswana has seen a steady rise in confirmed cases and is in a third wave of the pandemic. As the economy contracted 8.5 percent in 2020, we believe base effects will play a major role in supporting our projected growth rate of 6.7 percent in 2021. The govern-ment’s Economic Recovery and Growth plan is likely to provide further impetus to growth.”

To revive the mining industry and be successful, reforms now need to move forward, which will include making clear those responsible for their implementa-tion, setting up a timetable, and ensuring accountability through high-level monitor-ing. There is a need for innovative strate-gies and effective resource management that will give long-term solutions.


General News

otswana Stock Exchange (BSE) listed Botswana Diamonds (BD) has recently exercised its pre-emptive right to acquire the outstand-ing third-party interests in Vutomi Mining and Razorbill Properties which holds the mineral rights to the Thorny River Dia-mond Project.

“Since working on Thorny River thirty years ago, we recognised potential for discoveries on a kimberlite system span-ning 20km. Recent drilling vindicated this view and indicates potential for additional nearby discoveries.”

“Following a third party offer for Vutomi, Botswana Diamonds has exercised its pre-emption rights. This transaction streamlines exploration activities and in-volves the local community as supportive stakeholders in this development,” said Botswana Diamonds’ Managing Director, James Campbell.

Sharing sentiments on the issue John

B Teeling, Botswana Diamonds Chairman said the company is optimistic, comment-ed on the production opportunities for the Thorny River properties owned by Vutomi.

“An outside company made an offer for Vutomi. Rather than accept the offer we exercised our pre-emptive right to acquire the outstanding shares. In turn we then sold sufficient shares to a local South African group to ensure compliance with black empowerment regulations.

The unsolicited outside offer reinforced our belief that there is something worth-while in Thorny River. We acted to pre-serve shareholder value,” said Teeling.

According to BD Vutomi’s South African projects will be advanced in tandem with ongoing Botswana-based exploration programmes, and may have potential for early commercial diamond mining.

Vutomi’s flagship project, Thorny River, spans the Frischgewaagt and Hartbees-

fontein farms, which are located within the Limpopo Province of South Africa approximately 300km north of Johannes-burg.

The project area encompasses the east-ern extent of a kimberlite blow/dyke com-plex, along which the former Marsfontein and Klipspringer diamond mines occur, both operations were once mined by a De Beers / SouthernEra joint venture.

Thorny River is 4km east of the Mars-fontein Mine, whose diamond grade and quality returned the entire capital invest-ment in only four days.

In addition, Thorny River consists of a 4km long kimberlite blow/dyke system, where Vutomi has undertaken detailed ground geophysics, macro diamond and microdiamond sampling and extensive core and percussion drilling programmes over the project area.

BD protects interests in Thorny River diamond project

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asama coal mine has overcome challenges, improving revenue and production for 2021, the miners Minergy have revealed.

The Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) listed Minergy re-cently revealed that sales volumes increased by 110 per-cent, supported by increased sales in Botswana and South Africa and Namibia.

According to the company, the annual record breaking sales was supported by June 2021 sales that exceeded 56 000 tonnes, a record since the inception of the mine. Coal mined in June 2021 alone exceeded 100 000 tonnes.

“This is a good performance considering the challenges faced such as sacrificing pre-stripping activities for a peri-od to manage arrears, excessive rain and COVID-19,” said Minergy Chief Executive Officer, Morné du Plessis.

The CEO said production and sales initially recovered in July and August 2020 with the easing of COVID-19 re-strictions and recoveries were further bolstered by the successful launch of the rail siding. Delays experienced in concluding the funding contributed to contractors limiting operations to manage arrears.

“However, the heavy rains we experienced from December 2020 through February 2021 flooded the mine pit making access difficult and impacting both production and sales.

“Fortunately, the rain subsided in March 2021, and we en-tered a more stable environment, with a positive impact on operations. Good recoveries in production and sales were experienced during the last four-month period of the year, with the mine moving closer toward a breakeven position.”

“Despite these operational constraints, including the ef-fects of COVID-19 on logistics and manning of shifts, we expect to reach consistent nameplate capacity in the 2022 financial year,” said du Plessis.

Meanwhile Minergy has also announced that it expects to reach consistent steady-state levels of production in 2022.

The company recently concluded a further 12-month off-take agreement to the existing off-take agreement, with a further agreement finalised post year end

M

Coal sales increase for Masama…Botswana, South Africa and Namibia

demand surge


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General News

overnment anticipates the mining sector growth to rebound to 33.9 percent in 2021, the Ministry of Finance and Economic De-velopment has announced.

According to the 2022 budget strategy paper, the authorities further said the rise will be followed by a moderate drop to 3.5 percent and 2.0 percent in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

“The recovery in the diamond sector is supported not just by improved demand for diamonds, but also higher diamond prices, which have recovered strongly since the beginning of 2021,” reads part of the strategy paper.

Statistics Botswana’s (SB) second quar-ter gross domestic product (GDP) Stats Brief highlights a significant increase in

G

the real value added of mining and quar-rying by 153.0 percent attributed to huge increase in the diamond real value added by 172.2 percent.

“Diamond production in carats went up by 202.8 percent during the quarter under review. Rough diamond appetite is grad-ually gaining traction after the COVID -19 travel restrictions which impeded on the sight holding calendar,” said Statistician General, Dr. Burton Mguni.

Mguni further said diamond traders re-

corded a tremendous growth of 1,829.8 percent as opposed to a decline of 97.1 percent recorded in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

“The positive growth is due to improved demand for diamonds from the global markets,” Mguni said.

Meanwhile GDP growth is projected to reach 9.7 percent in 2021 while the econ-omy is projected to grow by 4.3 percent and 4.2 percent in 2022 and 2023, re-spectively.

Diamonds sector rebound anticipated in Botswana

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General News

ockwell Automation has appointed Kalahari Automation Distributors (KAD) as a new au-thorised distributor in Botswana. With an abundance of mineral deposits and a scarcity of water, Botswana presents an interesting industrial landscape that stands to benefit from such industry-lead-ing automation and control technology.

KAD is Botswana’s leading supplier of quality industrial automation, control, and instrumentation equipment. The com-pany’s owners have been working with Rockwell Automation products for more than 30 years.

“We are now authorised to sell the com-plete Rockwell Automation portfolio, in-cluding automation equipment, motor control equipment, software products and related services, in Botswana. This allows us to support the existing equip-ment base and distribute new products in the country,” said Ben Grobler, Sales and Marketing Director at KAD.

Grobler explains that water and mining are two key markets that stand to benefit from improved access to Rockwell Auto-mation products and services.

“Botswana is predominantly a semi-des-ert, with water being a high-value com-modity. The government has committed

R to providing water for generations to come using only the best equipment.”

Many of the large, potable water-pump stations in the country are using a com-bination of Allen Bradley PowerFlex 6000 and PowerFLex 7000 medium voltage drives. Many of the smaller pump sta-tions are running PowerFLex 750 Variable Speed Drives and SMC soft starters.

In the mineral resources landscape, Bo-tswana is one of the world’s largest dia-mond producers, producing both gem and industrial-quality diamonds. Craig McMaster, Channel Sales Manager – Afri-ca for Rockwell Automation said: “When I joined Rockwell Automation in 2000, Ora-pa Diamond Mine was one of the largest installed bases of Rockwell Automation equipment in Botswana.”

With a growing customer base in the country, the distribution agreement will provide mines and other Rockwell Auto-mation customers with simplified access to products, services and expertise that will address their needs, and provide solutions that are sure to improve efficien-cy and offer quantifiable cost savings.

Grobler comments that the country is showing a clear demand for program-mable logic controllers (PLCs), variable speed drives (VSDs), soft starters, motor

protection, SCADA software and man-agement information systems. Partnering with Rockwell Automation was an obvi-ous choice for the distributor.

“With Rockwell Automation being one of the world’s most advanced and trust-ed automation brands, we wanted to set a precedent by offering our clients the best quality and support that an end-user could need. We aim to keep their systems running more efficiently, for longer, sav-ing on replacement costs and downtime while allowing technical staff to focus on other tasks at hand,” he explains.

For almost 100 years, Rockwell Automa-tion has made it a priority to better service customers in-country by investing in local partners that are close to and truly under-stand these customers and their needs.

“To ensure first-class support for our val-ued customers in Botswana, Rockwell Automation is working closely with KAD to ensure that our customers have access to industry-leading products, services, support and expertise,” concludes Mc-Master.

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General News

andfire’s Motheo Mine’s potential has expanded to 5.2Mtpa following maiden ore reserve for A4 deposit and pre-feasibility study (PFS) done in September.

With the latest development the project has moved its economics to an expand-ed 5.2Mtpa mining operation compared to the initial 3.2Mtpa, following maiden probable ore reserve completed for the A4 Deposit, located eight kilometres west of the Motheo Copper Mine.

