Resgen secures water for coal mine

LEPHALALE -Resource Generation, which was awarded a 30-year mining right for its Boikarabelo mine just outside Lephalale in April 2011, has signed an agreement with the Lephalale Municipality to secure the water required for stage 2 of the planned mine.
The agreement stipulates that ResGen must construct, operate, maintain and pay for a waste water treatment plant at Marapong, about 50km from Boikarabelo. This will treat municipal effluent and generate up to 16 megalitres of water a day, which will be pumped to the mine site through a new pipeline. The agreement follows two years’ cooperative work with the Lephalale Municipality.
Paul Jury, Resource Generation’s MD, says that the plant will not only provide sufficient water to meet the medium- and long-term needs of the mine, but it will also provide the local municipality with essential infrastructure and environmental protection. “This is the first of many activities we will be undertaking for the Limpopo community.” Jury said. He added that sufficient water for stage 1 of the mine is available from groundwater bore holes on the mine properties already owned. Use is subject to receiving an Integrated Water Use Licence which was applied for in January 2011 and is expected to be received shortly.
The term of the agreement is 30 years from the date of grant of the water use licence by the Department of Water Affairs, subject to satisfaction of a number of conditions. The conditions include an environmental impact assessment being approved by relevant government departments by 28 February 2013, sufficient power supply being secured by LMM, and all other required government approvals (including NEMA approval) being obtained by 28 February 2013.
Resgen will pay for the Marapong waste water treatment plant upgrade works and expansion works to extend capacity to 4 megalitres per day by January 2014, increasing to 16 megalitres per day by January 2017. It will also construct the Marapong-Boikarabelo effluent transfer pump station and associated works including the transfer pipeline.
Resgen will manage, operate and maintain the treatment plant after the expansion at its own cost until the operations transfer date, which is one year after completion of the expansion works. At that time the Lephalale municipality will become responsible for management, operation and maintenance of the plant.
From the operations transfer date, Resgen will continue to pay for the operation and maintenance costs of the plant, including the insurance for the plant for the term of the agreement.