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  1. HACE 1 H

    Middle East crisis underlining relevance of supply strength of South Africa's Omnia

    This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. At this time of crisis in the Middle East, the supply chain strength of South Africa's Omnia is of major relevance from a mining perspective. The Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed Omnia has a strong grasp of ammonia-based emulsion and explosives inputs as well as key detonator capability, which adds value to mines by providing appropriate fragmentation and ensures that mines have the inputs to blast when they need them, which is so relevant amid what is being faced today – Middle East supply chain disruption. "Our teams are very busy moving things around due to the situation in the Middle East, to make sure that our farmers and our mines have strong supply chains to allow them to plant and to blast," Omnia CEO Seelan Gobalsamy highlighted in an interview with Engineering News & Mining Weekly in Johannesburg on Wednesday, March 25. (Also watch attached Creamer Media video.) From an explosives and mining perspective, Omnia expresses the belief that it has the strongest supply chain of ammonia-based emulsion and explosives inputs and that its detonator capability and technology add value through appropriate fragmentation, and enable mines to blast and have the inputs to blast when needed – "and that's so relevant in what the world is facing today, with the crisis in the Middle East". Omnia, which is strongly rooted in South Africa, has 200 of its own ammonia rail tankers that transport as well as an ammonia storage capability. It is a 70-year-old business that began in agriculture, and over the years moved into explosives, and chemicals, and today finds itself making a profound difference in the mining and agriculture markets. Over the last five years, Omnia's mining explosives business has grown by 40% plus to the point of last year overtaking the agriculture business. Omnia is a strong provider of food security and a deeply embedded provider of mining explosives across the African continent and across the world with operations in 23 countries. "Our North Star is to be a very strong explosives provider across the world, not just in South Africa, and that's why we're investing in detonator plants, emulsion plants across the world, with partners. Our strong underpin is a business with values and a business with strategies and products that are doing what is right for the environment, not just for our generation, so that when our kids, when our grandkids, when their kids and grandkids walk the earth, it can be a better place than what it was when we walked the earth. Food can be healthier, there can be fewer chemicals being used, less water being used, and overall, the environment and the earth being better," Gobalsamy projected. The company has a market capitalisation of just under R15-billion, zero debt and has been able to expand and recruit. "We invest in a lot of young people. We hire 1% of our workforce a year as young graduates. We give them a job for a year, and then we expect them to find something in Omnia or elsewhere. "A few years ago, we also decided to give everyone in our company shares. Everybody, no matter how senior or junior, got 300 shares, and we redid that programme a year later. "Our belief is, if you do good, if you run a good business, the profit should follow. We've got a very noble purpose in enhancing life, and we believe everyone must share in that gain," Gobalsamy opined. "Omnia was started by two very entrepreneurial individuals. They started, initially trading lime, and eventually moved into fertiliser. "If I walk through the generations, in 1980 the company listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Since then, the company has continued to build large plants and if I talk through some of those milestones, we have the largest nitric acid plants in the Southern Afric...

    11 min

  2. HACE 1 DÍA

    More PGM potential for South Africa as Palladium Center returns with major new insight