In addition, Sandfire’s total pre-pro-duction development capital increased to US$366 million, incorporating devel-opment costs for the A4 open pit plus an updated cost forecast for the Moth-eo plant to account for increased steel costs, foreign exchange movements and COVID-19 related disruptions. Sandfire’s

S Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Karl Simich, said the maiden A4 Ore Reserve and positive Expansion Case PFS marked another pivotal milestone in the company’s plans to establish a major new long-term mining hub at Motheo.

“The completion of this maiden Ore Re-serve at A4 provides the incremental increase in ore feed required to lift our planned production rate at Motheo to 5.2Mtpa, with the PFS showing that an expanded project will deliver a very pos-itive uplift in the project’s overall eco-nomic credentials, including a 88 per cent increase in pre-tax net cash-flow to US$1.24 billion.

“Encouragingly, 85 percent of the current A4 mineral resource has been convert-ed to ore reserves, a very pleasing result which bodes well for our ongoing explo-

ration across the Kalahari Copper Belt,” said Simich.

Simich said the company has already identified several opportunities to en-hance the economic outcomes of the PFS, particularly in the area of mine scheduling. At the moment, the mine schedules for both T3 and A4 open pits have been optimised separately.

“However we believe we can deliver en-hanced outcomes in the DFS by combin-ing and optimising the two pits with an integrated mine sequence.

“In parallel with these development stud-ies, we are also continuing a major drilling campaign both in the near-mine area as well as across our extensive landholding in the Kalahari Copper Belt,” said Simich.

Projected Motheo copper output to increase


General News

outh African company United Mining Services (UMS) is gearing up for the pre-sinking of two shafts at Karowe Underground Mine Expansion Project (UGP) in Botswana. The company says a team comprising some of the most experienced profes-sionals in shaft sinking has been assem-bled for the task.

Following the completion of the feasibility study for the Karowe UGP, UMS was ap-pointed by Lucara Botswana Pty Ltd and JDS Energy & Mining Inc. in October 2019 to engineer and design the shaft sinking of the production shaft (8.5 metres in di-ameter), and the ventilation shaft (6 metre diameter), both reaching a depth of ap-proximately 750 metres below surface.

Karowe mine is one of the world’s leading producers of large, high quality, Type IIA diamonds. Fully commissioned in 2012, Karowe (which means ‘precious stone’ in the local language) is an open pit mine with operations until 2026.

The UGP will extend Karowe’s mine life to at least 2040. At the end of 2020, Karowe’s total Probable Mineral Reserve is estimated at 53.9 mt containing 7.4 mil-lion carats including stockpiles. Accord-ing to Lucara, developers of the project, Karowe mine remains one of the best pro-

S

ducing mines of high quality +10.8 carat diamonds, having yielded five of the 10 largest diamonds in recorded history and is the only mine to have recovered three diamonds greater than 1 000 carats.

As recently as July 2021, Lucara an-nounced the recovery a 62.7-carat fancy pink diamond from Karowe – the largest fancy pink gem to be recovered in Bo-tswana, and one of the world’s largest rough pink diamonds on record.

Dr. Pieter Louw, Group Executive Proj-ect Services at UMS and UMS’s project manager, says the company’s wealth of knowledge and expertise in shaft sinking played a key role in securing the contract, and that the company is bringing in the heavyweights in the industry for the proj-ect.

Louw has a long history in underground mining and shaft sinking, having worked for major players in the mining and engi-neering sectors. He was involved in the De Beers Venetia Underground Project feasibility study as well as a number of other feasibility projects for mines that are now in development or have already start-ed production.

Louw explains that the two shafts at Karowe will be blind sunk using conven-tional drill and blast techniques. The pro-duction and ventilation shafts will both have equipment installed to pre-sink to a shaft depth of 100 metres if required to accommodate the main sink shaft equip-ment. The pre-sink phase also allows the sinking process to commence as soon as possible while the main sink infrastructure is being fabricated and installed.

The new underground mine’s production shaft will have an A-frame type headgear, which will hoist 21-tonne payload skips, and will have a single drum auxiliary wind-er for people movement, and a man/ma-terial winder with counterweight and a big cage to service the underground.

UMS has refurbished four winders which will be going to the mine for shaft sink-ing, including two stage winders and two Kibble winders. The company also pur-chased and refurbished Scotch derrick winder cranes which will be used for the pre-sink.

Louw says that UMS is in the process of mobilising up to 170 people to site for the pre-sink, which is expected to commence at the end of August and will take between 8 and 12 months to achieve changeover ready for the start of the main sink. The main sink will take another two years af-ter that, ready for mine development to commence in 2024, and full underground operations in 2026.

To make sinking safer, Louw says that UMS has adopted different sinking meth-odologies and equipment to be used at Karowe. “In the past, we used to sink with cactus grabs which needed people in the bottom. We are now using vertical shaft muckers and are buying state-of-the-art jumbo drill rigs to drill at the bottom. We’re doing inline work as opposed to concurrent work with people working at the bottom.”

He adds that as part of its safety manage-ment plan, UMS has established a training centre on site at Karowe that facilitates inductions and training of local operators on the various equipment. The company is constructing a mock-up training tower on the surface to train operators on verti-cal shaft muckers and will have a similar training simulator for excavator operators.

With prospects of more open-cast mines transitioning to underground in Botswa-na, the local community stands to benefit from obtaining specialised skills relat-ed to shaft sinking. Louw said UMS has partnered with Botswana Investment and Trade Centre (BITC) to ensure that the project work permits run smoothly. Fur-thermore, the UMS design engineers are registered with the Botswana certification boards and can sign off all engineering designs and drawings for the project.

UMS assemble heavyweight team for Karowe Mine shaft sinking


Industry Trends & Technologies

tlas Copco’s new towers combine efficiency, performance and robust reliability with low operational costs, reduced noise levels and safety to provide optimum lighting solutions to the tough and demanding environments typical of the construction, mining, events, and rental sectors. “There is just so much that can be said about this highly efficient, flexible, com-pact and dynamic light tower,” said Da-vid Stanford, Business Line Manager for Atlas Copco Power Technique’s Portable Products.

“Let’s start with the heart of the HiLight H6+ unit - its new generation LED flood-lights and then move on to its protective HardHat® body. Originally designed for residential and commercial use, LED light-ing is now fast becoming the preferred lighting solution in the industrial space, largely on account of the numerous value adding benefits delivered by LED technol-ogy. Top of the list is the LED floodlights’ ability to efficiently provide optimal light distribution up to a 6,000 m² illumination area with a 20 lux (brightness) average, ensuring a brighter, more productive site and safer job site.”

During the design of the light towers, At-las Copco kept in mind the main purpose of these units which is to provide high quality lighting after sunset or during in-clement weather to improve productivity by extending work hours and creating a safe, comfortable working environment. Placing its innovation stamp on LED tech-nology, Atlas Copco’s LED light towers feature a very special lens and optic de-sign to specifically suit construction and mining applications. The innovative, fully directional LED lens design influences the quality and distribution of light, maximis-

A es the light coverage, ensures even light-ing, eliminates shadows, reduces glare that can cause distraction and eye strain and also reduces ‘lighting waste’.

Thanks to Atlas Copco’s ongoing com-mitment to developing technologies that are both cutting-edge and environmental-ly considerate, the HiLight H6+ light tower has been designed to provide this bright and efficient lighting while producing zero emissions, using up to 40 percent less fuel and 5 db(A) lower noise levels.

The light tower’s dimming function on the easy-to-use control panel offers the right luminosity at all times, subsequently ex-tending the autonomy by over 300 hours and providing CO² savings of up to 40 percent. Delivering 55dBA at 7m, the unit ensures not only a comfortable and safe working environment but also prevents disturbance when used during events or when operating in noise sensitive areas (residential).

The LED lights are extremely robust and boast an impressive life expectancy of 50 000 hours. “Compared to traditional met-al halide lamps, LED lamps do not contain filaments which increases their resistance to vibrations and impact,” explains Stan-ford. “We have also developed a tough, shock-proof housing to protect the bulbs against the ingress of contaminates such as dust particles.” Stanford adds that this is crucial for the construction and min-ing sectors where equipment has to be hard-wearing to continue operating de-spite stringent working conditions.

“Another design feature that makes the HiLight H6+ unit extremely tough is its tough ‘armour’,” said Stanford. Atlas Copco’s exclusive and innovative HardHat® body is manufactured from

corrosion- and crack-resistant, light-weight, environmentally friendly medi-um-density polyethylene. The HardHat® is resistant to low and high temperatures thanks to its UV stability and the long-term antioxidants of the plastic. This de-sign-focus and tough material ensure a lasting performance and extended life cy-cle, providing users with outstanding total cost of ownership.

