Moma commenced on
site in 2005 and is now in the final onstruction and commissioning stage. The last LTI occurred in February 2006.

... an entire new plant
had to be built within the confined space of the existing operational plant and some 19 conveyor systems had to be assembled and erected over and under
operational conveyors
using a 330 t hydraulic
mobile crane.

Sag and ball mills being installed at Lumwana Copper, Zambia.

Uranium One plant under construction, South Africa.

Finsch Diamond Mine, South Africa.

Moma Mineral Sands project, Mozambique.

Outstanding Safety Achievement for 2007

Bateman Engineering achieved outstanding safety results during 2007 with two major projects achieving more than 1 million man hours worked without a lost time injury (LTI) by the calendar year end, one project achieving more than 2 million man hours and the Moma Mineral Sands project recording nearly 7 million man hours free from lost time injuries.

The safety record is a result of Bateman Engineering’s ongoing commitment to the continual improvement of its safety, health and environment (SHE) programme. The programme strives to protect the health and safety of the Group’s employees, subcontractors, clients and visitors, minimise the footprint of Bateman Engineering projects on the environment, and comply with all applicable legislation and international requirements. These objectives must be achieved often in the face of severe environmental and logistical challenges typical of projects carried out in developing, often very remote regions.

Project
Location
Number LTI free man hours
worked up to end 2007
Moma Mineral Sands Project
Mozambique
6,943,501
Uranium One Project
South Africa
2,037,703
Lumwana Copper Project
Zambia
1,350,000
Finsch Diamond Mine
South Africa
1,290,000
Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR) for 2007 0.18

For example, some of the challenges facing the Moma Mineral Sands project, situated 450 km north of Beira in Mozambique, were a large unskilled labour force, logistical problems (equipment and material had to be transported by barge and off loaded on the beach head), tropical diseases and severe weather conditions. Moma commenced on site in 2005 and is now in the final construction and commissioning stage. The last LTI occurred in February 2006.

The Uranium One project at Klerksdorp, South Africa presented a number of interfacing problems which had to be solved in a very confined construction area during the commissioning phase. This was necessary given the need by the client to maintain operation with minimal interruption, in order to meet production targets. The project, which started in October 2004, consisted of two phases, with final commissioning during November 2007.

The Lumwana Copper project in Zambia, which started in 2006 as a joint venture with Ausenco, had to manage severe, inclement weather conditions, logistical problems and tropical diseases. The construction contract consists of the design, construction and commissioning of a 20 million t/yr copper concentrator and crushing, grinding, flotation, thickening and filtering systems, and construction of infrastructures.

The Finsch Diamond Mine plant upgrade project, situated in Lime Acres, South Africa, called for the integration of Bateman Engineering SHE standards and procedures with the client’s existing standards and requirements, in order to ensure normal plant production and maintenance during the construction and commissioning phases of the project.

On the construction side, an entire new plant had to be built within the confined space of the existing operational plant and some 19 conveyor systems had to be assembled and erected over and under operational conveyors using a 330 t hydraulic mobile crane. This called for the highest degree of interfacing with all disciplines and contractors.

The building of the new recovery plant within the existing plant presented difficulties due to the fact that existing concrete floors and steel structures had to be removed and replaced with new ones. Access to this building was through a double door the size of a domestic garage door, thus all equipment had to be hand rigged into position, increasing the operational risk.

The project started in 2005 with final commissioning during the first quarter of 2008, with 2 LTIs occurring during the entire project.

Bateman Minerals & Metals, part of the Bateman Engineering Group and a certified ISO 9001 and OHSAS 18001 company, will continue to pursue best practices and continual improvement of procedures and systems in order to demonstrate sound occupational health, safety and environmental performance. This involves identifying and controlling risks and hazards, increasing the competency of employees and subcontractors by means of training, and enhancing the process through management participation.

For further information, please contact Pieter Oosthuizen, Safety, Health and Environmental Manager, Bateman Minerals & Metals, on +27-11-899-2587 or e-mail pieter.oosthuizen@batemanengineering.com.

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