South Africa
Coal is the major source of energy in South Africa. Production from existing mines is limited and there is expected to be an imbalance between supply and demand over the next ten years. The Waterberg coal field contains approximately 40% of South Africa’s remaining coal resource and is considered to be the main source of coal in the future.
Waterberg Region
We were attracted to the Waterberg region because of the accessibility and quality of its coal.
The Boikarabelo coal seam is between 20 and 30 metres below the surface, enabling low-cost, open-cut mining. The seam is between 120 and 130 metres thick, with zones of varying quality thermal and soft coking coal.
We are already well advanced with planning the mine and have designed the coal handling and preparation plant.
The shallow overburden means that a small fleet of equipment can produce a lot of coal. Costs will be relatively low, and multiple mining benches will provide the flexibility to extract the coal quality required.
Maps and Diagrams
Map: Waterberg Coal Field South Africa
Map: Ownership Structure
Map: Waterberg Land Acquisition
Map: Boikarabelo Coal Seam
Map: Low Cost Open Cut Mining
Map: Coal Handling & Preparation Plant
Map: Rail Accessibility
Map: Resource Generation Assets
Map: Production & Coal SpecificationImages
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DSC01025Boikarabelo
Our Boikarabelo tenements are only 40 kilometres by road from an existing rail system that provides access to domestic markets and to the ports of Maputo, Richards Bay and Durban for export shipments. These three ports all have potential to expand their coal capacity, and a proposed new railway to Walvis Bay in Namibia, if constructed, would also offer access to export markets.
The land is flat and easy to access, and we have bought 8,397 hectares which will enable development of the mine to proceed quickly when we receive funding and mining rights.