Additionally, the HardHat® is moulded into a single pop-up canopy for easy fit-ment to and removal from the light tower. It also provides 360° easy service access to the unit. Maintenance could not be easier as the light tower only requires a simple service after 600 hours of opera-tion which can be carried out in just 40 minutes.

Transport efficiency was also taken in to account during the design of the HiLight H6+ which can be conveniently transport-ed in three ways – via the integrated lifting point, four forklift slots or three different tow bars. The adjustable tow bar provides great flexibility as it enables the HiLight H6+ to be towed behind a van, bakkie or truck.

In closing, Stanford highlights the efficien-cy and long-term cost saving advantages offered by LED technology which he says simply cannot be ignored.

“Although a little more expensive when compared to traditional light sources, the high efficiencies and powerful and reliable performance of LED technology combined with the longer lifespan of the LED lamps all contribute to low operating costs and subsequent total cost of own-ership.”

Atlas Copco makes job site lighting easy



isruptions in global supply chains due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic have re-sulted in a shortage of large mining equip-ment being produced by major Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs).

“For example, the lead time on 100 t rig-id dump trucks and larger has now been pushed to 2022,” said Conrad Smith, owner and founder of disposal and pro-curement expert MHS Plant & Equipment. This means that major mining houses are faced with a potential procurement crunch as the commodity cycle picks up again, placing a potential constraint on any expansion or new project plans at a time when the industry needs it the least.

Another concern is that many mining houses are sitting with redundant or sur-plus fleet that they are struggling to get rid of in the current economic environment. The traditional route of approaching auc-tion houses or going out to tender is not the ideal solution in this regard, highlights Smith.

“We offer a complete turnkey solution whereby we can come in and evaluate any redundant equipment, albeit scrapped or still running, and resell it through our glob-al network of contacts.”

Alternatively, if a mining house is on the lookout for a particular machine and is being thwarted by a long lead time, it can approach MHS Plant & Equipment as well for a specific solution in this regard. With an international network established over 25 years, Smith and his team can source machines from anywhere in the world at the most competitive rates. The compa-ny’s ‘one-stop shop’ value proposition in-cludes dismantling and rigging, shipping and transportation and reassembly at the required destination.

“Our key differentiator in this niche mar-ket is our capability to be able to offer immediate short-term solutions to these problems confronting the global mining industry right now,” points out Smith.

“As opposed to waiting a year for new rigids, for example, rather approach us and we can source it for you anywhere in the world at a cost-competitive rate. This limits any potential downtime for a mining operation, which stands to lose millions

D due to any disruption in productivity as a result of equipment shortages.”

Smith warns that the shortage is being compounded by local OEMs also reduc-ing their stock and parts inventory due to the impact of COVID-19 on the global economy.

However, with the mining industry at last starting to show some green shoots, min-ers need to put their procurement plans in place as early as possible in order to be in a position to take advantage of the upturn. This is critical, especially due to an estimated 30 percent to 50 percent reduction in the output from yellow metal

equipment manufacturers globally, with limited numbers of new units especially in the larger size ranges.

An example of the complete solutions ap-proach offered by MHS Plant & Equipment is a package deal it is putting together at present for Barrick Gold Corporation in Zambia. This includes 100 t rigids, 120 t excavators and loading tools, 16H grad-ers and Cat D10T dozers.

“We handle the sale, export, transport, in-surance and assembly on-site with com-missioning of all the equipment upon de-livery,” concludes Smith.

Equipment shortage threaten global green shoots


Using Ultrasonic NDT to Identify Wear & Corrosion

onitoring equipment for damage and potential flaws is vital

Mining equipment is under constant oper-ational stress due to the harsh working en-vironments present in mines and quarries and the weight of the materials involved. This can cause wear and corrosion which can become dangerous, resulting in loss of productivity and even injury or potential death of operators.

The mining industry also has to adhere to various industry Standards and regu-lations which requires regular testing of equipment. In order to accomplish the necessary testing with minimal downtime and without causing any damage to the area under test, ultrasonic NDT testing is carried out.

Ultrasonic NDT testing provides crucial information about the equipment’s condition

Capable of non-destructively measuring a wide variety of materials - including metals, rubber and plastics, ultrasonic thickness gauges are ideal for monitor-ing corrosion and erosion, or checking for defects in complex, manufactured com-ponents.

Testing mining equipment using ultra-sonic thickness gauges allows operators to quickly and easily determine whether the equipment is fit for purpose or what

M action needs to be taken if corrosion has occurred.

Ultrasonic Material Thickness Gauges

The Elcometer MTG range of ultrasonic material thickness gauges can measure both uncoated materials up to 500mm thick, and coated materials up to 25mm thick, whilst ignoring the coating, using a dual element transducer.

Dual element transducers consist of two independent crystals, separated by an acoustic barrier. The two elements are angled so that when one crystal emits an ultrasonic pulse, the energy path creates a “V” shape, entering the material via ul-trasonic couplant, hitting the back-wall of the material, and echoing towards the other crystal, where it is detected.

The gauge then uses the speed of the pulse and the time taken to travel from one crystal to another (from pulse to echo), to calculate the thickness of the material - with the acoustic barrier pre-venting any sound from reaching the re-ceiver directly from the emitter, before the pulse has completed its path.

Choosing a Material Thickness Gauge

Ultrasonic thickness gauges come in many forms, each with different features. In the Elcometer MTG range, the standard

gauge, the Elcometer MTG2, is simple and low cost. It is ideal for taking thick-ness measurements on steel and can take four readings per second.

The MTG4 gauge also takes four read-ings per second whereas the MTG6 and MTG8 gauges are faster, and are able to take four, eight or 16 readings per second whilst displaying the thickness value.

The MTG6 and MTG8 feature a high speed ‘scan’ feature which allows the user to “scrub” the probe over the sur-face, continuously displaying the thick-ness values at a rate of 16 readings per second. When the probe is removed from the surface, the thinnest thickness value that was measured is displayed, showing the most potential point for failure.

The top of the range gauge, the MTG8 features ‘Differential Mode’ and ‘Limits’. In Differential Mode, a target thickness can be entered into the gauge and when measuring, the gauge will display the vari-ance from that value. Similarly, the ‘Limits’ mode also allows a target value to be en-tered into the gauge. If a reading is taken below this value, an alarm will sound and the red LED on the keyboard will light.

Data Logging

The MTG6 and MTG8 gauges both have data logging capabilities, allowing read-ings to be saved in the gauge memory

Image: Elcometer Flaw Detector FD700DL+ in A-Scan mode searching for flaws and defects


Quality Control Instrumentation

Since 1946

Tel : +27 21 683 2100 [email protected] www.bamr.co.za

Where Quality Meets Efficiency Coating Thickness Material Thickness Corrosion Thickness Flaw Detection

BAMR is a supplier and distributor of Elcometer NDT, Coating Thickness Gauges and other quality control instrumentation throughout Sub-Saharan Africa

and then downloaded via USB or Bluetooth® to PC, iOS or Android™ devices for further analysis and reporting. The MTG6 gauge can store up to 1,500 readings and the MTG8 can store up to 100,000 readings in up to 1,000 batches.

A batch is a group of readings, which can be saved sequentially or into a grid format, the Elcometer MTG8 can store multiple batches which can represent multiple locations around the asset being inspected.

To help undertake and report grid-based corrosion inspections quickly and easily; the Elcometer MTG8 comes with a ‘Grid Batching’ feature, which allows readings to be saved instantly into a grid making it easy to complete and report the inspection.

Using a grid is ideal when inspecting large areas as it clearly marks and identifies areas of concern, and helps to identify exactly where the corrosion is occurring. By repeating grid-based inspections in the same location over time, corrosion rates are able to be predicted and preven-tative maintenance can be performed to avoid a breakdown.

Inspection Reporting

When it comes to inspection reporting, typically a report would be cre-ated manually, either by hand or using word processing or spreadsheet software, which can be both time consuming and open to human-error.

However, if when the Elcometer MTG6 or MTG8 is connected, via USB or Bluetooth, to ElcoMaster®, Elcometer’s free software application, readings can be transferred, with full statistics, calibration information and limits, to a smart phone, tablet or PC. Once the data and any addi-tional notes and photographs have been uploaded, the software is able to instantly create a professional inspection report that can be exported to PDF, printed or sent elsewhere via email.

ElcoMaster® software can also be used during the inspection pro-cess. The software’s ‘Collects’ feature allows the inspector to follow a template live from an Android or Apple mobile device showing exactly where to inspect. To do this, a picture of the inspection area should be uploaded to the ElcoMaster® mobile app and specific locations that need to be inspected are added. Once the area is inspected, the app will instantly show, on the image, exactly where the corrosion is occur-ring, which can be used in the final inspection report.

