Motheo copper mine in Botswana awarded $235M contract expansion
Mining services group Perenti (ASX: PRN) announced today that its surface mining business in Africa, African Mining Services (AMS), has been awarded the contract for open pit mining services at the A4 open pit within the larger Motheo copper mine in Botswana.
The company said that the contract is valued at US$235 million (~A$360 million) over a term of 73 months. The Motheo copper mine is owned by Sandfire Resources (ASX: SFR).
Under the terms of the contract, AMS will deliver all surface mining services associated with development and production activities at the A4 open pit.
The A4 open pit is located approximately 8km to the west of the Sandfire’s existing T3 open pit, where AMS has successfully progressed from development into production works.
Perenti anticipates A4 pre-production and development work to commence in September 2023, with pre-strip mining to start in October 2023.
“The T3 and A4 open pits are expected to be operated as a larger, integrated mining operation and therefore will leverage the resulting benefits of scale and the operational synergies to optimize the return on capital aligned with our financial targets,” the company said in a statement.
“We are excited about the opportunity to expand our partnership with Sandfire Resources. Sandfire is now one of our largest clients and over the term of the combined contracts, the T3 and A4 open pits are expected to generate total revenue of over A$1.1 billion, delivering strong returns for Perenti and its shareholders,” commented Mark Norwell, managing director and CEO of Perenti.
Perenti is a diversified mining services group with interests in contract mining, mining support services and future technology solutions. The Group was founded in Kalgoorlie in 1987 and is today one of the world’s largest mining services companies providing surface and underground mining at scale, technology solutions and mining support services.
Motheo is Sandfire’s new, long-life asset located in the central portion of the Kalahari Copper Belt in Botswana. The Motheo operations are centred on the development and mining of the T3 and A4 open pit mines and were officially opened in August 2023. With a central processing facility, Motheo produces high-quality copper concentrate (containing a silver by-product) that is transported by truck to Walvis Bay, Namibia, for shipping to smelters around the world.
