Botswana government has confirmed that deteriorating prices of rough diamonds will be on the agenda when shareholders of the mining major meet on November 26. Answering a question from the floor at the Connecting Resources and Society conference held in Gaborone from 23 – 24 November 2015, Kitso Mokaila, the minister of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources said pricing is “one of the issues we will be dealing with”. “Prices of rough have been coming down and shareholders need something sustainable,” Mokaila said without giving details of neither the meeting nor the location. De Beers has two shareholders – Anglo American (85…
Author: Editor
Botswana has got one of the best minerals policies in the world with a number of mining players speaking highly of it, but as time passes experts have suggested for it to be fine tuned. Local economist Keith Jefferis said at the Connecting Resources and Society conference held in Gaborone from 23 – 24 November 2015 that on the positive side, Botswana has a good rating not only in Africa but also internationally. However, he bemoaned that the level of understanding of the policy could be limited among Batswana. “When you talk to people in the mining sector, they are happy…
The government of Botswana said it is in the process of awarding a contract for 300MW coal fired power station to an independent power producer (IPP) as the country looks to exploit its large coal resource and become self reliant in energy generation. Kitso Mokaila, the minister of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources, stated that two bidders remain and the procuring body, Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Board (PPADB), will name the winner of the tender soon. “I am happy to share with you that the ministry is making good progress towards awarding of 300MW power project to an Independent…
To help improve health care in Botswana, the Global Pharma Health Fund, a charitable initiative funded by Merck, a leading science and technology company, has donated a mobile compact laboratory to the Health Ministry in the capital city of Gaborone to help detect counterfeit medicines. The so-called Minilab can be used to identify inferior and counterfeit medicines rapidly and reliably. In this context, Kai Beckmann, Member of the Executive Board of Merck, met with the Minister of Health of Botswana, Dorcas Makgato in Gaborone. The Minilab is worth around 45,254 Botswanan Pulas (approx. € 4,000). “Counterfeit medicines pose a serious…
Orange announced the winners of the 2015 Orange African Social Venture Prize during the AfricaCom Awards ceremony held in Cape Town last night. For the fifth year in a row, the Orange Group is recognizing three innovative projects that are set to stimulate development in Africa. The prize aims to encourage entrepreneurs as they launch initiatives using technology to meet the needs of people living in Africa. More than 600 candidates responded to the call for projects, which ran from May to September 2015, reflecting the potential of the telecommunications sector to support development in Africa in fields as diverse…
Lucara Diamond company said it has recovered a 1,111 carat gem quality, Type IIa diamond at its Botswana based operations. The company owns Karowe mine, which has been the talk of the mining recently with a liquid share price on the Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE). According to the company, the magnificent stone, which originated from the south lobe of Lucara’s Karowe Mine, is the world’s second largest gem quality diamond ever recovered and the largest ever to be recovered through a modern processing facility. “The stone was recovered by the newly installed Large Diamond Recovery (“LDR”) XRT machines. The stone…
The organisers of the hugely successful iPAD DRC and Katanga Mining Week have announced that the two longstanding mining events in this country are to merge into one strategic show, namely DRC Mining Week in Lubumbashi from 8-9 June next year. “Thanks to the support of the DRC mining community and government, we have seen iPAD DRC and Katanga Mining Week develop and evolve over the years into enormously successful events”, says Emmanuelle Nicholls, Portfolio Director, DRC Mining Week. “However, we have always listened to what the industry wants and needs and we have to take it to the next…
Tlou Energy said in it will undertake rate gas testing programme at its Botswana gas exploration project during the month of December 2015. This follows encouraging production data to date which is in line with what “our reservoir engineers had anticipated prior to commencement of the testing process, with well behaviour and water production consistent with expectations”. The company revealed that the original Selemo lateral production pod (Selemo 1) was recently expanded with drilling and installation of two new flanking lateral pods either side of it (Selemo 2 and Selemo 4) to assist with dewatering and ultimately enhance gas deliverability.…
Anglo American plc has announced a number of senior management changes to enable dedicated focus on both the Group’s Marketing business and the evolution of the strategy. The group also said Paulo Castellari will step down from his position as CEO of Anglo American’s iron ore business in Brazil to pursue other opportunities. According to the mining major, Peter Whitcutt has been appointed as CEO of Anglo American’s Marketing business, having served as Group Director – Strategy, Business Development and Marketing since 2013. Peter Whitcutt will focus on delivering the full potential of the Marketing business which has delivered considerable…
Leading experts will meet in Botswana on 23 – 24 November 2015 for the Connecting Resources and Society conference that is set to explore the role of Botswana’s diamond industry in the socio-economic development of the country since independence, almost 50 years ago. It will also discuss how responsible resource management can safeguard the benefits of resource extraction for future generations. The conference, organised by Chatham House, a world-leading independent policy institute, will be hosted jointly by The De Beers Group of Companies and the Ministry of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources. Across the two days, the hosts will be joined by…