Saurimo – The Catoca Mining Society (SMC) records currently a useful production lifetime below the 14 years of exploration, including extraction of minerals, stated in Saurimo Municipality, eastern Lunda Sul Province, the company’s Management Board chairman, Benedito Manuel.
“Our current mine has a reserve with a useful life of 10 to 14 years, being close to reaching the exhaustion of reserves at 600 meters of depth, hence the need to find another form of mining, so that Catoca do not stop within this period of time”, added the official.
According to the director general of Catoca, to immortalize the company’s life and naturally increase the reserves, what should be made is a set of activities from prospecting in deeper depths, that is, beyond the 600 meters which is a suspended operation due to Covid-19.
“The stoppage of this work is causing us harm because today we would be ready to say if below 600 meters there are conditions for mining, and if the mine is going to be an open pit, underground or if we’ll have to go to other concessions looking for reserves”, said the manager.
To counter the situation Catoca have been seeking experiences by interacting with other players of the world aiming to monitor and check if there are elements, especially in the technologically area to be used to innovate the company, although the mining industry does not impose permanent innovation.
Benedito Manuel who was speaking in a press conference on Saturday about the status of the mining company, highlighted as well that is necessary to visit other countries with the objective to get in touch with companies of the same sector to exchange experiences.
The official stated that at this time some works of deeper horizons perforation were made already in Catoca Mine, in addition to have been collected information on other concessions. However, as a decision of the deliberation of the General Assembly, the concessions were re-allocated to Endiama, the state-owned diamond company.
“Currently, the company is focused on the concession of Catoca. And even if we do not find minerals, we’ll contact Endiama again and the National Agency of Mineral Resources to prospect in other spots”, explained the official.
