Kalagadi Manganese Mine

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This is the mineral lease for the Kalagadi Manganese Mine which covers the following 3 farms from north to south: Umtu, Olivepan, and Gama.

The development of the Kalagadi project started with the injection by Daphne Mashile Nkosi, Executive Chairperson: Kalahari Resources, of R12 million into the project to complete the pre-feasibility study.

Kalahari Resources is a majority black-owned company with women occupying leading positions. Its equity is held by nine companies and a number of business personalities and mining and marketing professionals.

Kalahari Resources was formed in 2001 as a result of new mining legislation, which gave historically disadvantaged individuals an opportunity to participate in the main stream economy. It has brought together women groups and entrepreneurs with broad-based participants and beneficiaries. In the process, a truly South African company, which is committed to transforming society and the future, was created.

Kalahari Resources was established with the intention of gaining access to manganese resources in the Kalahari Manganese Basin. This was achieved in 2005 when the company was granted a license to prospect for manganese in the Kalahari Basin, specifically on the farms Gama, Olivepan and Umtu.

Industrial Development Corporation

After the completion of the manganese exploration work, the Industrial Development Corporation acquired 20% of the project for R60 million.

Kalagadi Manganese (Pty) Ltd

Kalagadi Manganese (Pty) Ltd (80% Kalahari Resources, 20% IDC) was thus established in January 2006 as a vehicle to complete the Bankable Feasibility Study for the project.

ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel producer, has recently acquired a 50% interest in the project for $432.5 million, and will form an operating company with Kalagadi Manganese for the implementation of the project. ArcelorMittal will enter into an off take agreement with the new company to take at least 50% of the production of both sinter and alloy. Please visit the ArcelorMittal web site for more information on the ArcelorMittal company

Kalagadi Manganese Project Timeline

The sinking of the Shaft on the Umtu Farm commenced in March 2008.

The Mine

The mine will be accessed by two vertical shafts. The main shaft will be 9m in diameter and will intersect the ore body at 250m. This shaft will be used for men and machinery access as well as for inlet ventilation and the hoisting of ore. The secondary shaft of 6m diameter will be for return ventilation and will serve as an emergency outlet.

The mine will be designed to produce 3 million tons of run of mine ore per annum. The mining method to be used will be room and pillar and will be completely mechanized using trackless machines. The stopes will be 8m in width by 6m in height and 6m by 6m pillars for the support of the roof will be left in situ. The ore drilled, then blasted and loaded and hauled to either one of two mobile crushing stations in which the ore will be reduced in size to 1 50mm. The sized ore will be conveyed by belt from the crushing stations the shaft silos, from where it will be hoisted to surface.

The Ore Preparation Plant

Ore from the shaft will be directed to the run of mine stockpile from where it will be routed to the secondary and tertiary crushing and screening circuits. In the section of the plant the size of the ore will be reduced to minus 6mm, which is the size required for the sinter process.

The Sinter Plant

The need for the sinter plant stems from the fact that the carbonate ore from the Kalahari Manganese Feild tends to break up on heating as the carbon dioxide contained in the calcium and magnesium carbonates is driven from the ore. When ore of this type is fed to a conventional furnace there is invariably a build-up of fine material within the furnace chamber which then blocks the path of the escaping gas. The build-up of gas can result in explosions from time to time which can cause damage to equipment above the furnace - and in severe cases even loss of life. In the sintering process, by contrast, the calcination reaction occurs in the fine ore within the sinter bed and the gases are allowed to escape in a controlled manner. The fine ore is also agglomerated by the heat generated by the fuel in the sinter bed. The use of sinter in the furnace results in a far superior operation of these units.

The sinter plant will have an output of 2.4 million tons per annum. The difference between this tonnage and the 3 million tons run of mine ore is essentially the C02 that is driven from the ore, which upgrades the solid content of the ore. The sinter plant will be a traveling grate type machine which will produce a sinter which is 46% manganese. Other essential units will be a raw material mixer, a hot spiked roll crusher, a product crushing and screening plant and a dust extraction plant capable of performing to ISO 14000 environmental standards. A coke milling facility will also be required. Mine infrastructure The main item of infrastructure will be the construction of a 132 kV power line from Eskom's Ferrum substation to the mine site over a distance of 75 km.

Mine Infrastructure

The main item of infrastructure will be the construction of a 132 kV power line from Eskom's Ferrum substation to the mine site over a distance of 75 km.

Logistics

A railway spur will be built from the load out station at the plant to join the Transnet railway line to Port Elizabeth near to the Hotazel Station. The sinter will be railed to Coega in Block Load Trains consisting of 104 wagons and will be delivered either to the Smelter or to the Port. The smelter will consume approximately 700 000 tons of the sinter per annum, leaving 1.7 million tons per annum for export.

Smelter

The smelter will be constructed in Zone 6 of the Industrial Development Zone at Coega and will have a capacity of 320 000 tons of High Carbon Ferromanganese per annum. This plant will initially be equipped with three 63 MVA or four 48 MVA closed submerged arc electric furnaces which will have the capability of producing both high carbon ferromanganese and silico manganese. The facility will be designed to be expandable.

Reference for information:
www.kalahariresources.co.za/history.htm
www.kalahariresources.co.za/project.htm

www.miningweekly.com/article/11bn-kalagadi-manganese-mi...