For more information about Elcometer’s range of ultrasonic NDT gauges, visit www.bamr.co.za or email your request to [email protected]

BAMR is a leading supplier of top-quality coatings & corrosion mea-surement instrumentation and equipment in Southern Africa & Africa.

Elcometer Material Thickness Gauge MTG8 in B-Scan mode for measuring material thickness



ffering more drive options to meet the global mining industry’s needs, the new Cat® 6040 Hydraulic Mining Shovel features an added engine configuration that meets U.S. EPA Tier 4 Final and EU Stage V emission standards.

The new configuration includes two fu-el-efficient Cat C32 engines, offering a to-tal gross power rating of 1 550 kW (2,079 hp). Optimizing machine uptime and low-ering operating costs, the engine pack-age includes maintenance free Diesel Oxidation Catalysts (DOC) and does not require Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF)/AdBlue or Diesel Particulate Filters (DPF).

In addition, the new engine option joins the twin C32 configuration with optimized fuel efficiency settings to meet China Nonroad Stage III emission standards, equivalent to U.S. EPA Tier 2 as well as China Smoke Category III limits. An en-gine oil extension option plus new Cat Type 4 filters for both engine configura-tions help to further reduce maintenance costs.

Connecting to Cat MineStar™ Solutions’ comprehensive suite of integrated tech-nology, new Product Link Elite comes standard on the 6040 shovel. Product Link Elite delivers enhanced communi-

O cation through a dual data path, allowing data transfer to both the local server and cloud simultaneously.

Caterpillar’s next generation of onboard hardware, Product Link Elite features an easy-to-configure interface and custom-izable data-push frequency. Information transfer from the equipment can be con-figured via cellular, satellite or mine net-work connection to meet the mine site’s needs.

The new 6040 shovel delivers increased uptime with its heavy-duty undercar-riage. Improved heavy-duty load rollers and idlers now feature duo cone seals, steel-back bronze bearings and fixed axle technology to increase service life and eliminate overheating during travel. Track pad, tensioning and wear updates deliver a higher level of durability and reliability to lower operating costs. Retrofit kits for the heavy-duty rollers are available for field units to improve existing fleet reliability.

Like previous series, the new 6040 shov-el can be equipped with backhoe or Cat TriPower™ Face Shovel front end de-signs. To deliver high machine reliability in harsh mining conditions, the rugged front attachments feature high-strength steel and castings, joined and thermally stressed-relieved, to extend service life

and achieve production targets. With its 39.6-tonne (43.7-ton) bucket payload, the 6040 shovel offers optimal 4-pass match with Cat 785, 5-pass match with Cat 789 and 6-pass match with Cat 793 mining trucks.

For the first time, the new Cat 6040 Hy-draulic Mining Shovel fully integrates the undercarriage, engine module, super-structure main frame, carbody and crawl-er frames, hydraulic lines and motors, and counterweight into Caterpillar systems to improve servicing efficiency and parts sourcing. The new shovel displays the Cat Modern Hex graphics and will drop the “FS” suffix to model nomenclature for face shovel configurations.

New Caterpillar mining shovel goes ‘green’, meets industry standards


Profile

WORKPLACE HEALTH AND SAFETY WITH MRI BOTSWANA

RI Botswana Limited is a leading provider of integrated and innovative healthcare ser-vices and related healthcare solutions with over 25 years of experience in the country. Having initially established as the leading emergency services provider through the Medical Rescue business, the company has grown to become the country’s first ever provider of various outpatient health-care services under one roof, with its Prime Health brand operating in Gaborone: Block 7 & Airport Junction Mall and Maun. In ad-dition, MRI has introduced and grown to become a leading provider of outsourced inbound and outbound contact centre solu-tions.

WHY OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH?

• Adherence to the Employment Act [Cap. 47:01], Factories Act (Cap 44:01) and Mines, Quarries, Works, and Machinery Act, No 20 of 1973.• Entry and exit medical record of employees: to have a clear picture of the impact the role has on the employee.• Pre-employment screening to determine the eligibility of the employee to fully carry out the role.• Provides a clear history of employee’s health history; protects against any legal grievances from the employee Protection of the brand identity of the business through the elimination of negative publicity. • Protection of the consumers of the business products; specific to the food and catering industry

EXTENDED CAPABILITIES

MRI Botswana’s Occupational solution ex-tends to Onsite Clinic Services, catering for specialised industries including the Mining companies, Exploration companies, Para-statals and Manufacturing industries where MRI can set up an onsite health manage-ment solution tailor-made for the client’s environment and specific to the needs.

M The MRI Medical team comprises of the following to provide emergency medical and acute supportive care to employees 24 hours a day:

• Medical doctor trained in • Occupational health • An occupational health nurses.• Family nurse practitioner• General nurse• Intermediate Life Support Paramedic• Auxiliary Healthcare Assistant

SERVICES

• Health risk assessments• Risk based medical surveillance programs (pre-employment, periodical, exit medical exams) • Biological testing • Biological Monitoring • Drug testing• ECG (electrocardiogram) • Blood tests• Food Handler Examinations (required under the Public Health Act 1971 CAP 63:01) - Physical Examinations and tests as required by the act.

MRI offers customized solutions for clients, which allow us to create packages of clini-cal services that meet your unique require-ments. We provide unmatched customer service including a full-service contact cen-tre, dedicated nurses, Doctors, and com-prehensive administrative support services.


I nstrotech’s versatile DPM9000 series, manufactured by Calog Instruments, a miniature DIN-rail mount program-mable isolated transmitter range has con-sistently sold well into the market, partly due to its reliability and partly to the ver-satile wide range of programmable inputs.

With dimensions of 92 x 92 x 26mm, the DPM9000 series is definitely a space-sav-er. Configuration and field calibration is done via any Windows based computer or tablet, running the user-friendly Smart-View® software, available for download on the Instrotech website.

The model DPM9000 transmitter offers complete three-way isolation between power supply, input and output.

In addition, the inputs are programmable to accept thermocouples of type J, K,

I N, R, S, T & W5, RTD’s of type Pt100 or Ni100, mV inputs up to 52mV, 0-20mA / 4-20mA inputs, volt inputs up to 10V, po-tentiometer inputs, and frequency inputs from NPN / PNP proximity switches.

Integral 2-wire transmitter power is sup-plied as standard with the units, as well as a precision reference for potentiometer inputs. The analogue output is program-mable for 0-20mA / 4-20mA or 0-10V out-puts.

On the other hand, power supply comes standard as 95-265V AC/DC as well as the RS-232 serial. The serial interface al-lows connections to remote computers and SCADA systems using Calog’s DIGI-bus protocol. The RS-485 option allows for up to 99 transmitters to be linked on the same bus.

The unit can also accept an ASCII based serial input signal for conversion to an analogue output signal. The linearizer fea-ture is standard and the user can select s-curve, sphere, square-root extraction or off (no linearization)

The model DPM9240 offers a 10 – 30 VDC isolated power supply instead of 95-265V AC/DC. Also available in the series are the Models DPM9004, 95 – 265 VAC/DC supply, and the DPM9244, 10 – 30 VDC supply, ideal for load cell applications. The model DPM9006 is a High Current (0 – 5A) or High Voltage (0 – 500 VAC/DC) input version. All units meet the European EMC directive 89/336/EEC & Low Voltage directive 73/23/EEC.

The DPM9000 series forms part of their extensive range of high quality process control instrumentation.

Miniature DIN-rail mount programmable transmitter on offer



stablished in 1982, in the heart of Gaborone, Botswana, Premier Clothing has evolved from its hum-ble beginnings as a garment manufacturing company into Botswana’s leading manufac-turer and supplier of uniforms, protective workwear, safety footwear, and a compre-hensive range of personal protective equip-ment (“PPE”).

In its 39-year history, Premier Clothing has grown from a staff complement of 8 people to employing over 400 Batswana, 97% of whom are women.

This 100% Botswana citizen-owned compa-ny has successfully partnered with custom-ers across Africa’s Mining, Agriculture, Oil & Gas, Energy, and Manufacturing & Logistics sectors. We develop product offerings that protect workers in the hazardous environ-ments presented by these industries whilst ensuring adherence to international occu-pational health and safety standards. The company continuously reviews the unique needs of workers in our region alongside global trends in order to make products of uncompromising high quality which are styl-ish, durable and comfortable whilst fulfilling their intended functional purpose. Premier Clothing holds ISO9001:2015 certification (the first company in Botswana to achieve this standard) and our products, which are listed with Botswana’s Department of Mines, are SABS and BOBS product certified.

We maintain the largest stock holding of workwear and PPE products in Botswana. This, coupled with our significant produc-tion capabilities, ensures delivery of orders on-time and within budget to our customers across the African continent.

Our superior service capabilities and offer-ings have been recognized by leading glob-al brands such as Delta Plus, DuPont, and

E Showa Gloves who have identified us as a key distribution partner in the Sub-Saharan African region.