    This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. One sensed at last year's PGMs Industry Day that Nornickel's Palladium Center would be back with much more growth opportunities for South Africa's platinum group metals (PGMs). That impression turned out to be beyond correct when Dmitry Izotov, the director of Nornickel's Palladium Center, outlined the centre's strategy to develop new palladium applications beyond the automotive sector at this year's high-spirited PGMs Industry Day, where hydrogen-enabling PGM horizons also resurfaced amid Northam Platinum's promising China findings. Speaking during a panel discussion at the PGMs Industry Day on quantifying PGMs demand in automotive and non-automotive applications, Izotov focused on three potential major long-term growth areas where the Palladium Center was concentrating development efforts. The first of these centred on solar energy, which he hailed as "the main alternative source of energy, the future source of energy". Putting forward his contentions that current silicon solar cells have reached a maximum efficiency of around 30% and describing their thickness as rendering them relatively costly to produce, Izotov reported a transitioning to tandem PV panels combining silicon with perovskite materials. "The perovskite has a wider fill factor, so it can better catch the light during sunset and sunrise," Izotov contended. On that basis, PV panels that combine silicon with perovskite materials uplift efficiency, while their thinness cuts costs. Of the two types of palladium-based products that are being developed by his company for this sector, the first is an additive to the perovskite active layer that has already demonstrated a 15% efficiency boost in testing, and the second is a tandem cell configuration with three palladium layers designed to address lifetime issues by leveraging palladium's proven barrier function characteristics for microelectronics applications. "We really think it is a big opportunity for palladium, because currently in China the largest solar panel producers do not have this technology ready," Izotov reported. "By the end of the year we will have this first prototype and we expect to distribute these technologies to the big Chinese market." The projected new demand for palladium is 0.5-million ounces to one-million ounces a year from around 2030 to 2035. MICROELECTRONICS Microelectronics, where gold dominates with nine-million ounces of annual demand, was highlighted as a second potential major long-term growth area. "It's still nine-million ounces, so it's like palladium total demand. For our PGM metals, it's a huge opportunity and a huge market," he noted. With data centres for AI driving demand for next-generation printed circuit boards (PCBs) and high gold prices creating cost pressures, two product streams are being developed, one being new gold-palladium layer combinations that reduce gold content while increasing palladium, and the other using palladium-copper bonding wires to replace gold-based applications. Izotov expressed the belief that while there was room for more gold reduction, gold would remain a perfect metal in terms of electroconductivity and corrosion resistance, but in smaller volumes. The projected new demand is for at least one-million ounces a year, again from around 2030 to 2035. LITHIUM-SULPHUR BATTERIES The third potential major long-term growth area where the Palladium Center is concentrating development efforts is in lithium-sulphur battery technology, which it sees as offering advantages over lithium-ion batteries in several fields of application. This is because lithium sulphur is cheaper, lighter and has a higher density than lithium-ion. On the negative side it has a short lifespan, which stems from formation of soluble polysulfides ...

    10 min

  3. HACE 1 DÍA

    More steps being taken to advance promising South African uranium/gold endowment

    This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. Uranium development company Neo Energy Metals stated in a London Stock Exchange announcement on Tuesday, March 24, that it is negotiating an agreement with Sibanye-Stillwater to secure unrestricted access to the New Beisa Complex uranium and gold site. Also provided by Neo, headed by CEO Theo Botoulas, was additional information on the development of the New Beisa project and the Henkries Complex mining right application. The New Beisa project aims to restart uranium and gold mining operations at the former Beatrix 4 shaft while a Henkies Complex mining right application to South Africa's Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources (DMPR) is expected to be approved by December 2026 – a timeline in accordance with the contractual agreement reached with Desert Star Uranium. The initiatives span South Africa's Free State and Northern Cape provinces. Access to the New Beisa Complex, Neo stated, would allow certain preparatory work to begin while a Section 11 approval process is under way. Section 11 approval involves mandatory written consent from the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy for the transfer of mining and prospecting rights in terms of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act. Security contractors already appointed are reportedly liaising directly with Sibanye-Stillwater's management amid mineral rights specialists working with Sibanye-Stillwater in parallel to support the implementation of the Section 11 process. Unnamed quantity surveyors, project managers and contractors are reportedly appointing entities with requisite mining engineering, process engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, environmental, health and safety, and tailings management expertise needed to achieve the targeted medium-term production timeline date of December 2027. Sibanye-Stillwater Section 11 and Section 102 applications have, Neo reported, been submitted to the DMPR, with approvals required to be completed by June 6. A Section 102 application is a formal request to amend, vary, or extend existing permissions, including prospecting rights and mining rights. In accordance with the contractual process, the second Section 11, being Neo's own application, would be submitted following approval of Sibanye-Stillwater's Section 11 application process, which the agreement stipulates must be completed by December 6. To support this, unnamed professional mineral rights consultants had been appointed to ensure that Neo's documentation for the Section 11 application was properly prepared for immediate submission. While the Section 11 process is under way, executive management is finalising a Neo-Sibanye contracting agreement, which is intended to provide immediate site access to begin certain on-site work as well as analyses to enable Neo to meet the targeted December 2027 medium-term production timeline. As part of the implementation assessment, Neo is also updating resource statements to reflect the improved operating and price environment. NEW EXECUTIVE APPOINTMENTS A new head governance and legal has been appointed by Neo to support compliance with regulatory and legislative requirements, the establishment of clear policies, and assistance with South Africa and UK secretarial functions. Two line managers have been appointed, one for the Northern Cape Henkries Complex and another for the Free State New Beisa Complex, and notification was given that the management team would continue to be strengthened and expanded as the company developed. Incorporated are three new subsidiary companies to complete the implementation assessment at New Beisa, and assist with efficient administration of Henkries. May is the proposed month for Neo's upcoming AGM in London, where shareholders will be...

