Zvishavane based platinum mine Mimosa says it is set to develop a new shaft to extend its lifespan by 10 more years.
Addressing the media during a mine tour yesterday, Mimosa General Manager Steve Ndiyamba said they need to invest US$100 million for the project.
“We need to invest about US$100 million into North Hill to get another 12 years.
“If we explore and investigate the other ore bodies and there is value, we may get another 10 years. So we are looking at about 30 years. We have drilled North Hill and we know what is there.
“We know what is in South Hill — that is what (will take us to) 22 years. But beyond that we still have to do a lot more work.
“ But before we do that we need to spend money on North Hill to be able to take our lifespan from 10 years to 22 years,” he added.
Mimosa is jointly owned by Sibanye-Stillwater and Impala Platinum Holdings Limited (Implats) on a 50:50 basis.
Mimosa is a shallow, underground mining operation located in the Wedza sub-chamber of the Great Dyke of Zimbabwe.
The Wedza sub-chamber is the southernmost of four chambers of the Great Dyke, hosting the economic MSZ from which the Platinum Group Metals and base metals are mined.
The ore body is accessed via two shafts, the Wedza shaft and the Mtshingwe shaft. The Wedza shaft has been extensively mined; the Mtshingwe shaft is at the developmental stage.
Bord and pillar mining takes place less than 200 metres below surface. Ore is processed at a concentrator located on site, at a rate of approximately 227,000 tonnes per month.
Concentrate is trucked to South Africa for smelting and refining at Implats’ facilities. Tailings are disposed of at a storage facility on site.
Mimosa holds a mining lease over an area of 6,594 hectares and related exclusive mining rights therein for nickel, copper, cobalt, gold, silica, chromite and PGMs.
