News & Media

4 May 2010

CONCOR ROADS & EARTHWORKS TO BUILD URANIUM LEACH PLANT IN JV FOR TREKKOPJE

Site establishment is well underway for the fast track 24 month construction of the Maxi Heap Leach Pad for AREVA for the Trekkopje Uranium Project Mine in Namibia.

Concor Roads & Earthworks is the lead partner for the Trekkopje Joint Venture (JV), which also includes Grinaker-LTA and Basil Read. “Upon completion the leach pad will be 4 kilometres in length and 1 kilometre wide, and will be the biggest of its kind in southern Africa and the second largest in the world,” Clive Meyer, project manager for the JV, says.

Each partner company in the Trekkopje JV will be responsible for a third of the work required, which entails earthworks as well as installation of the HDPE lining and piping. “The project is characterised by immense proportions such as the 2.7 million cubic metres of cut to fill and the 4.8 million tons of material to be crushed for the under and overliner,” Meyer says.

“Other significant quantities will include 2.5 million square metres of 2 mm HDP plastic liner, which is being imported from the USA. The uranium will be leached  from the pad into a series of pipes with diameters varying between 100 and 700 mm and totaling 900km’s,” Meyer adds.

Meyer says that at contract peak there will be 900 people on site, comprising the JV’s own staff as well as people sourced from the local environs. “We will be training the local employees in multiple disciplines and anticipate that this will require the services of a full time trainer.  The advantage to the community is that the people who we train will be empowered for further occupation on the various mines in the area.

“The crushing will be the most challenging aspect of the project, as we have been allocated a mere 17 months in which to produce the crushed material which means there is absolutely no room for delay,” Meyer says. “However, Concor Roads & Earthworks has an extensive portfolio of similar completed contracts in the mining industry and a reputation for successfully tackling demanding projects, so we will confidently deliver the required material within the prescribed time period.”