MTE EXHIBITIONS •
PGMS AND CHROME – A FOCUS FOR MTE IN APRIL 2024
By Sharyn Macnamara
Mining and Technical Exhibitions ( MTE ) is back in the western limb chrome and platinum belt for a high impact combo showcase on 9 and 11 April 2024 , in Mooinooi and Rustenburg respectively .
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Last year , the MTE combo shows in Mooinooi and Rustenburg saw our travelling expo concept host the largest number of suppliers and visitors over a three-day period that the company has ever hosted in the history of its thirty years in business . A total of over 700 mining professionals were engaged by over 58 and 134 companies exhibiting at the two shows respectively , showcasing the latest in mining tech and solutions ,” says Andrew Macnamara , operations director at the company .
He explains , “ The PGMs and chrome sectors of the industry are placed high on the MTE agenda due to the fact that South Africa is currently the biggest producer of PGMs in the world ; PGMs industry sales are the largest contributor to total mining sales in the country ; and the chrome sector is strong despite major Transnet freight challenges , with South Africa being the world ’ s largest producer of chromite ore , having produced over an estimated 19 million tonnes in 2023 per the Minerals Council South Africa .”
PGMs were among commodities like coal , gold and iron ore that made up roughly 80 % of South Africa ’ s commodity export revenue in 2023 , which contributed to around 55 % of the total value of South African merchandise exports in the first 11 months of the year . The Minerals Council South Africa recently reported , “ Commodity export revenue was boosted by the rand that was , on average , almost 13 % weaker against the US dollar in 2023 than the previous year . However , the support from a weaker currency was diluted by sharp falls of more than 40 % in the dollar-based basket 1 price of PGMs .”
An aerial shot of the expanse of an MTE expo which saw 300 exhibitors deliver solutions to just under 1 000 visitors last year .
The council also noted an estimated decline in PGMs production of 11 % at 239.9 tonnes for 2023 , based on the actual output data for the first nine months of 2023 , due to load curtailment and operational challenges which impacted concentrators and smelters , resulting in increased work-in-progress inventory .
South Africa is the world ’ s largest producer of chromite ore , having produced over an estimated 19 million tonnes in 2023 .
Supplied by C-Chip www . africanmining . co . za African Mining Publication African Mining African Mining • April 2024 • 25