Story by Tichaona Kurewa
THE country’s quest for a US$12 billion mining industry by the end of the year remains on course with a new coal plant set to be commissioned in Binga next month.
The London Stock Exchange-listed Contango Holdings is developing the Lubu Coal Project in Binga which includes mining coke and coking coal production.
Updating stakeholders through their Twitter page, Contango Holdings Chief Executive Officer, Mr Carl Esprey said a high-performance surface miner had already arrived at the project site named Muchesu Coal.
The company said the equipment can clear 500 tonnes of hard material per hour and will initially be used to remove the overburden, before mining the coking coal seam at a rate of up to 1 000 tonnes per hour.
The company indicated that a wash plant is already on site with foundations prepared in anticipation of its delivery.
Construction and assembly of the plant is expected to take about four weeks with the wash plant set to produce 20 000 tonnes of washed coking coal per month.
The coal project which is also demonstrating the effectiveness of the Second Republic’s engagement and re-engagement drive is expected to transform Binga in terms of job creation and upgrading of critical infrastructure such as roads, schools and health centres.
The new coal project is also coming at an opportune time when global demand for coal is on the rise as more countries revert to thermal power stations in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Locally, the project will also boost supplies and Hwange Units 7 and 8.
Under the US$12 billion mining roadmap, iron, steel, diamonds and coal will contribute US$1 billion.