Premier Clothing has a deep understanding of worker safety and protective equipment and strives to stay up to date with the lat-est technologies in order to meet constantly changing market needs. In addition to prod-uct manufacture and supply, Premier Cloth-ing offers customers other services such as branding, custom garment design, on-site stores and other vendor-managed inventory solutions, international delivery, and person-alized online procurement platforms .

Contact us today to discuss your uniform, workwear, safety footwear, and PPE needs.

Phone: (+267) 395 3324Fax: (+267) 395 3325Email: [email protected]: 22140 Nyamambisi Road, Gabo-rone West Industrial, Gaborone, Botswana

Zero Compromise on Safety

Premier Clothing (Pty) Ltd bringing World-Class Workwear and PPE Solutions to Botswana


MANUFACTURERS & SUPPLIERS OFWORKWEAR, UNIFORM, SAFETY FOOTWEAR AND PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT

QUALITY STRENGTH COMFORT

HELMETS AND BUMP CAPS EARMUFFS AND EAR PLUGS SAFETY GLASSES AND GOGGLES

PERFECT FIT RESPIRATORSSAFETY WORKWEAR GLOVES SAFETY BOOTS

PREMIER CLOTHINGPLOT 22140 NYAMAMBISI ROAD, G-WEST INDUSTRIAL, GABORONE

Phone: 3953324 | Fax: 3953325email: [email protected]

www.premier.co.bw

Protective Workwear . Personal Protective Equipment . Safety Footwear

BOS ISO 9001:2015 SANS434:2018


he success of Africa’s leading original equipment manufacturer (OEM) Kwatani in developing custom vibrating screens for a range of scalping, sizing, dewatering, drain and rinse and desliming applica-tions is built on decades of experience and practical research, the company’s Chief Executive Officer, Kim Schoepflin has revealed.

“We focus on the detail of every project, so that the screen performance suits the customer’s mined product and ex-pected output,” says Schoepflin. “This means working with all screen operating parameters like velocity, stroke, angle of stroke and deck inclination – as well as the appropriate screen media – to deliver results.”

A vital aspect of the engineering process is the testing of material in Kwatani’s lab-oratory, using wet or dry test screens and other equipment to outline options for the customer. This allows a differentiated ap-proach to each category of screening re-quired in mining and other sectors.

“Scalping is usually one of the first steps in the comminution process, which subjects screens to intense strain and wear,” she says. “We therefore design our scalping screens for high drop heights, large sizes of material and considerable throughput tonnages which can handle up to 7,000 tonnes of heavy run-of-mine material ore per hour.”

This means a very specific design and fabrication of deck beams, traverse

T beams and side plates, for instance, giv-ing maximum uptime and reliability. Us-ing its integrated engineering approach, Kwatani also designs the scalping panels in-house, so that they provide the best balance between impact resistance, du-rability and economy.

The company also has an enviable track record in custom grizzly feeders – for scalping run-of-mine material varying from fine particles to one-metre lump sizes – across heavy duty applications in commodities including gold, manganese and diamonds.

“Our feeders efficiently remove fines from ROM prior to secondary crushing, with a strong impact deck that minimises struc-tural shock,” she says. “The configuration must suit the application, with rubber or steel options available. Grizzly bars can also be fabricated or supplied in a cast manganese option for heavy duty appli-cations.”

Sizing is a broad category of screening, with wet or dry applications, where mines aim to achieve their required cut-off while maximising process plant efficiency, product quality and production tonnage. For wet applications, Kwatani offers static or dynamic water spray options on single, double or triple deck configurations de-pending on material – with either unbal-anced motors or exciter gearboxes for larger capacity applications.

“To protect screens’ deck components and side plates against wear, our options include a comprehensive selection of rub-

ber, polyurethane and ceramic for greater durability,” says Schoepflin. “The key is to ensure high load capacity, improved wear life and lower operating cost.”

Kwatani’s desliming screens effectively remove slimes (fine particles) from larger particles in mineral processing, and Scho-epflin says large multi-slope screens are a fashionable choice in this application.

“Our research and development has im-proved the efficiency of these multi-slope designs. We not only adjust the operating speed, but also the stroke and angle of stroke to optimise efficiency. We also align the number of slopes as well as change the angles of each slope to achieve better performance and life e,” she says. “For in-stance, we can design a more continuous curvature profile along the screen, with a higher number of slopes ensuring a grad-ual change of direction for material and optimise the material velocity to improve the overall screening performance.

She highlights Kwatani’s ability to reduce the transfer of a screen’s dynamic force into the building structure in which it is housed. This is a significant concern in any application, but especially where the infrastructure is aging.

“We design specialised counter frames for each custom screen, to minimise the transmission of forces into the support structure,” she says. “We have a range of screen mounting options – such as rubber buffers and torsional springs – to optimise this isolation effect.”

Robust screens custom-designed to suit the need

Regional News


Regional News

n a strategic move that will consolidate its resources and further enhance its service to customers, Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions has moved its South African headquarters to brand new, pur-pose-designed premises in Kempton Park near Johannesburg.

According to Simon Andrews, manag-ing director at Sandvik South Africa, the state-of-the-art Khomanani facility in-cludes three large workshop areas and office space on a 62,000 square metre site.

“As the Tsonga name Khomanani reflects – “hold each other together as a unit” – our new home unites us under one roof to collaborate, adapt and learn as we strive towards higher standards,” says Andrews. “The technical synergies of the workshops add to our commitment and capacity for local production that meets global quality requirements.”

Two of the workshops are dedicated to

I refurbishment and rebuilding of local equipment for the southern African region – mainly Botswana, Namibia and South Africa. This is where new standard-for-mat equipment is configured for local use – typically including features like safety systems, lighting, toe-hitches and decals to customer specifications.

“Our remanufacturing facility allows us to completely rebuild machines to OEM standards, including the sub-assembly refurbishments on transmissions, axles, differential and pump motors,” he says.

The first workshop has 23 bays for ma-chines to be refurbished, while the sec-ond is specially equipped with 100 tonne capacity flooring for the heavier tracked equipment such as underground contin-uous miners and surface drill rigs. The fit-for-purpose layout of the spacious site allows the heavy transport vehicles to loop in and out with equipment without needing to manoeuvre. improving work-flow and efficiency.

The third workshop focuses on local as-sembly of equipment for both South Afri-can as well as global markets to Sandvik’s well known high OEM standards.

“Our investment in local manufacturing capacity is an important vote of confi-dence in South Africa and its mining sec-tor,” says Andrews. “The quality of our work is also world class, allowing Sandvik to shift certain manufacturing duties from elsewhere in the world to our new facility.”

In line with Sandvik’s international guide-lines, the design of Khomanani prioritis-es energy and water efficiency. With a shared solar photovoltaic system and use of LED light bulbs, the building is expect-ed to achieve a 48 percent saving on en-ergy, also making greater use of natural light, roof insulation and ‘low-E’ coated glass. Water-efficient fixtures, fittings and systems, as well as rainwater harvesting, will improve water consumption levels by 42 percent.

Sandvik upgrades SA presence with new facilities HIGH

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Regional News

ower solutions company, Cummins has extended its regional distribution network in Southern Africa from six to twelve, as the company continues to expand its Dealer net-work model. According to the company, the development is consistent with its strategic vision of innovating for customers to power their success. Cummins is constantly looking for new ways to serve its customer base. Therefore, it has implemented the Dealer model in Angola, Mo-zambique and Zimbabwe, with six new Deal-ers appointed as a result. “We are committed to serving our customer base in the Southern African region through our new channel partners giving them the ca-pability to provide end-of-mile support,” saids Racheal Njoroge, MD Cummins Southern Af-rica. Cummins utilises this partnership model globally, with thousands of Dealers appointed around the world, “hence it is not something new we are introducing to the region.”

“We are thrilled to welcome all our new part-ners to the Cummins Distribution Business, which spans over 190 countries globally,” said Patrice Ndzana, General Manager: Cross Border Business Southern Africa. “The focus is to ensure that efficient and reli-able product supply and support is offered to our customers while extending our footprint, enabling territory coverage and capable net-works.”

Cummins’ main path to market is through its distribution channels, fully or wholly owned entities, joint venture partnerships, indepen-dent distributors, or dealers. “In terms of these three countries, we are now transitioning to that Dealer support model,” highlights Njoroge. From a footprint perspec-tive, Cummins is not reducing its coverage as a result. “It is very important for our cus-tomers to understand that we are not exiting these countries.” The benefits of appointing dealers com-pared to having a brick-and-mortar presence in-country is the added flexibility it affords Cummins in responding to customer require-ments. “These entities are highly entrepre-neurial and have a lot of inherent agility due to being involved with our customers at ground level,” adds Njoroge. “From a Cummins perspective, we are here to provide power solutions that empower our customers’ success.”

