12
MODERN MINING
February 2014
MINING News
On 31 January 2013, Beacon Hill entered
into a lease agreement with Thelo Rolling
Stock whereby Thelo – in conjunction with
RRLGrindrod Locomotives and Transnet
Engineering – would provide five new
Grindrod RL30SCC-3 diesel locomotives
and 90 new Gondola-type rail wagons
to transport coal on the Sena rail line in
Mozambique.
The rolling stock has now been manu-
factured in South Africa and is undergoing
independent inspection regimes. The loco-
motives will be inspected and certified in
South Africa by CFM during January 2014
before being taken to Mozambique via
the existing rail networks in South Africa,
Zimbabwe and Mozambique. The rail
wagons will be loaded on a vessel in Port
Elizabeth and shipped to Beira. The deliv-
ery of the locomotives and rail wagons to
Mozambique is expected during the first
quarter of 2014.
The rolling stock will be used to trans-
port Beacon Hill’s coal – and coal from
other producers – over a distance of
580 km from the Minas Moatize mine area
to Beira.
The company will operate two train sets
on the Sena rail line each consisting of two
locomotives with 42 rail wagons (each rail
wagon loadedwith up to 63 tonnes of coal).
The Interim Rail Access Agreement entered
into between Beacon Hill and Portos e
Caminhos de Ferro de Moçambique (CFM),
the parastatal authority that oversees the
railway systemof Mozambique and its con-
nected ports, allows the company to rail
Updated resource estimate for New Luika Gold Mine
Shanta Gold has announced an updated
JORC (2012 Edition) compliant mineral
resource estimate and ore reserve for the
Bauhinia Creek and Luika targets of its New
Luika Gold Mine in the Lupa goldfield of
south-western Tanzania.
Highlights include an in-situ indicated
mineral resource increase for Bauhinia
Creek and Luika of 9 % to 692 koz with
an average grade of 5,5 g/t; a total open-
pit mineral resource of 2,6 Mt at 5,9 g/t
for 501 koz (1,1g/t Au cut-off ); and a total
underground mineral resource of 2,4 Mt
at 4,5 g/t for 347 koz (3,0 g/t Au cut-off ).
The new estimate puts the probable ore
reserve at New Luika at 2,56 Mt at 6,0 g/t
for 487 koz.
Shanta notes that the Luika deposit is still
open at depth, with a truncating structure
identified at the Bauhinia Creek deposit
approximately 350 m below surface.
Commenting on the updated resources
and reserves, Mike Houston, CEO, said:
“This is the first update on the company’s
resource since July 2012 and follows our
maiden reserves announced in October
2013. The updated resource, based on
a fairly limited drilling programme, pro-
vides robust evidence of the potential
for an underground operation at both
Luika and Bauhinia Creek.
“We have been particularly excited by
the pockets of high grade material inter-
sected at depth which we believe could
be enhanced with further evaluation work.
This exercise is part of the ongoing study
to optimise the life of mine at New Luika
which will also increase our understand-
ing of the other seven satellite targets and
the on-surface auriferous gravels. We are
confident that with the results received,
the additional work being done and the
prospectivity of the Lupa goldfields, our
New Luika operation has significant poten-
tial to extend its life beyond the previously
announced five years.”
Locos and wagons for Beacon Hill completed
coal amounting to the greater of 500 000
tonnes per annum or 7,7 % of the capacity
of the rail line.
The Interim Rail Access Agreement
will automatically renew each year
until Beacon Hill and CFM enter into a
long-term take-or-pay agreement. In
accordance with the Services Agreement
that was entered into between MML
and RRLGrindrod Train Operations dated
10 June 2013, all the train crews and other
personnel are operationally ready and in
place in Mozambique.
The five diesel locomotives are each of
3 300 gross horse power, rated 290 kN at
20 km/h. The locomotives are fitted with
the renowned EMD 16-645 E38 engines of
One of the new Grindrod diesel locomotives (photo: Beacon Hill).
Electro Motive Division (General Motors),
fully re-manufactured to EMD specifica-
tions by the National Railway Equipment
Company in the USA. The locomotives
are equipped with on-board computers
and end-of-train devices (all locomotives
operating on the Sena line need to be fit-
ted with computers for safe integration
into the computerised Track Warrant train
movement control system).
The rail wagons supplied to the com-
pany are open-top type, multi-use wagons
that will carry the coal to Beira. All are fitted
with self-steering Scheffel bogie systems
and Association of American Railroads
(AAR) compliant couplers, drawgears and
direct-release air brakes.
