Rössing Uranium Limited says it has invested N$105 million towards the construction of water reservoirs to increase the mine’s water storage capacity and secure supplies for its mining operations.
The six reservoirs according to the uranium miner, were constructed to complement the storage capacity that is provided by NamWater’s reservoirs and allow its mining to continue for an additional seven days during periods of extended water supply outages.
“The issue of water in Erongo region, particularly facing the mines was raised during the recently held Namibia Chamber of Mines Annual General Meeting, and it is good to have the Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform witness what Rössing Uranium is doing in a proactive way to create self sufficiency,” Rössing Uranium Board Chairperson Steve Galloway said.
Rössing Uranium received approval in 2020 to construct the six tanks, to assist in easing the pressure on the already existing NamWater infrastructure, currently made up of three reservoirs used for supplying Arandis and Rössing mine with fresh water and also provide buffer capacity when there are sulphur sea outbreaks in the ocean and the Orano desalination plant is unable to operate.
According to the mine, sufficient buffer capacity is reserved for Arandis during periods when NamWater is unable to supply fresh water and when the reservoir levels drop to low levels that the mine has to cease operations, until such time that reservoir levels have recovered sufficiently to safely resume operations.
Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform Honourable Carl Schlettwein applauded Rössing Uranium for implementing the initiative, which is aimed at supporting government efforts to supply fresh water to all areas of Namibia.
“I am pleased to note that the construction was performed by a local contractor, who was responsible for all the on-site construction activities, with a total of 100 contractor employees appointed during the duration of the project,” Schlettwein said.
Rössing Uranium’s Managing Director Johan Coetzee said the mine is already reaping the fruits of its investment, as it was able to sustain operations late last year when there was planned maintenance at the Orano plant.
Orano Desalination Plant is a sea water desalination plant which currently supplies the bulk of water consumed in the Erongo region.
