Khoemacau Copper Mining has contracted Barminco for underground mining and services for the Zone 5 Mine in Botswana for a span of 5 years
Image: Barminco will provide 5year underground mining services for Zone 5 Mine. Photo: Courtesy of mikael116 from Pixabay.
Diversified mining services company Ausdrill announced that its subsidiary, Barminco, a hard-rock underground mining company, has won an underground mining services contract from Khoemacau Copper Mining.
The Zone 5 mine is a new, large, and long-life mine development project located in the highly-prospective Kalahari copper belt in Botswana.
Ausdrill Managing Director Mark Norwell said: “We are very pleased to have been awarded this significant contract in Botswana, a highly desirable country to do business in Africa. This contract award is further endorsement of our acquisition of Barminco and its strong contribution to our international growth strategy.”
Barminco to provide services for the mine for 5 years
Under the contract, Barminco would provide 5-year underground mining services for Khoemacau’s Zone 5 Mine in Botswana, for approximately £436m.
The scope of services includes mine development, establishment of underground mine infrastructure, diamond drilling and mine production at an initial rate of 3.6 million tonnes per annum of copper ore with multiple expansion opportunities.
Barminco chief executive officer Paul Muller said: “In addition to excellent safety, quality and productivity outcomes at Zone 5, success will also be measured by the creation of a highly skilled local workforce through effective training, skills transfer and leading technology programs.”
Subject to closing of the Khoemacau Project funding, Barminco is expected to start the mining services in December 2019.
Cupric Canyon Capital and Khoemacau Chief Executive Officer Johan Ferreira said: “We are delighted to partner with Barminco at Zone 5 to create a safe, large-scale, highly productive and fully mechanised mine, delivering high quality employment and sustainable skills development and employment outcomes for Botswana citizens.”
In January 2019, Braminco secured a three-year contract to provide underground mining services at the Rosemont Gold Project, located 130kms north of Laverton in the Goldfields region of Western Australia.
Australian gold production and exploration company Regis Resources awarded the contract for approximately £88m.