Industry looks to technology to up productivity

With the African mining industry under extraordinary financial pressure, mining houses are increasingly looking at modernisation techniques to improve efficiency and increase production. According to Chris Griffith, CEO of Anglo American Platinum Limited, the drop in global demand for commodities has resulted in the current situation of lower prices putting pressure on the industry not only locally but across the world. “We have seen the price of iron ore drop from $180 per ton to the current $60 per ton price over the past three years while the copper price has decreased by 10% since the beginning of the year alone,” he said. “Platinum prices have not recovered since the 2008 global economic meltdown. There is no denying that there is financial pressure on mining houses. This is further compounded by labour issues, with strikes hitting the industry hard last year.” He said in an effort to address these challenges in a holistic manner the industry was more and more looking towards technology as the answer. “There are continued calls for investment and growth in the mining sector but with low labour productivity, increased pressure for more beneficiation and taxes for governments, and commodity price volatility it is not an easy environment.” Griffith said this did not mean that mining houses were squeaky clean and had only been on the receiving end of challenges. “We have had a role to play in the current environment that we face – from over-supplying certain commodities to the poor allocation of capital leading to investors losing confidence and pulling out in some cases.” But, said Griffith, there was a growing belief in the industry that the solution going forward was modernisation. “Through the development of new techniques and the use of innovative technology we can improve the efficiency of our operations. Mining needs to leap forward 20 years in the next five. We are moving away quickly from the past conventional labour-intensive underground mining methods that were costly to a far more modernised way of doing business,” he said. “We are on a journey that will see mines become far less energy-reliant and labour-dependent in the future in an effort to address some of the very real challenges that we face.” Griffiths said while the big players in the market were currently leading the modernisation drive there were opportunities for smaller miners also to introduce some of the new technology. “It is all about developing more mechanised mining techniques that will ultimately ensure better efficiency and lower costs.” He said already the benefits of this were being seen at mines where Anglo American Platinum had converted from conventional mining methods to a fully mechanised operation using low profile equipment – and productivity had increased threefold. “There are plans in the pipeline that will see the introduction of remotecontrolled mining equipment, automated robotic equipment and other technologies that will significantly change the face of mining.” He said while this would see fewer people employed in the long run the advances made and the cost efficiencies introduced in operations would be beneficial to mining houses in the long run. INSERT It is all about developing more mechanised mining techniques that will ultimately ensure better efficiency and lower costs. CAPTION Moving away from conventional labour-intensive underground mining methods that were costly to a far more modernised way of doing business.