Mutlibillion-rand mining deal – Citizen

The chairman of manganese mining company Tshipi ê Ntle, Saki Macozoma, says he hopes a mining contract with preferred supplier Aveng Moolmans will be sealed next week.

The official word from the company is: “The preferred supplier is Aveng Moolmans and all being well the contract will be signed next week.”

Macozoma told CitiBusiness at a sod-turning ceremony at the site in the Northern Cape, this will enable contractors to commence with removing the over-burden on the R1,5 billion development. Stakeholders are hoping to reach the high quality manganese by January or February 2012.

“In the meantime, we are also building the infrastructure around here, building a railway loop in order to be able to load the stuff, a crusher, so all of that work is being done on this very site. We’re aiming to get our first manganese ore up in April and June (2012).”

He said the mine hoped to produce around 2,4 million tons of high quality manganese ore per year for the next 60 years.

“But of course you need market flexibility. Almost all of it is for export because we want to fit it into the Chinese market, as one of our partners, they are going to smelter also”.