    7 min

  4. HACE 2 DÍAS

    South Africa's Thungela prioritises safety, well-being of endangered Dubai employees

    This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. As a result of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, South Africa's coal company Thungela is prioritising the safety and well-being of its 16 employees in Dubai, where the Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed coal mining and marketing company has its international marketing base. The ongoing conflict in the Middle East is "a matter of profound concern", Thungela CEO Moses Madondo emphasised during a media conference following the company's release of its 2025 financial results, which saw 17%-lower group revenue of R29.6-billion, in a year of strong operational performance but within the context of a challenging thermal coal market environment. "The ongoing conflict in the Middle East following the US-Israeli actions involving Iran has raised new levels of uncertainty and has caused concern, not only for the global economy but for peace, safety and security in the region. We continue to provide support to our colleagues in Dubai, prioritising their safety and well-being," Madondo reiterated on Monday, March 23. In response to Mining Weekly, Madondo explained that Thungela's 16 Dubai-based international marketing employees have been permitted to leave Dubai and operate remotely. "The 16 people that work out of our Dubai business originate from a variety of countries, including Singapore and even Finland. "While all of them are still essentially working through the Dubai office, they're working from home, whether that may be in Finland," Thungela CFO Deon Smith explained. Only three Dubai nationals remain with opportunities being sought to ensure their safety. Meanwhile, product flow remains unaffected, and the business remains in a healthy shape from a cash generation perspective amid producing currencies strengthening owing to the US dollar weakening. Operating free cash flow for 2025 was R396-million and net cash as at December 31 was R5.1-billion. A final cash dividend of R2 a share has been declared, taking the full-year dividend to R4 a share. In the form of both dividends and share buyback, some 700-million is the total returned to shareholders in 2025, reflecting continued board confidence in the ongoing generation of returns. Current coal prices point to greater cash generation than in the second half of last year, with cash now being generated on its way towards being highlighted in the 2026 interim results. Thungela, which means to ignite, has operations in South Africa and Australia. In South Africa, a strong performance at Mafube and the ramp-up at Annea Colliery supported export saleable production of 13.9-million tonnes and in Australia, the overcoming of challenging geological conditions resulted in export saleable production of four-million tonnes. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation of R1.2-billion were generated and operational cash flow hit the R2.4-billion mark. Regarding the availability of fuel for the company and Transnet during the supply chain disruption, Smith pointed out that it was not only fuel that was of concern to mining and transport companies but also a number of other energy inputs into its business, all of which were being closely monitored. "Our estimates at the moment are that there should be sufficient fuel storage for the bulk users, and we have engaged our suppliers to give us confidence and comfort they are able to withstand the current supply crunch. "It might come at a slightly incremental cost, but that cost for our business, given that we spend about 6% of all of our operational expenditure on fuel energy-related costs, isn't going to be as pronounced as what the tailwind is on our revenue," said Smith. Thungela has considerable storage across its mines and its key suppliers. The potential price impact of holding higher st...

    6 min

  5. HACE 3 DÍAS

    Martin Creamer talks about: Mooi Plaats solar PV project, Qala Shallows and gold optimism

    Mining Weekly Editor Martin Creamer discusses the Mooi Plaats solar photovoltaic project that has begun commercial operation in the Northern Cape; the first gold pour from Qala Shallows; optimism about “great" opportunities for gold mine development in South Africa.

    6 min

  6. HACE 6 DÍAS

    Canada's manganese demo plant in Joburg gets extra funding from South Africa's IDC

