TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Africa-focused Ivanhoe Mines has employed more than 650 men and women at its flagship Platreef project, on South Africa’s Bushveld Igneous Complex’s northern limb, in Limpopo, with residents of Mokopane holding more than 500  jobs, representing 78% of the total workforce.

After starting site preparations for the $1.7-billion project last month, following the activation of a mining right by the Department of Mineral Resources, work was marred by several incidents in which certain locals even clashed with police.

Ivanhoe said it would not be held hostage by “known trouble-makers” bent on disrupting the construction of its Platreef project to advance their own “self-serving agendas”.

Normal operations had been successfully re-established at the site and plant, earthmoving and mining equipment were returned to the site last week after a six-month hiatus.

Ivanplats, a subsidiary of Ivanhoe Mines, owns 64% of the Platreef project and is directing all mine development work.

CEO Lars-Eric Johansson explained that about 200 of the total workforce were Ivanplats employees, about 80% of whom were from the Mokopane area. Among the nine external contractors that presently provided the balance of the workforce at Platreef, the current proportion of workers drawn from the local area ranged between 70% and 100%.

"The resumption of work is enabling Ivanplats and our contractors to fulfil our commitment to create jobs and give priority to local residents when recruiting to fill available positions. We are making a meaningful contribution to the relief of the area's acute level of unemployment and we appreciate the interest that has been expressed by supportive residents of our neighbouring communities who see themselves as beneficiaries and partners in our broad-based black-economic empowerment structure that has been designed to help advance the realisation of their aspirations,” Johansson said.

Ivanhoe Mines noted that the main priority at the mine site was to complete excavating the box cut to establish access to build the large concrete surface collar for Shaft No 1, which would be the initial production shaft in the first phase of Platreef's development. The collar would also serve as a base that would anchor the headframe structure and house the ventilation opening.

Shaft No 1, with an internal diameter of 7.25 m and a yearly hoisting capacity of 2.5-million tonnes, was expected to reach a total depth of 975 m in 2018. In 2017, it would be used to collect a mineralised bulk sample for metallurgical testing from the 800 m level of the Platreef project's Flatreef deposit.

Work on the shaft and related mining-plant components was being conducted within the 20 ha, fenced construction compound that had been designed to enhance worksite safety, reduce visual impact on residential areas and contribute to the effectiveness of environmental management programmes.

Upgrading work on the stage and hoist winders for the sinking phase of Shaft No 1 had been completed and steel manufacture for the sinking stage and headgear had started. Design and engineering work was proceeding on the main components for Shaft No 2, the 10-m-diameter main production shaft that would be capable of hoisting six-million tonnes a year and would also be fitted with a 150-person equipment cage.

Ivanhoe expected to receive the results of a prefeasibility study (PFS) later this month that would expand on the Phase 1 development scenario outlined in the preliminary economic assessment published in March.

The company had also contracted Whittle Consulting, of Melbourne, Australia, to conduct an optimisation study using the Platreef PFS production schedules, revenues and costs as a base. The Whittle study's main focus would be on increasing cash flow by enhanced mine scheduling techniques, stope cut-off optimisation and by matching hoisting and milling capacities through the planned, subsequent expansion phases. The study's recommendations were intended to provide guidance for the feasibility study, which was scheduled to start in the second quarter of 2015.