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Article written by Cameron Mackay at Mining Weekly Owing to the increasing amount of mining activity expected in Botswana – particularly amid increasing demand for minerals such as coal and battery metals – specialist mining services provider Ukwazi mining and mineral project valuator Alan Clegg stress the need for consultants to provide specialist services for…

Article written by Sabrina Jardim at Mining Weekly With the increase in demand for platinum-group metals (PGMs), specialist mining services provider Ukwazi’s PGMs-related projects have increased by about 20% since 2020. Ukwazi business development director Spencer Eckstein attributes the increase to the mining and consulting services that the company’s team provides to the PGMs industry.…

By Alan M. Clegg Pr.Eng Pr.CPM PMP FSAIMM – Chairman, Shumba Energy Ltd and Spencer Eckstein – Director, Business Development, Ukwazi Mining Studies (Pty) Ltd Socrates famously stated: “The secret of change is to focus all your energy not on fighting the old but on building the new.” Any new Coal fired power plant (“CFPP”)…

Despite obvious challenges, including energy insecurity and policy uncertainty, South Africa’s immense natural resources, coupled with current macro factors, provide ample opportunity for the country to further enhance its position on the global mining stage. One fundamental aspect hampering this progress is the lack of industry skills – skills that will be required to meet…

South Africa recently experienced flash floods in KwaZulu-Natal, causing loss of life and property, damage to homes, roads and railway infrastructure, and in cities like Gqeberha, taps have run dry. We can debate whether poor infrastructure or ineffective, local government entities are responsible, but it is clear that weather patterns have shifted significantly, some would…

South Africa is strategically poised to benefit from the growth trajectory of the platinum-group metals (PGMs) sector, as it holds about 80% of the world’s PGM resources.

Article written by Nadine Ramdass at Mining Weekly Rather than requiring fewer commodities, the green economy, and its resulting technological developments, will actually require more commodities, says specialist mining services provider Ukwazi Business Development Director, Spencer Eckstein. Consequently, mining companies, including manganese players, need to adequately position and prepare themselves to maintain a competitive advantage…

First things first, while “circular” and “green” are often used interchangeably, it is important to distinguish between them. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) defines a green economy as “one that results in improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities.” A circular economy entails the recycling and reuse of…

Eskom and the coal industry are at the core of the just transition. Approximately, 75% of our electricity is coal based and derive from 16 large power stations. By 31 December 2021, Eskom was due to split out its transmission business from generation and distribution, while it is sticky debt of R400bn plus and deep…

The United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Sixth Assessment Report entitled, Climate Change 2021, states that the earth’s surface and ocean temperatures are the highest they’ve been since 1850, with the most radical increases occurring after the year 2000. The report goes on further to say that the only solution is drastically reducing CO2…