R All the new partners have been provided with the necessary training to familiarise them with Cummins’ processes and procedures. Parts availability and technical training are criti-cal elements of Cummins’ superior service, which the Dealer will continue to provide, in addition to escalated support being available from the Cummins technical team. “This allows for a smooth transition in terms of customer support,” stresses Njoroge. Two local Dealers have been appointed for each of the three countries to ensure that Cummins has an extensive and flexible net-work suited for local market requirements and will allow for future growth.Mining and power generation remain the biggest growth markets for Cummins in the region, followed by marine, oil and gas, construction and au-tomotive. “Such diversification has stood us in good stead in the Southern Africa region, where our strategy has been to continue to service our customers, despite any prevailing volatility or uncertainty in the region,” said Ndzana. The Southern Africa region is serviced by the Regional Distribution Centre (RDC) in Johan-nesburg, which oversees the supply chain for the entire Dealer network, from parts to filtra-tion and whole goods (engines and gensets). In addition, the Master Rebuild Centre is a critical pillar of Cummins’ 24/7 support and back-up operation for the mining industry, re-inforced by the training centre which ensures that all Cummins technicians are fully trained and up to date with the latest technology. In terms of the global disruption due to COVID-19, Ndzana says that Cummins is conducting extensive demand planning. “Essentially, we are investing ahead of de-mand to ensure we have adequate availabil-ity of parts and spares centrally at our RDC, ensuring satisfactory distribution to our dealer network. While supply chain issues remain a major challenge, we work around the clock to alleviate any constraints that we may en-counter.” Deren Moodley, Power Generation Dealer Manager, Cross Border Southern Africa, says that both the transition period and onboard-ing process have proven relatively seamless to date. “It is important to promote business continu-ity to retain the confidence of our customers. Moodley says that Mozambique and Angola in particular, are anticipated to be major mar-kets for power generation. “We adopt a cohesive, team-based approach

to any opportunities, which allows us to in-troduce our customers to other parts of the business such as our aftermarket segment,” he points out. “It is important to note that we continue to be part of the conversation with all stakeholders. We are an integral part of the success of our end users, our OEM partners and our dealers. The Dealer model in these countries will en-able everyone to be more successful at the end of the day,” said Njoroge. It also allows Cummins to leverage new tech-nology in the region as the continent keeps apace with the accelerating Fourth Industrial Revolution.

“Southern Africa remains key to the success of Cummins’ presence on the continent, with a significant part of our business in Africa is currently derived from this region. It is there-fore paramount for us to continue along this growth journey. It is also imperative to remind our customers that we would not have a pres-ence here if it were not for their valued busi-ness. The new model is not to detract from this support but will essentially go a long way to enabling a more agile and speedy service offering, and an appropriate value proposi-tion for our customers in Southern Africa. Our highly dependable engines are there to get the job done and to ensure maximum up-time,” concludes Njoroge. Meanwhile the new dealers appointed in the Southern Africa region are Namib Diesel CC and Máquínas e Tractores de Angola, Lda dba M.T.A in Angola, in Mozambique S A Tube & Honing (Pty) Ltd T/A TSM Engineering Socie-dade Unipessaol Limitada and Equator Equi-pamentos, SA. In Zimbabwe, Cummins has appointed Ap-plied Diesel & Power (Private) Limited and Machinery Exchange (Private) Limited.

Cummins expand footprint in Southern Africa region


omentum is picking up in demand levels from the commodities sector for companies like Weba Chute Systems, who has been able to quickly adapt to COVID-19 conditions.

According to Mark Baller, managing di-rector of Weba Chute Systems, the past financial year certainly had its challenges, but performance was better than expect-

M ed and, more importantly, the outlook for the future looks robust.

The company has embraced remote working and digital communication tech-nologies, ensuring that orders are fulfilled both locally and abroad.

“Among the exciting projects we have been able to pursue despite the pandem-ic is the supply of transfer chutes to a

Turkish gold mine expansion,” said Baller. “We already have about 40 chutes in this plant, and have manufactured and deliv-ered another batch recently – making up the bulk of chutes operating in this facil-ity.”

Work in the southern African region has forged ahead, spurred on by an ac-tive manganese sector in South Africa’s Northern Cape province, where Weba Chute Systems has been integrally in-volved for the past two decades. At one mine expansion, the company has sup-plied over a dozen of its customengi-neered chute systems.

There have also been sales into Zimba-bwe’s platinum sector, which shows con-siderable promise for further growth in the near future.

While the diamond industry has not been having an easy time, Weba Chute Sys-tems has continued its relationship with producers in Botswana, both in the main-tenance of equipment and in the occa-sional supply of new units.

Ongoing business continues to come from mining customers in the Democrat-ic Republic of Congo and Namibia. The company also runs an operation in Aus-tralia, where most activity is focused on retrofitting and maintenance, he says.

“Physically getting onto mine sites has been a challenge with the waves of Covid-19 infections leading to varying levels of travel and other restrictions,” he said.

“Our network of local agents and techni-cal partners around the world has been vital in helping us meet customer require-ments through this difficult time.”

Baller highlights that these partners are chosen on the strength of their technical expertise and facilities, as well as their lo-cal market knowledge and understanding of customer requirements.

To enhance their effectiveness in deliv-ering quality service, Weba Chute Sys-tems also provides intensive training to its agents on various aspects of its chute manufacture, installation and mainte-nance.

Weba defies COVID-19 pandemic, quickly adapts

Regional News


Dust-A-Side is an international company with a global presence spanning over 9 countries, boasting over 40 years of experience in Total Dust Management for the mining industry. Dust-A-Side tailors its offering for the requirements of each client and site, ensuring maximum benefit in dust reduction.

Our Total Dust Management services include fallout dust and road management for both opencast and underground mines as well as plant areas. Dust-A-Side has a diverse range of dust suppression products and systems to provide the most effective, efficient, and economical solution to control and manage airborne dust, in a range of applications such as, processing plants, conveyors transfer points, materials stockpiles, rail veneering, construction sites and more. With water being a scarce and precious commodity, our wet dust control solution is mainly aligned to dust suppression philosophy controlling dust by providing high pressure systems that consumes low volume water in the form of a mist / fog. The material used on our systems are of high-quality including fit for purpose pumps, piping and nozzles that deliver the desirable results with ease of maintenance.

Most mines experience high volumes of dust emissions on their secondary haul roads as water is usually employed as a means to control dust, this method has however proven to be ineffective as areas treated with water will only remain wet for a short period of time due to evaporation, after which water will need to be sprayed again and again. This water over-usage, increased labor and equipment component, coupled with intermittent dust emissions leads to an ineffective dust suppression solution, increased operating costs, and an unsafe working environment.

The use of one of our products, HydroSperse, to abate dust on haul roads has been proven to be beneficial as it has shown significant reduction in dust fallout levels and operational costs.

HydroSperse is a blend of lignosulphonate and compatible bituminous emulsion binders to produce a cost-effective solution for haul roads with partial sealing properties. The product can be mixed into the wearing course or applied as a spray on. The presence of bitumen emulsion in the formulation makes it less susceptible to leaching during rainy seasons. This product provides a better alternative to lignosulphonate.

As Dust-A-Side, we offer our clients a selection of products that are ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 accredited and designed to get the job done right

KEY BENEFITS OF USING HYDROSPERSE

- Reduced gravel loss, dust levels and road maintenance - Reduced fall out dust counts - Road trafficked immediately after application - Water savings of up to 80% - Easy to apply, no specialized equipment required - Safer and visible roads

BEFORE HYDROSPERSE TREATMENT AFTER TREATMENT WITH HYDROSPERSE

SYSTEM OFF

SYSTEM ON

CONTACT US Dust-A-Side Botswana (Pty) Ltd Plot

139 Finance Park, Kgale View, Gaborone

PO Box 401805, Gaborone

A TOTAL DUST MANAGEMENT SOLUTION FOR THE MINING INDUSTRY



he African Mining Market takes an in-depth look at businesses enabling the mining sector in Af-rica succeed. One such business with a long history of innovation in the mineral extraction process with grinding mills, is Loesche GmBH – a German engineering services company which has continued to put out the best grinding mills helping processing plants extract mineral ores with unmatched efficiency. To be consistent and ensure performance in the market, Loesche has a team of highly qualified and dedicat-ed staff working around the clock to ensure customer satisfaction is achieved.

Founded in Berlin, in 1906 as a family busi-ness – today Loesche commands a good market share around the world and is head-quartered in Düsseldorf, Germany. Loesche is currently in its third generation of fami-ly management. Having started initially in the coal business, Loesche continues to impress with its Vertical Roller Mills (VRM) technology currently operating over 3000 mills around the world in sectors such as coal, cement, industrial minerals, and ores.