    This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. Toronto-listed Canadian company Giyani Metals has received an additional R29.9-million from South Africa's State-owned Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) for its high-purity manganese sulphate monohydrate (HPMSM) demonstration plant in Johannesburg. HPMSM is a refined precursor material used in the production of cathode powders for lithium-ion batteries deployed in electric vehicles (EVs) and energy storage systems (ESSs). "We would like to thank the IDC for being such a supportive partner," Giyani interim executive chairperson Nigel Robinson stated in a media release to Mining Weekly on Friday, March 20. The extra R29.2-million has increased the total loan facility to R264.3-million and the maximum combined loan facility under the IDC facilities to R329.9-million, Giyani outlined. Although Giyani does not intend to recommence demonstration plant operation, the completion deadline date of the demonstration plant has been extended to June 30. The continued operation of the demonstration plant has confirmed demonstration plant scale reagent consumption and contributed to operating knowledge of the crystallisers and purge management at a large scale. This data will be incorporated into a definitive feasibility study (DFS) on the project. As a result, the DFS is now expected to be completed during the second quarter of this year. The HPMSM enabled by the IDC's additional funding is being prepared for analysis by interested offtakers. "We look forward to announcing these results to the market as soon as they become available, which will enable Giyani to ramp up towards securing offtake agreements and advance project financing discussions," Robinson added. As the developer of the K.Hill battery-grade manganese project in neighbouring Botswana, where a commercial-scale HPMSM site is planned, Giyani is focused on becoming the preferred producer of sustainable, low-carbon high-purity battery-grade EV and ESS manganese through its bespoke hydrometallurgical process. Under the terms of the addendum to its existing convertible loan facility agreements with the IDC, additional security over certain project assets and information has been granted in favour of the IDC. Giyani has undertaken and satisfied the provision of funding not less than R40-million to its subsidiaries to support completion of its DFS and the IDC will have the right to nominate one director to the board of Giyani if it holds more than 10% of the issued and outstanding common shares of the company. As reported by Mining Weekly last year, high-purity manganese oxide produced from the Johannesburg demonstration plant met Phase 1 qualification standards set by US battery technology company Charge CCCV, which enabled the advance to Phase 2 of Charge CCCV's digital DNA Supply Chain Qualification Programme. A preliminary economic assessment (PEA) published in July 2023 evaluates a base case K.Hill scenario that considers a single production line with a feed capacity of 200 000 t/y to process high-purity manganese oxide material to produce HPMSM over a 57-year life-of-project, which includes a 49-year life-of-mine plus eight years of stockpile rehandling. The PEA also evaluates an upside case, which assumes the construction of an additional production line from year 5 of operations to increase total feed capacity to 400 000 t/y, reducing the life-of-project to 31 years. Included in the project is a crushing facility with a run-of-mine pad and stockpiles, a three-stage crushing plant and a crushed material bin. It also includes a processing area, including grinding, extraction, purification, fluoride polishing, crystallisation, product storage and handling; water treatment, reagent storage and tails handling; a sulphur dioxide plant; plant...

    5 min

  7. HACE 6 DÍAS

    Bullish hydrogen sentiment re-surfaces at vibrant PGMs Industry Day

    This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. Bullish hydrogen sentiment re-surfaced at the PGMs Industry Day on Thursday, March 19. "I'm actually pretty bullish on hydrogen," said Sibanye-Stillwater CEO Dr Richard Stewart at the event covered by Mining Weekly. "I think hydrogen's got the inside track," said Implats CEO Nico Muller. This followed PGMs Industry Day chairperson Bernard Swanepoel putting this question to Minerals Council South Africa president Paul Dunne, who is also the CEO of Northam Platinum, which recently visited China where the company experienced fast-growing use of hydrogen to power trucks. Swanepoel: Your road to Damascus, you went to China, you came back believing in hydrogen. Dunne: Our belief in hydrogen comes about from a number of revelations that we've seen on our travels in China. I do think it's important to travel to see what's happening in important nodes of activity in China. Northern China, in particular, is very relevant here. You can't mine coal in China just for thermal purposes these days. It must be beneficiated or improved, and, a la Sasol, splitting the hydrocarbon is taking place. When you do that, you release grey hydrogen as a by-product for free, effectively, and certainly that's happening. We visited one very large coking coal company, I think possibly the largest coking coal company in the world, or of that order. They have 20 000 trucks already powered by grey hydrogen, with an ambition in the one single company to move to over 200 000 trucks. In this case, they're using a Toyota fuel cell, which has 100 g of platinum per cell, and it's completely commercialised and industrialised. In some ways, it's happened below the radar. It's not been entirely visible to us. One of our colleagues, Hurbey Geldenhuys, had the temerity on a subsequent visit to Shanghai to meet the head of the SOE, a PhD, Chinese lady, and Hurbey remarked that we'd been hearing about green hydrogen now for many decades and, frankly, we don't believe you. It was very bad of him to say that in a Chinese setting, but he meant it well. The lady professor then stood up and lectured him in Chinese for half an hour through the translator, who was a young student and the message was very, very clear. It's in [China's] Five-Year Plan. It's supported by local government, it's supported by provincial government, it's supported by national government, it will happen. So, we have the view that electrolysers and green hydrogen will proceed from here, and on the other side of the hydrogen equation, it's already happening through grey hydrogen. FIVE-YEAR PLAN Stewart remarked that what had reinforced his belief in hydrogen was the Chinese Five-Year Plan. "Green energy's in there, and green hydrogen is specifically mentioned and there's a strategy that can give real legs to it. We've seen China do it with solar panels. They've done it in EVs. They're going to do it in hydrogen. That, to me, is a real indication that this is now seriously going to get legs," said Stewart. Much mention was also made of the new multi-year research and development partnership that Valterra Platinum and Sibanye-Stillwater have concluded with Johnson Matthey and to accelerate the next generation of PGM-enabled technologies. "To secure the future of PGM demand, we must actively create it – through partnership, shared investment, and a wide portfolio approach that continually brings new applications into the pipeline," Valterra Platinum, headed by CEO Craig Miller – who also addressed the PGMs Industry Day event – outlined in a recent LinkedIn post. "By combining Johnson Matthey's industrial technology leadership with a growing base of aligned partner capital, we can fast-track impactful new PGM applications and help shape the demand of tomorrow," the Valterra not...

