Belfast implementation project, South Africa

16th August 2019 By: Sheila Barradas - Creamer Media Research Coordinator & Senior Deputy Editor

Belfast implementation project, South Africa

Name of the Project
Belfast implementation project (BIP).

Location
The project is located about 10 km south-west of the town of Belfast, in Mpumalanga, South Africa.

Project Owner/s
Exxaro Resources.

Project Description
The BIP contains measured mineral resources of 83-million tonnes.

The first phase of the proposed project entails the development of a new greenfield openpit coal mine, including a coal handling and preparation plant, supporting infrastructure and services.

The project will have a 17-year life-of-mine and will produce an estimated 2.7-million tonnes of A-grade thermal coal a year.

Potential Job Creation
The project will create about 6 000 direct and indirect jobs during construction and operation over its mine life.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.

Capital Expenditure
Exxaro plans to spend R3.3-billion on building the mine.

Planned Start /End Date
Ramp-up is expected in 2019.

Latest Developments
First coal from BIP was produced in March 2019 and first product sales took place in May 2019.

Completion of the beneficiation plant is projected to remain ahead of schedule, with commissioning and ramp up taking place in the fourth quarter of 2019.

Key Contractors and Suppliers
DRA (detailed engineering design, fabrication, construction and commissioning of a 500 t/h coal processing project, including a two-stage dense-medium beneficiation plant, a fine-coal dense-medium section for fines treatment and a system for the filtration of slimes, as well as associated product handling systems); Arup (detailed engineering design and construction monitoring of all related infrastructure and services); Concor Infrastructure (construction of all related infrastructure and services); Zest Weg (construction of bulk electrical works); Tyris Construction (construction of all buildings); MMD Africa (detailed engineering design, fabrication, construction and commissioning of the run-of-mine sizing station, including primary and secondary sizers); Epoch Resources (detailed engineering design and construction monitoring of the discard disposal facility); Jodan Construction (construction of the discard disposal facility); GroundTruth (detailed engineering design and construction monitoring of wetland rehabilitation interventions); RCE (detailed engineering design and construction monitoring of the new railway siding); Jodan Construction (construction of the new railway siding); Aurecon (detailed engineering design and construction monitoring of the small-scale agricultural village, which forms part of the project’s resettlement programme for the relocation of households directly affected by future mining operations) and Motheo Construction (construction of the small-scale agricultural village).

On Budget and on Time?
The project is well within budget and schedule.

Contact Details for Project Information
Exxaro Resources GM Mpumalanga area Bram van Stelten, email bram.vanstelten@exxaro.com.
Exxaro Resources executive head: strategy and stakeholder engagement Mzila Mthenjane, tel +27 12 307 7393 or email investorrelations@exxaro.com.