Name of the Project
Belfast coal project.

Location
Mpumalanga, South Africa.

Client
Exxaro Resources.

Project Description
The Belfast coal project contains measured mineral resources of 83-million tonnes.

The first phase of the proposed project entails the development of a new greenfield openpit coal mine, including a coal handling and preparation plant, supporting infrastructure and services.

The project will have a 17-year life-of-mine and will produce an estimated 2.2-million tonnes of A-grade thermal coal a year and 500 000 t/y of lower-grade Eskom coal.

Jobs to be Created
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.

Value
Exxaro plans to spend R3.8-billion on building the mine.

Duration
Development of the new mine will take about 2.5 years to complete.

Latest Developments
The pending rezoning appeal process, to be heard by the Nkangala District Municipality (NDM), is expected to start in the third quarter of 2017.

A delay of at least three-months (a quarter) is expected at this stage before construction can start. The construction phase is, therefore, expected to start during the fourth quarter of 2017.

Key Contractors and Suppliers
DRA (detailed engineering design, fabrication, construction and commissioning of a 500 t/h coal processing project, including a two-stage dense-medium beneficiation plant, a fine-coal dense-medium section for fines treatment and a system for the filtration of slimes, as well as associated product handling systems); Arup (detailed engineering design and construction monitoring of all related infrastructure and services); MMD Africa (detailed engineering design, fabrication, construction and commissioning of the run-of-mine sizing station, including primary and secondary sizers; Epoch Resources (detailed engineering design and construction monitoring of the discard disposal facility); GroundTruth (detailed engineering design and construction monitoring of wetland rehabilitation interventions); RCE (detailed engineering design and construction monitoring of the new railway siding); and Aurecon (detailed engineering design and construction monitoring of the small-scale agricultural village, which forms part of the project’s resettlement programme for the relocation of households directly affected by future mining operations).

The remaining construction packages, other than the coal processing plant and sizing station, have not been assigned to construction contractors yet. Tender processes for some of these packages have been completed, while others still have to start.

On Budget and on Time?
Construction is expected to start in the second half of 2017. The project team is continuing with project work to be ready for construction, should the rezoning appeal matter be dealt with sooner.

Contact Details for Project Information
Exxaro Resources GM Mpumalanga area Bram van Stelten, email bram.vanstelten@exxaro.com.
Exxaro Resources executive head: strategy and stakeholder engagement Mzila Mthenjane, tel +27 12 307 7393 or email investorrelations@exxaro.com.