Vedanta Zinc International, part of Vedanta Resources, has broken ground at the Gamsberg project, one of the world’s largest undeveloped zinc deposits.
This commences Vedanta’s plans to turn the Southern African region into one of the most important suppliers of zinc in the world and to bring far-reaching socio-economic and environmental benefits to the region.
As part of its vision for an integrated zinc business in Southern Africa, Vedanta previously announced the approval of a US$782 million investment over 3 years to develop an open pit zinc mine in Gamsberg, South Africa and to convert the Skorpion Zinc Refinery in Namibia.
The majority of the investment, approximately US$630 million, will go towards developing the open pit zinc mine, concentrator plant and associated infrastructure at Gamsberg. The balance will be used to convert the refinery at Skorpion Zinc in Rosh Pinah, Namibia, enabling it to refine zinc sulphide concentrates from the Gamsberg Mine into special, high grade zinc metal.
Vedanta CEO Tom Albanese said: "Vedanta’s commitment to stimulating economic growth in the region through sustainable investments in exploration and to preserving the unique ecosystem in the project area.
"We are very excited to have reached this stage of the project. We believe that this region has the highest concentration of zinc on the African continent and that we can develop an integrated zinc and lead complex here, anchored around Gamsberg and the Skorpion Refinery, which will boost economic growth and create sustainable employment. Vedanta believes strongly in the philosophy of sustainable development and we commit to protecting the unique ecosystem around Gamsberg for future generations."
The first phase of the Gamsberg open pit mine, which is located near the town of Aggeneys in South Africa’s Northern Cape Province, is expected to have a life of mine of approximately 13 years.
Development has commenced, with pre-stripping and surface work to access the ore body underway and ore production on track to begin in early 2018. The mine will partially replace output from VZI’s Lisheen operation in Ireland, which will close at the end of November this year.
Over the last few months VZI has focussed on building a world-class project team to drive work at Gamsberg. It has also re-phased the Gamsberg project plan in line with Vedanta’s focus on disciplined capital allocation.
VZI CEO Deshnee Naidoo said: "We’re developing Gamsberg in a phased manner using cash generated by the VZI operations, while remaining focussed on sustainable cost reduction at both Gamsberg and Skorpion.
Ms Naidoo emphasised the important role that the Gamsberg mine will play in the economic ecosystem of the region. "The Gamsberg project will help us to create future opportunities and to ensure that our operations create value for the communities in the region. It is expected to generate approximately 500 permanent jobs, with the potential to create a further 1,500 temporary jobs during the construction phase," she said.
VZI has a clear approach to meet the sustainable development challenge of balancing the social and economic benefits of developing the Gamsberg project with the need to protect and preserve the unique arid zone biodiversity in the area. "We have carried out robust public consultations and engagements with local farmers, communities, employees and other stakeholders through every stage of the project. The Gamsberg mine is located in an ecologically sensitive biodiversity area and we have designed this mine to avoid adverse impact where possible. Where impacts are unavoidable we commit to remedy or offset the impact; for example we have translocated many of the succulent plants from the mining area to a nursery, for use in concurrent rehabilitation at a later stage." Naidoo explained.