• ENVIRONMENT
TAKING WATER MANAGEMENT
TO THE NEXT LEVEL
All images Kropz PLC
By Sharyn Macnamara
When it comes to matters of Environmental , Social and Governance ( ESG ), Kropz Elandsfontein , a subsidiary of emerging African phosphate rock producer , Kropz plc , has a very unique story to tell .
The Elandsfontein Project ( Elandsfontein ) property was acquired in August 2010 by Kropz and is situated on the West Coast of South Africa , approximately 95km north-northwest of Cape Town , within the Saldanha Bay Municipality . Its sedimentary phosphate deposit boasts significantly lower cadmium and other heavy metal content than many other such deposits around the world , making it a more attractive , more environmentally acceptable option for fertiliser manufacturers and users .
With USD160-million invested in the processing plant and mine infrastructure , the project promises to provide steady state production in 2022 (> 1Mt ) with a phosphate rock concentrate of 31 % P₂O₅ and a LOM of almost 10 years .
18 • African Mining • February 2022
Sharyn Macnamara spoke to Michelle Lawrence , Chief Operating Officer at Kropz , about the success of the operation ’ s worldfirst water management system solution and the concurrent environmental rehabilitation :
Before the operation was to commence , protecting the environment was a critical focus point for Kropz . Can you elaborate on this ? From a phosphate mining perspective , our deposit is a sandy deposit , so the actual mining activity is quite simple . It ' s literally a few trucks and excavators . So , it ' s a free digging process , there ' s no drilling and blasting , and the trucks haul the material out of the pit . www . africanmining . co . za