South African diversified miner Exxaro Resources plans to spend R28-billion on expansion by 2018 to become the country’s top coal producer, Business Day quoted the chief executive as saying.
Exxaro’s expansion plans include projects in the country’s Waterberg area to the north of South Africa, mooted to become the country’s next coal hub after reserves in the Witbank area now used by most coal miners are on course to be depleted.
Projects include a new open pit coal mine at Thabametsi, a brownfield development at its Grootegeluk mine to supply an additional 14-million tonnes of coal to Eskom , a greenfield mine in a joint venture with petrochemicals group Sasol and other downstream projects.
”If you add up all the expected investments in all these projects, you are looking at a total amount in the region of R28-billion between now and 2018,” chief executive Sipho Nkosi was quoted as saying.
Nkosi said, however, that lack of adequate water and electricity supply as well as rail transport would remain a concern and proper investments in new logistical capacity were required to meet rising demand in the region. – Reuters