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14
MODERN MINING
February 2015
MINING News
Coal of Africa takes a step forward at Vele
Coal of Africa Limited (CoAL) reports
that the South African Department
of Environmental Affairs (DEA) has
recently granted an amendment of the
Environmental Authorisation in terms of
the National Environmental Management
Act (NEMA) and the Environmental Impact
Assessment Regulations (2010) for its Vele
colliery in Limpopo Province.
This amendment is the first of several
required to be granted in relation to the
planned modifications to Vele’s processing
plant, and is a further step toward achiev-
ing full regulatory compliance required to
begin construction.
The company has also sought a renewal
of the Integrated Water Use Licence and
its amendment. The current IWUL expires
in March 2016, and the company felt it
was prudent to renew this licence prior to
committing further shareholder funds to
the project. The approval of the renewal is
expected at the end of Q2 CY 2015.
“We will continue to engage with regu-
latory authorities and other stakeholders
at Vele, as we continue to set a new bench-
mark for the co-existence between mining,
agriculture and heritage land uses within
the area in which we operate,” comments
David Brown, CoAL’s CEO. “This period also
gives the company further time to assess
the outlook for coal prices. Discussions con-
tinue with appropriate end users regarding
off-take agreements.”
First Quantum Minerals (FQM), listed on
the TSX and LSE, produced 427 655 tonnes
of copper in the year ended 31 December
2014 compared to 412 281 tonnes in 2013
and 45 879 (contained) tonnes of nickel
compared to 47 066 tonnes in 2013. Gold
production at 229 813 ounces was down
on the 2013 figure of 248 078 ounces.
“Overall our operations performed well
in 2014 recording the highest annual cop-
per production in the company’s history,”
comments Philip Pascal, FQM’s CEO and
Record production of copper by First Quantum in 2014
Chairman.“Limited local smelter capacity in
Zambia persisted and affected Kansanshi’s
performance and sales; and a structural
failure in an atmospheric leach tank at
Ravensthorpe suspended operations there
in mid-December. The spill from the failure
was contained within the plant’s protective
area, there were no environmental effects
or injuries and we anticipate the mine will
be back in production shortly.”
He adds that 2015 will be an important
year for First Quantum. “Our smelter in
The new FQM smelter at Kansanshi in Zambia showing the smelter reagents building and the oxygen plant (photo: FQM).
Zambia is being commissioned with first
anodes poured during December 2014.
First concentrate was also successfully
produced at Sentinel during the fourth
quarter 2014. The smelter’s ramp up will
influence the rate of production build-up
of our new Sentinel mine. This will also
influence, as more acid becomes available,
the level and mix of operations and unit
cost of production at Kansanshi.
“The financial and commodity mar-
kets have started 2015 with high volatility
on concerns about the global economy,
demand for natural resources and compa-
nies’ liquidity positions,” he continues. “As
a result, our share price, along with others
in the sector, has been materially affected.
While we have high confidence in the mid
to long-term outlook for copper, we are
mindful of the current concerns. As always,
we pay close attention to the company’s
financial position to make sure there is suf-
ficient flexibility despite having an active
project development pipeline.
“At Cobre Panama, we have substantially
reduced the planned capital expenditure
for 2015 to US$600 million without com-
promising the project’s progress. We also
maintain strong and supportive relation-
ships with our principal banks that have
worked with us throughout the develop-
ment of the company and through several
economic and commodity cycles.”