Operational Capacity

Core to its operations, the company de-signs, manufactures and services vertical roller mills for grinding of coal, cement raw materials, granulated slag, industrial and mineral ores. Loesche employs more than 400 people in Germany and approxi-mately 850 people working for the compa-ny worldwide. Having developed a mill to grind coal primarily for the power industry, the mill was improved and developed over the next ninety years. Due to the versatility of the Loesche VRM, today almost all ap-plications can be addressed using the VRM technology. Loesche manufactures mills to suite the required application from 2 to 3 tons per hour all the way up to 1000 tons per hour.

Besides the company’s core business of Vertical roller mills, Loesche over the years has acquired other companies with equip-ment that complements the mills and this has led to the opening of new markets in the Cement, Power, Mining and Industrial mineral industries, including thermal appli-cations and automation.

Environmental Impact

Using VRM technology, Loesche has the least amount of impact on the environ-ment; the mill operates dry and uses ap-proximately 40 to 45% less power. There is less water use due to the dry application, less dust due to the negative pressure air-flows within the milling circuit and a smaller

T plant footprint, making the operation much smaller than conventional processes.

Loesche in Africa

Loesche South Africa handles the whole of Africa with regards to ores and mining. Loesche has just recently started a mas-sive marketing drive starting off with PDAC in Canada, which is going to be followed up with targeted trips to African Countries with projects pertaining to gold, copper, phosphates and iron ore to start with. Un-fortunately, due to the prevailing Covid-19 circumstances in 2020 this marketing cam-paign has been moved to 2021.

Loesche intends to intensify efforts into the mining industry in Africa through continu-ous identification of areas of rich deposits were the advantages of the Loesche mill can be brought to the fore to make min-ing of these deposits a proposition. These deposits are identified through an intense analysis of Africa mining opportunities that Loesche has done over the past two years. The targeted opportunities are coun-tries and areas were water and power are the main stumbling blocks for the mining house. Loesche is intensifying efforts to visit countries and meet with stakeholders were opportunities can be actualised. Cou-pled to this effort, Loesche will also have a visibility at major mining shows around the world were mining companies with pres-ence in Africa are exhibited. Loesche also has developed a live marketing plan which is updated as changes occur; this is to ensure that Loesche’ marketing is always focussed and moving in the right direction.

How Loesche VRM Works

Ore deposits today are characterized by significant variations in the mineralogy. The particle size is critical for a sufficient degree of mineral liberation to expose the mineral and the grindability of the ores, hence the beneficiation process and especially the comminution process must be flexible. To identify the best process route convention-al and new technologies have been inves-tigated by Loesche. Dry and wet grinding technologies were compared in terms of grinding performance and product quality. Through significant laboratory work done, improved flotation performances of dry ground products have led to the design of a completely new beneficiation process, which benefits the mine. Plant availability, lower wear rates, reagent usage, power and water used more efficiently, inevitably aiding to reduce operational expenses and increase profitability.

The Loesche VRM has adaptable grinding

processes, which are already proven to be the way forward in other mining indus-tries, allowing for variant mineral ores to be milled efficiently to the required particle size. The VRM, depending on the roller size, has a high reduction ratio; feed from 80mm to 140mm to a product of P80 at 75 µm in one pass, the mill is a closed circuit on its own having the comminution and classifi-cation of product in a single machine. The VRM produces a steeper particle size dis-tribution, reducing wastage in the form of ultra-fines and oversize. By this size distri-bution the VRM allows for a good floatation size range having more particles exposed to the floatation process.

Client Services and Contracts

To commence with a relationship, Loesche will set up an initial meeting with both par-ties to discuss a proposed project. There-after, Loesche will gather information per-taining to the project and the proposed ore and do a budget quotation. If the process and quotation is of interest to the client, then the next phase of the project kicks in, which involves sample grinding and recov-ery testing. If required Loesche can also at that point offer the client feasibility studies at very competitive rates to establish the viability of the project. Depending on how both parties feel, a non-disclosure contract will be signed prior to commencing design, supply, and installation.

Proof of Concept Phase

For companies wanting to establish that the VRM technology is the way forward, Loesche offers the mobile ore grinding plant (OGP) to run live tests on site. The OGP is a modular containerised comminution circuit laboratory where a Loesche milling spe-cialist will be on hand performing various grinding tests until the optimum solution is reached for downstream processes. Guar-antees for throughput, power consumption and wear element consumption rates can be determined during the same proof of concept phase.

Contact Us

Jonathan SmithSales & Marketing Manager

Tel: +27 11 032 9360Cell: +27 82 653 4274Email: [email protected]

Loesche Vertical Roller Mills114 Years of Grinding Innovation ORDINARY PROCESSES

HAVE JUST BECOME

BETTER✔ OPEX

✔ MINERAL RECOVERY

✔ MEDIA WEAR CONTROL

✔ MAINTENANCE COSTS

✔ WATER USAGE / WASTE

✔ REAGENT USAGE

Loesche has been striving to take better to the best in ore grinding over the past 50 years in 12 countries processing 10 different materials with 28 mills sold to date.

Contact Loesche South Africa to find out the advantages of the Vertical Roller Mill technology in your application.

Telephone +27 11 032 9360E-Mail [email protected]

www.loesche.com

ORDINARY PROCESSES HAVE JUST BECOME

BETTER✔ OPEX

✔ MINERAL RECOVERY

✔ MEDIA WEAR CONTROL

✔ MAINTENANCE COSTS

✔ WATER USAGE / WASTE

✔ REAGENT USAGE

Loesche has been striving to take better to the best in ore grinding over the past 50 years in 12 countries processing 10 different materials with 28 mills sold to date.

Contact Loesche South Africa to find out the advantages of the Vertical Roller Mill technology in your application.

Telephone +27 11 032 9360E-Mail [email protected]

www.loesche.com


s agricultural machine construction improves, the need for reliable coupling of lines on agricultural applications increases. There are risks and maintenance personnel, have to be extremely careful when connecting hoses and attachments to hydraulically powered tractors, implements and harvest-ers. There is no substitute for the use of a reliable, sturdy and efficient quick release couplings when connecting or disconnect-ing hydraulic lines.

Faster Couplings confirms;” The agricultur-al sector is the leading field of applications for quick release couplings”. This is espe-

A cially so for hydraulic lines and attachments regularly changed or switched for different tasks. They facilitate quick and safe con-nection, even with pressurised hydraulic connections. Certain ranges can be con-nected under residual pressure, minimising hydraulic lock when connecting the respec-tive lines. Often the environment is dusty with dirt, and other particles contaminating the hydraulic system and affecting operat-ing efficiency.

With innovation driving towards greater modularity and flexibility, the capability to easily and quickly connect to and detach several differing attachments from a sin-

gle machine has become a prerequisite. Faster Couplings has designed their range according to acceptable international stan-dards that meet strict inter-changeability specifications and performance standards.

Hydrasales as the African distributor for Faster couplings, carries a wide and exten-sive selection of the Faster Coupling range. Hydrasales experience and deep under-standing of the resilient and well-construct-ed range of agricultural couplings and the Faster range of MultiFaster connections, positions the company to provide solutions or help with project management with Fast-er Couplings support and backup. Harvest-ing applications are accommodated within selected products.

These proven and tested products allow lines to connect the hydraulic circuit to rear attachments and to power them. Oil flows from the female couplings on the tractor to the male coupling on the attachment and returns per the application’s design. These are interchangeable according to ISO 7241 part A. they are well constructed and sig-nificant features include sleeve retraction,

Avoid fatalities with RELIABLE & SAFE Quick Release Couplings and Faster

Multi Faster System

Feature: Hydraulics


Designed to improve working life with increased latching balls Effective sealing on connectionSelected ranges connect under pressureFlat face-pin and ball type for agriculture, mobile, hydraulic and industrial applications

www.hydrasale.co.za

Johannesburg: 011 392 3736Cape Town: 021 552 0462Durban: 031 579 1479

L e a d e r s i n H y d r a u l i c F i l t r a t i o n&A c c e s s o r i e s

QUALITY QUICK RELEASECOUPLING SOLUTIONS!

EXCELLENCE IS OUR LEGACY

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push pull features and allow for a high flow.

Luca Robustelli, Faster’s Export manager advises; “ The retractable couplings have a poppet valve shut-off system. The 3CPV series enable the female couplings de-signed for panel mounting installation and connection to flexible hoses. They can be connected to male couplings under resid-ual pressure.”

The 3CFPV series can be screwed directly into valve ports or rigid pipes. These Push-Pull female couplings are connectible with males under residual pressure. The more sophisticated 6DNPV series are also Push-Pull female couplings for rigid mounting connectable with male and female under pressure and can be disconnected under pressure with little effort. The high flow se-ries, accommodate a maximum flow rate of 250 l/min.

