The outlook for mining project houses in 2012 is promising as commodity projects remain strong, reports mining and minerals project house TWP CEO Digby Glover.

However, the year does not come with- out risk. “The European debt crisis could derail things and reduce China’s growth, which would impact on our market,” he explains.

Despite this challenge, Glover says project opportunities outside South Africa are increasing beyond mining operations to include necessities like infrastructure and energy supply.

He predicts that project houses will grow over the next few years, both organi- cally and through acquisitions. Further, there are also a number of smaller players in the industry and consolidation is expected to take place.

Meanwhile, the global mining industry is experiencing significant growth, with skills shortages proving a challenge, while South Africa is also struggling to attract sufficient investment to grow its mining industry.

“Our production levels are shrinking at the moment, as minerals are becoming increasingly difficult to mine,” notes Glover.

Although South Africa hosts large deposits, miners have to dig deeper to retrieve minerals as the life of the deposit decreases. Also, long-term uncertainty owing to political issues, such as talk of nationalisation, is reducing the world’s appetite to invest in South Africa, he adds.

This challenge can be overcome by creating a perception of stability through ensuring that legislation and other guidelines are clear and robust.

“The worst thing you can do to a potential investment is create the perception of an uncertain business environment. If companies are unsure about the longer-term viability of a business venture, they will invest in another area of the world where the situation appears less risky,” Glover explains.

TWP’s Services
Glover reports that the company’s work in Africa and South America has defi- nitely increased over the past year, while its work in Australia is also looking strong. As a result, TWP will have to grow to cater for the work at hand and to meet its aims of becoming a significant global player in the engineering, procurement and construction management market, he says.

Further, the company provides a diverse range of services that include multidisciplinary engineering, project management and environmental and quality management.

TWP uses this diversity to balance its workload, as well as to deal more effectively with projects in Africa, Glover says.

Infrastructure is critical in ensuring that necessary supplies and products are transported to and from mines, which is why TWP is focused on expanding its infrastructure division. The company will also be focusing on its energy division to provide the mines with power, he adds.

Projects
TWP is currently working on a number of major projects, such as platinum miner Impala Platinum’s Impala No 17 shaft; platinum-group metals producer Royal Bafokeng Platinum’s Styldrift shaft, which the company is busy sinking; and platinum exploration and development company Wesizwe Platinum’s Frischgewaagd-Ledig shaft, where sinking will start shortly.

Further, the company is also equipping platinum major Anglo American Platinum’s Thembelani shaft, near Rustenburg, and work is nearing completion at Vedanta Resources’ Konkola Copper Mines Konkola No 4 shaft, in Zambia.

“The Venetia diamond mine project in Limpopo, owned by diamond miner De Beers, will also turn out to be a major project in the future,” says Glover. TWP is currently completing the feasibility stage of the project.

On the process side, he states that the company’s work at gold producer Gold Fields’ South Deep plant is progressing well, and the project should be completed later this year. TWP is also working on a number of studies for various mining companies.

Project Delivery
Ensuring quality and timely project delivery is an ongoing battle in a skills-constrained growth environment, says Glover. Therefore, more effort has to be made to ensure that the correct systems are in place to facilitate training, he adds.

Training has become a major focus and TWP spends a large amount on training yearly. The company also engages in knowledge sharing across projects to overcome this challenge.

“TWP is currently working on some 15 shaft projects and these project teams learn from each other,” says Glover. For sharing to take place, it is important that the correct standards, systems and processes are in place.

Meanwhile, the company is also focusing on improving the technical assurance aspect of its business. TWP is ISO 9001 and 18000, as well as OSHAS 14000, accredited, which is the baseline for providing high-quality project delivery, Glover concludes.

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