Mining A uranium mine
Mining A uranium mine has changed hands for R500-million. Neo Energy Metals, which describes itself as the only company listed on the London Stock Exchange Main Board providing investors with exclusive access to the uranium sector, has purchased the Beatrix 4 shaft, pictured, from Sibanye- Stillwater for R500-million in cash and shares. The transaction includes the Beisa uranium project and stipulates that royalties will be paid to Sibanye-Stillwater on all uranium sold. Rates will depend on the spot uranium price, with a maximum set at /lb. Neo Energy will be responsible for any shaft rehabilitation and environmental issues related to the Beatrix 4 shaft. Sibanye-Stillwater announced in 2024 that it would continue to run the gold-producing shafts at Beatrix, which is located between Welkom and Theunissen in the Lejweleputswa District Municipality, but a close watch would be kept on profitability because it is a mature mine. The 422 employees and 100 contractors at Beatrix make up a small proportion of Sibanye-Stillwater’s South African workforce of about 70 000, a figure which is 14% lower than it was in 2022. Sibanye-Stillwater has restructured its South African business with its local Platinum Group Metals (PGM) and gold mines being placed under one regional operational structure. Historically, the north-west part of the province was famous for gold, with Harmony Gold’s Bambanani mine forming an essential part of Welkom’s economy for many years. The plan to close Bambanani in 2024 was moved forward because of concerns about safety. However, there are other areas where Harmony Gold is still extracting gold and investigating possible expansion programmes. Although the Joel mine did not perform well in 2024, Target 1 produced 46% more than in the previous year and earned R2.26-billion in gold revenue, a 73% increase. The company is conducting an exploration programme to confirm the geological model of Target North and further define a potential block of well-mineralised Ventersdorp Contact Reef. AngloGold Ashanti sold most of its assets to Harmony Gold. These assets increased Harmony’s underground resource base in South Africa by nearly 40%. The mines include Tshipong and Phakisa (near Odendaalsrus), SECTOR INSIGHT Harmony Gold’s Target 1 improved revenue by 73%. Virginia, Target (near Allanridge), Masimong (Riebeeckstad) and Joel near Theunissen. Harmony Gold has secured a loan and signed an agreement to buy 30MW of solar photovoltaic energy. The company’s Free State assets will benefit from this, the first phase of Harmony’s renewable energy strategy which will see a further 137MW rolled out at other mines. Harmony has established an independent power producer for the construction of the three PV plants that will comprise the Free State plant. These plants will mitigate 65 000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions in their first 12 months of operation; 1.3 terawatt hours of clean energy is expected to be delivered over their 20- year lifespan. The solar plant projects were jointly developed by Harmony, Energy Group (a specialist advisor and investor in industrial clean-energy projects in Southern Africa) and BBEnergy. FREE STATE BUSINESS 2025 32 PHOTO: Neo Energy Metals
OVERVIEW The project was funded by a project-finance debt solution from Rand Merchant Bank, a division of First Rand Bank Limited, and with the support of African Clean Energy Developments (ACED), equity-funded by African Infrastructure Investment Managers and Mahlako Energy Fund. The plants rank among the biggest solar PV plants for private offtake in South Africa to date. Many other South African miners are expected to follow Harmony’s lead. Gold mines in the Free State also supply a substantial portion of the total silver produced in the country, and large concentrations of uranium occurring in the gold-bearing conglomerates of the goldfields are extracted as a by-product. Other minerals The Lejweleputswa District Municipality is also home to many industrial minerals, with six companies currently active. Matsopa Minerals, for example, runs a bentonite mine at Koppies between Heilbron and Vredefort. Sandstone and sand-mining operations are underway in Qwaqwa, Fouriesburg, Senekal, Sasolburg and Zastron. Limestone and calcrete occur in the western Free State where salt is also panned. Production is concentrated around the Florisbad salt pan, north-west of Bloemfontein. The mining sector makes up 11% of provincial GDP. A minerals beneficiation strategy has been developed because this is a key area Miners prepare to go underground at a Harmony gold mine. ONLINE RESOURCES Minerals Council South Africa: www.mineralscouncil.org.za National Department of Mineral Resources and Energy: www.dmre.gov.za South African Mining Development Association: www.samda.co.za for potential growth. Petra Diamonds’ Koffiefontein mine is on the western edge of the province, about 80km from Kimberley. The mine is regarded as a low-grade deposit, but the diamonds produced are of high value. White stones of excellent quality are produced, and fancy pink diamonds are sometimes found. The Voorspoed mine of De Beers Consolidated Mines closed in 2018. De Beers, the South African government and the South African diamondcutting industry have launched a project to encourage diamond beneficiators. Among the first companies involved are Thoko’s Diamonds, African Diamonds, Nungu Diamonds and Kwame Diamonds. Coal is mostly found in the northern part of the Free State. The Sigma-Mookraal mine is run by Sasol Mining and has the capacity to supply Sasol Infrachem in Sasolburg with two-million tons of coal per year. Seriti Resources has purchased the New Vaal Colliery from Anglo American. Together with two other mines in Mpumalanga Province, Seriti paid R2.3-billion. New Vaal is in the middle of a triangle of three towns that play an important part in industrial production: Vereeniging, Sasolburg and Vanderbijlpark. The mine employs more than 900 people and supplies about 15-million metric tons of coal to Eskom’s Lethabo power station annually. ■ PHOTO: Harmony Gold 33 FREE STATE BUSINESS 2025