    6 min

  8. HACE 6 DÍAS

    Positive signs of upcoming mining law reform, PGMs Industry Day hears

    This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. Minerals Council South Africa is seeing positive signals from government as it awaits the second draft of South Africa's proposed Mineral Resources Development Bill. "It's our expectation that our concerns will be addressed and – for now – we're satisfied that we're being heard," Minerals Council South Africa president Paul Dunne said in his opening address to the PGMs Industry Day, which is chaired by mining luminary Bernard Swanepoel. Dunne emphasised the criticality of mining companies and investors having a pragmatic, stable regulatory environment that attracted investment rather than discouraged it by onerous, globally uncompetitive policy. "It's our considered view that the proposed Mineral Resources Development Bill in its original form does not encourage or sustain the growth and investment that the mining industry needs to realise its full potential to create employment, to stimulate the economy and to fulfil its social mandate," Dunne said at the March 19 event covered by Mining Weekly. South Africa's platinum group metals (PGM) industry, he said, had made significant contributions towards addressing historical injustices, even in the throes of difficult operating and regulatory environments, and some incredibly demanding market conditions. "Minister Gwede Mantashe has often said on public platforms that the mining industry is the most transformed sector in our economy, and we agree," said Dunne. South Africa's mining sector spends R3-billion-plus a year on statutory social and labour plan projects and commitments, building houses, schools, roads, bridges, clinics, and water and sanitation infrastructure. Pointing out that Minerals Council member companies accounted for 80% of the world's mined PGMs, Dunne expressed the belief that PGM mining industry growth and national economic growth were inextricably interlinked. "We can't have one without the other and we need a stable, predictable regulatory environment that promotes both. "A PGM industry that attracts local and international capital for exploration, the development of new mines and the expansion of existing operations will create more employment, attract new entrants, and multiply all the benefits that the mining industry delivers for the country." South Africa's PGM industry employs 170 000 of the mining sector's 470 000-strong workforce in "relatively well-paid jobs", which come with "a very high economic multiplier effect". "If we consider extended family dependency together with our direct supplier base, collectively the mining sector supports around 3.5-million people. Clearly this is a very important sector of society and needs to be understood in the context of a developing nation. "In many cases, mining operations take place in remote parts of the country and are the only source of jobs and income. Often, mining companies step in to provide services and infrastructure that failing or dysfunctional municipal governments are not delivering. "Mining matters to our economy. It accounts for 6.2% of GDP and R816-billion worth of exported mineral products, representing 45% of total exports. "Corporate tax payments amounted to R31-billion, contributing 10% of total corporate tax collection. Mining companies make up 35% of the JSE Top 40 by market capitalisation. "It costs at least R20-billion and ten years to build a decent-sized mine. Very few mining companies have that type of money lying around on the balance sheet. Mining companies need to operate in an environment that allows them to attract capital in the form of debt or equity to fund projects. "However, providers of capital will not put their money into risky jurisdictions where returns are threatened by regulatory uncertainty, crime and corruption and failing infrastr...

    6 min
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