Modern Mining September 2015

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MODERN MINING

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September 2015

feature

COUNTRY FOCUS –

NAMIBIA

he Namibian mining sector has

been no more immune to the

global downturn than the mining

industries in most other countries

and – according to the Chamber

of Mines of Namibia – contracted in 2014 by

4,6 %. During 2014 one mine – the

Okorusu

fluorspar mine

– suspended operations (main-

ly as a result of the orebody being exhausted)

while other mines scaled back their opera-

tions. Balancing this, however, has been the

commissioning of three new mines over the

past year, namely the Otjikoto gold mine, the

Tschudi copper mine and the Sendelingsdrif

diamond mine.

Looking at Namibia’s mining industry by

commodity, it is probably appropriate to start

with diamonds, as the discovery of the first

stone in 1908 set off a diamond rush along

Namibia’s southern coast and put the coun-

try on the map as a mining destination. Today

diamond mining accounts for roughly half

the value of Namibia’s mining industry by

revenue with virtually all production in the

hands of Namdeb, a descendant of Sir Ernest

Oppenheimer’s Consolidated Diamond Mines

of South West Africa (CDM), which was formed

in 1920. CDM morphed into

Namdeb

, a joint

venture between De Beers and the Namibian

government, in 1994. Its main land-based

operations are in Oranjemund although the

company also operates satellite mines near

Lüderitz and along the Orange River.

In 2014 Namdeb Diamond Corp, respon-

sible for mining Namdeb Holding’s land and

shallow water offshore concessions, produced

While Namibia is not as dependent on mining as some

other Southern African countries such as Botswana and

Zambia, mining is nevertheless an important sector of the

country’s economy, accounting for around 13 % of GDP and

providing more than 17 000 people with employment. Once

heavily reliant on diamonds, the industry has become more

diverse in recent years, with uranium in particular already

contributing strongly to the economy – with an even bigger

contribution still to come. In fact, it has been estimated that

the new Husab uraniummine, once in full production, will

contribute 6 % of the country’s GDP. In this article,

Modern

Mining’s

Arthur Tassell gives an overview of the Namibian

industry and its prospects.

Namibia’s mining sector

becomes more diversified

The new Tschudi copper

mine and processing plant

in northern Namibia is

currently ramping up to an

annual capacity of 17 000

tonnes of copper (photo:

LogiMan).