Limping with a swagger and a mask
INTRODUCTION
Towards the end of the introductory comment in last year ’ s Mining and Industrial Suppliers Directory , we asked : “ So where to from here ”? And then : “ Nobody really knows what 2020 holds .” This profound statement was penned down in this publication in mid-November 2019 , at about the same time that , reportedly , the first human case of Covid-19 was discovered by officials in Wuhan City , China .
At that stage , however , nobody realised how lethal the novel Coronavirus could be , or what devastating economic disaster it would bequeath to the world . Then , the global economy was ticking over nicely , edging ever closer to its growth zenith .
But if the world thought it would fly into the 2020 dawn , Covid-19 cut it down to size . Suddenly , what we thought were colossal challenges and constraints at the beginning of February 2020 , shrank to insignificance a month later as the world masked up , hunkered down and shut the doors for lockdown . While a swaggering Donald Trump defiantly flouted , denied and pointed fingers in America , markets around the world stopped trading and the oil price tanked . Those South Africans who had nightmares about the Jacob Zuma and Atul Gupta legacy , woke up in a cold sweat , stuck in a ‘ new normal ’.
‘ New normal ’ meant level-5 lockdown , social distancing , fake news , high-fever , and hacking coughs . It also meant ‘ shut down ’ and ‘ put on ice ’; words mining CEOs don ’ t like to hear . As crushers around the country ground to a halt and thousands of workers headed home to self-isolate , South Africa , like the rest of the world , entered a period of hibernation – something not even the most pessimistic analysts or futurists could ever have predicted .
Five weeks later , while Trump was still swaggering and swearing in the United States , and bedridden Boris Johnson zoomed in from hospital in the United Kingdom , Gwede Mantashe recalled workers in South Africa to perform the essential service of mining . Under the ‘ new normal ’, mining companies pulled themselves up on their shoestrings and did what they do best : crush rock .
The mining industry in South Africa has managed diseases and mitigated the effects of epidemics for many years . There is no other industry as geared up as mining is , to prevent the spread of Covid-19 and ensure that employees continue to work and remain healthy . Under difficult circumstances , the mining industry in South Africa has not only survived , but has thrived – in the year that will from now to eternity be known as the year of Covid-19 .
As the world was plunged into uncertainty by the Black Swan pandemic – and Trump still didn ’ t wear his mask – the gold price started recording gains , and soon broke through record-high thresholds . When a coughing Boris Johnson recovered , and the South African currency took a dive – dragged down by lockdown – it was time for the South African gold miners to swagger , buoyed by nervous international investors snuggling up to bullion , and a spiralling rand in freefall .
Ramaphosa held his nerve under extreme pressure , and soon platinum miners started upping the ante , and it showed in their profit margins . While Covid-19 fears remained , the gold price held firm , and other commodities started tracking yellow metal ’ s upward trajectory . Mining pulled through , shaken , but standing , and in some cases soaring . It was , nevertheless , a rollercoaster ride . Interact Media Defined and MTE Exhibitions were part of that ride , having to stop ; start ; adapt ; plan ; dodge the downs ; and ride the ups . Like for the miners , there was no time for us to throw our arms up in despair , while upside down on the loop , as nobody was buckled in . Scream in despair everybody did , but at least we wore masks .
As I write this , the 20 th of November 2020 is a new day . In the wake of a global health crisis and economic calamity , the swagger has left the Trump-step . Masked faces still wander the desolate streets of the world . In London , Johnson shut shop again , self-isolating for the umpteenth time . Outside Downing 10 ’ s shuttered windows , Covid-19 rages like a wildfire across Europe . In South Africa , Ramaphosa ’ s regime has been hollowed out by corruption and deceit . Meanwhile , with bated breath , 2021 awaits .
As the curtain falls on 2020 , what more can we say than what we said last year ? Nobody really knows what 2021 holds . Where to from here ? Who knows ? The one thing Covid-19 has taught us is to always expect the unexpected . So , let ’ s keep the crusher full and the pillars standing . Bring on uncertainty ! Bring on 2021 !
Leon Louw
Editor
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Nobody really knows what 2021 holds . Where to from here ? Who knows ?
“ www . africanmining . co . za • www . mining . co . za • www . MTEexpos . co . za AFRICAN MINING SUPPLIERS DIRECTORY 2021 • 3