Faster Couplings has a lovely range of flat face couplings for power beyond the rear attachments. The sizes of these flat face couplings vary in accordance with class 1 to 3 of ISO 17567 standard. The pow-er beyond the attachments, allow tractors to regulate oil flow and optimize machine performance. These flat-face couplings are specifically designed for “Powerbeyond applications.” This series is interchange-able according to ISO 16028. Hydrasales Agriculture product specialist, Lucas Thela says; “the couplings are of high quality with

safety built into the design and reducing the possibilities of system leaks.”

The Multi Faster range to connect multiple lines allowing for an effortless connection even with residual pressure in the system. The MultiFaster comes with a complete range of high-performing flat face quick-re-lease couplings to comply with the stan-dard. It was important that some of these products could be connected between pressurised hydraulic lines and are inter-changeable.

The Flat Face couplings are suitable for such applications due to the specific shape, their easy to clean faces, strong connection with little or no spillage and coating that is very resistant to corrosion.

A unique development tool is the Mult-Faster Configurator on the Faster Coupling website enabling engineers to design and develop their very own spec of the Multi-Faster. Check it out at https://www.faster-couplings.com/multifaster/configurator

Thela says, “There are many variations in the Multi faster range to cater for the needs of the agricultural sector. They have a dif-ferent combination of elements, such as the numbers of lines, coupling sizes, lever and electrical connectors. The number of lines vary according to the functions performed by the tractor or harvesters’ attachment”. The design is compact with 4 lines and

multi-installation options.

The unit’s safety features prevent acciden-tal disconnections and/or partial unscrew-ing

of the main sleeve, due to mechanical vi-bration. A further benefit is the capability to connect the hydraulic lines within the sys-tem, even under residual pressure.

There is also a trend towards hydraulic multi-connection systems that are com-pletely integrated with the standard me-chanical locking system of the attachment on the vehicle.

Diagnosis and maintenance

Faster has hydraulic connection solutions for diagnosis and maintenance applica-tions, which are interchangeable worldwide (according to ISO 15171-1). The compa-ny’s diagnostic quick-release couplings (DF series) have been specifically designed to make maintenance of hydraulic systems and checking of pressure within the circuit is easier, quicker and more effective.

Plan effectively and incorporate these cost-effective solutions! A full range of couplings and seal kits are available to suit customer needs. Email [email protected] or call Hydrasales sales team on +27 11 392 3736/7. Wifi calling is possible to chat on Whats app


Main Wording:

Tlou Energy Limited wishes a Happy Independence Day to H.E. Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi and all Batswana.

Have a wonderful holiday.

Pula Pula

And in smaller text on the advert can you add:

Tlou Energy Limited – Developing clean power solutions for Botswana including solar generation, gas-fired power and hydrogen.

Tlou Energy Limited – Developing clean power solutions for Botswana including solar generation, gas-fired power and hydrogen.

TLOU ENERGY LIMITED

… bringing Electricity, Employment and a

bright future for Botswana.

Victoria House, 132 Independence Avenue, GaboroneTel: +267 316 0857 Email: [email protected] www.tlouenergy.com


lou Energy Limited is an innovative clean energy focused Company providing sustainable and secure solutions to help power the fu-ture of Botswana and southern Africa. List-ed on the Australian Securities Exchange, London’s AIM market and the Botswana Stock Exchange, the company is led by a diverse and experienced board, manage-ment and advisory team who are driving the development of gas-to-power, solar energy and hydrogen projects.

As a licenced Power Generator Tlou have full environmental approvals in place to de-velop a 20MW solar project. It was the first company to be awarded Coal Bed Methane Power Purchase Agreements with the Bo-tswana Power Corporation, and aims to be-come Botswana’s first gas-to-power sup-plier. The Company has multiple projects under development and following the suc-cessful implementation Tlou will evaluate the longer-term prospects and execution of significantly larger electricity projects in Bo-tswana and neighbouring African countries.

The Company is not only implementing its plans for clean energy projects, it is also committed to developing community projects in Botswana adding real value to peoples’ lives in regions with sparse ser-vices and where few opportunities exist. Tlou aims to assist communities to become self-sustaining, increase business pros-pects, build schools, get access to medical professionals and create employment.

T Lesedi Power ProjectThe most advanced project in the Compa-ny’s pipeline is the Lesedi Power Project which once finalised will generate 10MW of gas-fired power. Recent progress has seen the company reach significant project mile-stones including;

• Sustained gas flows

• Signing a Power Purchase Agreement with the Botswana Power Corporation

• Securing an electricity generation licence from the Botswana Energy Regulatory Authority • Awarding contracts for the construction of overhead powerlines and substations to connect Lesedi to the BPC grid

The project is on track to proceed with con-struction of the grid connection once the final Purchase Power Agreement is negoti-ated with the Botswana Power Corporation and project finance secured. As a fully car-bon neutral project, the 10MW project has the potential for further rapid expansion and greater capacity to provide a sustain-able and secure power solution to regional communities.

Mamba Project Area

Additional projects to Lesedi are operating concurrently, with the Company continu-ing to progress its exploration and eval-uation work at the Mamba Project Area.

The Mamba project sits adjacent to Lesedi over an area approximately 4,500km2 and provides Tlou with flexibility and optional-ity in the event of it becoming a gas field development. It’s envisioned that the area will be developed as a separate project from Lesedi with the potential to increase Tlou’s gas-fired, solar power and hydrogen production.

The Mamba project area is the closest proj-ect area to the Orapa power plant, which provides power to one of the largest dia-mond mines in the world, the Orapa di-amond mine. Tlou has made a submis-sion on the tender for supply and delivery of natural gas to the Orapa 90MW plant after the Botswana Power Corporation issued the tender earlier in the year.

Boomslang Project Area

The most recent project to receive environ-mental approval is the Boomslang Project Area also located adjacent to Lesedi. Un-der the approved Environmental Impact Statement, the Company can proceed with further development work including seismic and geomagnetic surveys and drilling of core holes and pilot wells. Suc-cessful exploration and development of the Boomslang area will allow Tlou to expand beyond the Lesedi area.

Hydrogen as a clean energy source

Following recent global developments sur-

Tlou Energy Limited Feature: Renewable Energy


rounding the production and use of hydro-gen fuel, the Company has expanded its clean energy strategy to include hydrogen production. As part of the Company’s strat-egy, Tlou signed into a binding Heads of Agreement (HOA) with Synergen Met Pty Ltd, a leading hydrogen developer applying unique intellectual property in the form of plasma technology to convert methane to hydrogen. The HOA involves the construc-tion and commissioning of a hydrogen and solid carbon prototype to be installed at the Lesedi Project.

Synergen Met have built a first-generation working prototype in Australia, that has produced hydrogen and NaCN (Sodium Cyanide) for commercial applications. De-sign work has now commenced to modi-fy the unit to produce hydrogen and solid carbon using Tlou’s existing gas flows and approvals. The prototype will be construct-ed and tested in Queensland prior to trans-portation to Tlou’s Lesedi Project in 2022.

The innovative process involves Tlou’s methane being fed into the plant to then be converted via a plasma torch into two prod-ucts, hydrogen and solid carbon. Impor-tantly no greenhouse gas is emitted during the process once the electricity required to power the plasma torch is suppled via solar power.

The hydrogen can then be compressed and stored for use as a clean vehicle fuel as well as to produce electricity for the Lesedi proj-ect.

The solid black carbon will create an ad-ditional revenue stream for Tlou with black carbon and graphite already having well es-tablished markets to sell into. Black carbon is used as a tyre input (wear resistance and pigment), while graphite is the single largest input to lithium (and many other) batteries. Design modifications are intended to be introduced over time to increase the val-

ue of the solid carbon products produced through the process.

Leveraging the Company’s gas and solar developments already established at Lese-di, the success of the prototype will expand the commercial offtake opportunities avail-able to the Company. The post-prototype objective is to grow the hydrogen segment of the Company’s clean energy business via a Joint Venture with Synergen Met through-out the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region and potentially beyond. The HOA also opens the door for Tlou’s potential involvement with the Syner-gen Met’s IPO scheduled for later this year. A successful hydrogen strategy for Tlou is envisaged to:

• Create a potentially new market for the Company’s gas

• Utilise Tlou’s existing gas flow which is currently being flared

• Diversify Tlou’s saleable products and customer base

• Result in huge expansion potential beyond a successful prototype

It is exciting to see the contribution that Tlou has already made to the region, and with its projects continuing to develop it looks set to continue its work towards pro-viding sustainable and secure energy solu-tions to Botswana and southern Africa.


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Bilfinger Intervalve Africa (Pty) Ltd. is one of the enterprises in Bilfinger Power Africa (Pty) Ltd., the South African

subsidiary of German based Bilfinger SE. For years, we have been adding value to the power, mining, paper pulping

and broader industry through comprehensive valve supply, valve maintenance and heat treatment solutions.

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