Small miners mull solar power plants
OPERATORS in the small-scale mining industry are considering investing in solar power
plants after gold output from the sector fell by 53,2 percent to 961 kilogrammes last
month compared to 2 053,6 kg in the same period last year.
Small-scale miners, which produce the bulk of Zimbabwe’s gold output, last year
produced about 69 percent of Zimbabwe’s total record of 35,3 tonnes.
Latest statistics from Fidelity Gold and Refiners, indicate that Zimbabwe’s total gold
deliveries for last month declined by 34 percent to 1 895,9 kg from 2 867,9 kg in January
last year.
Fidelity Gold Refiners, which is also the country’s exclusive buyer of the yellow metal
produced in Zimbabwe indicated that large-scale producers delivered 934,9kg last
month compared to 814,3kg in January 2022.
At the moment, Zimbabwe is experiencing power challenges due to lack of investment in
energy projects by Zesa, a situation that has also been compounded by low water levels at
Kariba Dam, which provides water to the country’s largest hydropower station, Kariba.
In an interview, the Zimbabwe Miners Federation (ZMF) chief executive officer Mr
Wellington Takavarasha whose organisation represents small-scale miners, said
traditionally deliveries of the yellow metal has been lower in January due to wet weather
conditions.
He said last month the rains were more intense compared to January last year, a situation
that has also reduced gold output.
The rains make it difficult for the small-scale miners to carry out their operations as the
shafts become flooded and difficult to work on due to lack of machinery and technology
to de-water the mines.
“The remarkable decrease in gold production by the small-scale mining sector last
month compared to January last year, is largely attributable to subdued power supply to
the miners.
“The small-scale miners have largely experienced prolonged hours of downtime due to
load shedding by Zesa and this year, hugely affecting output in the small-scale gold
mining industry.
“As an industry, we are planning to introduce solar power plants at our mines to mitigate
the adverse repercussions of load shedding,” said Mr Takavarasha.
Gold is Zimbabwe’s major foreign currency earner and under the US$12 billion mining
economy by the end of this year, the yellow metal is expected to contribute US$4 billion.
Zimbabwe’s top mineral export increased from US$1,2 billion in 2020 to US$1,7 billion in
2021 and the increase is due to improved gold output and firm prices as global economies
recovered from the Covid-19 lockdowns.
The Government is also implementing a number of strategies in the gold sub-sector and
the mining industry at large with a view to boost mineral production.
Last week, Finance and Economic Development Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube
launched a US$10 million Gold Facility whose resources is divided into two parts as US$5
million for the Artisanal Gold Small-scale Miners Fund (AGSMF) and another tranche of
US$5 million targeted at the Gold Service Centres Recovery Facility.
The AGSMF will support the small-scale miners through loans to issues around mine
mechanisation while the GSCRF would support the small-scale mining industry through
the establishment of gold service centres across the country.
The US$10 million Gold Facility is part of a drawdown from the Special Drawing Rights
that The International Monetary Fund (IMF) allocated to Zimbabwe in 2020.
The IMF allocated Zimbabwe US$956 million equivalent of SDRs as part of a general
allocation ofUS$650 billion that was released globally to all of the multilateral
institution’s member States.-The Herald
