Nkomati Mine pledges commitment to 49M initiative

Algie Kiewitz and Mandla Nxumalo

As one of the responsible operators in the mining industry, Nkomati Mine, on 26 June 2013, became the latest company to pledge its support for the 49M campaign. Nkomati Mine, a joint venture between African Rainbow Minerals and Norilsk Nickel Africa is a nickel mine consisting of both open pit and underground operations located between Machadodorp and Badplaas in the Mpumalanga Province. The region, well known for its high quality of life and numerous tourist attractions, is a haven for trout fishing and wildlife reserves.

Putting core values into practice

Nkomati Mine recently completed a major expansion programme and will become one of the largest open pit operations in southern Africa with a life of mine of approximately 20 years. The mine aims for high standards in everything it does, hence this pledge to support the 49M initiative. This initiative is going to add value to the vision and mission of the mine which states that "We Care, We Grow, We Excel."

Speaking at the pledge-signing ceremony, Mandla Nxumalo, general manager of Nkomati Mine, said the mine was fully behind the 49M initiative. "As a responsible mine, one of our core values is to care for our environment and using energy efficiently is a huge part of that," he said.

"To be true to that commitment of taking care of the environment, Nkomati is currently busy with an Environmental Impact Assessment for a 1MWAC photovoltaic plant. This plant will assist the mine to generate a small portion of its electricity requirement using natural resources. This plant will reduce the amount of energy drawn from the Eskom grid, which is in line with the country's vision of increasing independent generation of power," added Nxumalo.

Nxumalo said Nkomati Mine has committed itself to reducing its current energy consumption through a number of initiatives such as the construction of the Process Plants which have been designed in a manner that makes them highly energy efficient. Some of the energy-saving initiatives include replacing geysers with heat pumps in all change houses, installing LED lights in all overland conveyor belts and stopping some of our operations like the crusher during peak consumption periods to alleviate the energy demand on the Eskom system.

Creating awareness to lighten the load

Commending Nkomati Mine for partnering with 49M, Algie Kiewitz, general manager - Top Customer Front Office at Eskom said: "With the mining industry being one of the biggest consumers of electricity, we are delighted that Nkomati Mine will be implementing measures that will contribute to the reduction of energy consumption within its business to help alleviate the load on our country's power system.

"We are happy that they have associated themselves with 49M at a time when every intervention is needed given the energy challenges of our time. The 49M campaign is all about working together because we believe that together, we have the power to make a difference," added Kiewitz.

Nxumalo said Nkomati Mine also plans to spread the word not only to the employees within the mine, but to the communities surrounding it as well. "Operating within communities bestows a responsibility on Nkomati Mine to create awareness about a number of important issues, and using energy efficiently is one of the most important issues at the moment. With assistance from the media and other organisations, communities are becoming increasingly aware of the need to use energy wisely. Nkomati Mine will add value to these initiatives by embarking on campaigns and events to keep communities aware," concluded Nxumalo.

For more information, go to www.49m.co.za.