SA to unveil mine power plan

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa looks set today to announce ways to ease the impact of job losses in the mining industry, which faces electricity rationing due to a power crisis, a Chamber of Mines official said yesterday.

“I think what the minister said on Friday was that they will make an announcement to mitigate the impact on job losses on Wednesday,” said Frans Barker, a senior official at the Chamber of Mines, which represents big mining companies in South Africa. South Africa’s Mining Weekly Web site reported the Department of Minerals and Energy would announce today ways to alleviate job losses and ease the impact of the electricity crisis on the mining industry.Spokesmen for the department and state power utility Eskom were not immediately available for comment.Department of Minerals and Energy Director General Sandile Nogxina told Mining Weekly a study of the crisis had looked how to ease job losses, as well as possibly restoring 100 per cent electricity to the mines.”I don’t think we should talk about 100 per cent electricity, because Eskom simply doesn’t have the spare capacity to supply 100 per cent,” Barker said.”There is ongoing contact and information is being supplied and so on.”The country’s mining industry, a big foreign exchange earner and employer, ground to a halt for five days in January as blackouts intensified and millions of homes were left without power.Eskom has since rationed mining companies to 90 per cent of their normal needs, leading some to trim production forecasts.Gold Fields, the world’s fourth-largest gold miner, has warned it could cut 6 900 jobs.Nampa-ReutersSouth Africa’s Mining Weekly Web site reported the Department of Minerals and Energy would announce today ways to alleviate job losses and ease the impact of the electricity crisis on the mining industry.Spokesmen for the department and state power utility Eskom were not immediately available for comment.Department of Minerals and Energy Director General Sandile Nogxina told Mining Weekly a study of the crisis had looked how to ease job losses, as well as possibly restoring 100 per cent electricity to the mines.”I don’t think we should talk about 100 per cent electricity, because Eskom simply doesn’t have the spare capacity to supply 100 per cent,” Barker said.”There is ongoing contact and information is being supplied and so on.”The country’s mining industry, a big foreign exchange earner and employer, ground to a halt for five days in January as blackouts intensified and millions of homes were left without power.Eskom has since rationed mining companies to 90 per cent of their normal needs, leading some to trim production forecasts.Gold Fields, the world’s fourth-largest gold miner, has warned it could cut 6 900 jobs.Nampa-Reuters