• AFRICAN BUZZ
According to Lamont , China used to be quite a substantial market for South African coal in the 1990s . However , with the growth of Indonesia as a major coal producer , that market diminished for South Africa , and in recent years had been completely non-existent . “ However , recently , there have been reports that there are at least four Capesize vessels on the water for delivery in November into China ,” he said .
Menar
Bradley Hammond ( left ) and Bill Lamont at the recent CoaltransAsia virtual event .
OPTIMISM ABOUT COAL AND ANTHRACITE
Covid-19 national and international lockdowns impacted demand volumes and prices for coal and anthracite this year . However , industry players are hopeful for a strong rebound in 2021 .
Menar chief operating officer Bradley Hammond , and Buffalo Coal sales and marketing manager Bill Lamont , recently shared their views about the South African and international coal markets at at the virtual Coaltrans Asia 2020 conference .
According to Hammond , China is opening up the door for more vessels . “ I believe that it ' s only a matter of time and that three vessels are going to become 10 and 20 and more in time . Therefore , I ' m still very confident that there will be demand for coal to the export market ,” said Hammond .
Lamont concurred with Hammond about Menar ’ s positive sentiment on the future of the market : “ We are still looking positively , as Buffalo Coal at anthracite developments into the future , and are still planning on further projects going forward ,” he concluded .
Menar ’ s subsidiaries are Canyon Coal , with operations in Mpumalanga and Gauteng ; Zululand Anthracite Colliery in KwaZulu Natal , Kangra in Mpumalanga and East Manganese in the Northern Cape . Buffalo Coal is a coal and anthracite producer with its mines Magdalena and Aviemore , located in KwaZulu-Natal .
“ It has been a challenging year for coal and anthracite producers alike . But looking ahead the markets indications are positive . It is for this reason that we are aiming to restart our anthracite operation , Zululand Anthracite Colliery ( ZAC ), which has been on care and maintenance since President Cyril Ramaphosa ’ s declaration of the state of national disaster to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 in March ,” said Hammond .
Prior to lockdown , 80 % of ZAC ' s product was sold locally . ZAC expects demand to pick up in the domestic market . However , on the export side the company expects demand to remain somewhat subdued .
“ In the beginning of this year , I thought it was going to be a very positive one . We were looking to sign large offtake agreements with Vietnam . In 2019 , we saw Vietnam take an abundance of anthracite as they use it for power generation . But the China- Australia dispute arose and Australia started diverting coal to Vietnam , which had a direct negative impact on us . But the appetite is still there ,” said Hammond .
He adds that ZAC faced other challenges including anti-mining lobbies from NGOs as far away as Canada that were trying to put a stop to the operation as well as some community unrest issues that were being addressed .
“ Despite these challenges , demand for anthracite remain high . The South African market is dependent on us . There are not many anthracite producers . Therefore , if we can start the operation and produce at a competitive price , we make sure that large producers like Russia are not a challenge . We also have the appetite to start new greenfield projects , if demand and market conditions are favourable ,” said Hammond .
6 • African
Mining • February 2021
MINING COMMUNITIES GET BETTER COOKING SOLUTIONS
Efforts to bring relief to South Africa ’ s mining communities amid the turbulence of 2020 are bearing fruit for 200 families in large mining communities . At the end of last year these communities received safer , more sustainable , and more cost-effective cooking solutions to see them through the coming months . The South African National Energy Development Institute ( SANEDI ) together with the Mineworkers Development Agency ( MDA ) handed over the first batch of 200 liquefied petroleum gas ( LPG ) stove systems to families in Virginia in the Free State , and Orkney in the North West Province on the 14 th and 15 th of December respectively .
“ When it became clear that the Covid-19 pandemic would have far-reaching and long-lasting negative effects on indigent urban and rural communities , the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy approached us for a relief solution for South Africa ’ s hard-hit mining communities ,” says SANEDI Interim CEO , Lethabo Manamela . “ We worked with the MDA to assess community needs and realised that access to energy was a concern especially during lock down warranting attention .”
While the MDA offers food parcels , a problem arises in the cooking process . The traditional fuels used by these communities are scarce and detrimental , resulting in indoor air quality challenges that can exacerbate the health , risks associated with the pandemic . LPG , on the other hand , is a clean and highly efficient cooking fuel . It cooks food fast , is easy to control , and has little impact on the ambient air quality . Furthermore , it produces no residue or particulate matter because it undergoes complete combustion .
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