Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
's economy in terms of revenue. It accounts for 25% of the country's income. Its contribution to the
gross domestic product
Gross domestic product (GDP) is a money, monetary Measurement in economics, measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjec ...
(10.4% in 2009, 8.5% in 2010, 9.5% in 2011, 12.3% in 2012, 13.2% in 2013, 11.6% in 2014) is also very important and makes it one of the largest economic sectors of the country. Namibia produces
diamond
Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the Chemical stability, chemically stable form of car ...
s,
uranium
Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...
,
copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...
,
magnesium
Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray metal having a low density, low melting point and high chemical reactivity. Like the other alkaline earth metals (group 2 of the periodic ta ...
,
zinc
Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...
,
silver
Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...
,
gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...
,
lead
Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
,
semi-precious stones
A gemstone (also called a fine gem, jewel, precious stone, or semiprecious stone) is a piece of mineral crystal which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments. However, certain rocks (such as lapis lazuli, opal, an ...
and industrial minerals.KPMG (2014). Namibia. Country Mining Guide '. KPMG INTERNATIONAL. p.3 The majority of revenue (7.2% of GDP in 2011) comes from diamond mining. In 2014, Namibia was the fourth-largest exporter of non-fuel minerals in Africa.
Overview
Namibia has a long tradition of mining. In 2018, mining contributed 14% of GDP and expanded 28%. Extensive exploration in Namibia for base metals, diamonds, gold, natural gas, and uranium has been attributed, in part, to the rise in world commodity prices. Under the Mining Act, the natural resources of Namibia belong to the State. However, the state in Namibia is limited to the role of a grantor-regulator than an owner-operator. One of the main challenges of the mining industry is the lack of water resources, as the availability of fuel and electric power.
A mining policy in Namibia was developed in 2003 through research with the information made available by key stakeholders.
Production
World Bank pointed out that mining in Namibia grew an average of 4.6% over the 2000–2012 period. The growth of the mining sector is influenced by the global economy and demand, in contrast to the agricultural industry in Namibia, which is influenced by environmental conditions.
In 2019, the mining industry contributed over 300 million dollars to government revenue. The whole industry contributed around 2.2 billion dollars to the
national economy
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, ce ...
in the same period. However, a drop in diamond and uranium production caused a contraction of 11,1%. Lower mineral commodity prices led to the declining expenditure on exploration.
In 2006,
manganese
Manganese is a chemical element with the symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of industrial alloy use ...
, diamond, and
fluorspar
Fluorite (also called fluorspar) is the mineral form of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It belongs to the halide minerals. It crystallizes in isometric cubic habit, although octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon.
The Mohs scal ...
output increased by 158%, 24%, and 15%, respectively, compared with that of 2005, and copper, lead, wollastonite, and zinc posted significant production declines.
The increase in manganese was attributable to the expansion of production at the reopened Purity Mine (formerly the Otjisondu Mine). The decline in copper output could be attributed in part to instability during the transition of ownership of Ongopolo Mining and Processing Ltd. Lead and zinc output declined in part because of a short strike by workers at the
Rosh Pinah mine
The Rosh Pinah mine is a mine near Rosh Pinah in the ǁKaras Region of southern Namibia. It is one of the largest and most important lead and zinc mines in Namibia. The mine is located in the extreme southwest, about north of the Orange River and ...
.
Employment
In 2019, the mining industry paid over 300 million dollars in wages and salaries and provided 16,324 direct jobs with 9,027 permanent employees. Temporary jobs figured out 800, while 6,515 were contractor jobs.
In February 2020, mining operations were suspended at Tschudi because the oxide ore body was depleted, provocating the loss of 66 direct contractor jobs. For the same cause, mining operations ceased at Skorpion Zinc, and the mine closed due to safety concerns. Around 1,500 jobs were lost.
Depending on economic up and downswings, mining provided for around 6,000 to 8,000 direct jobs between 2007 and 2014. The artisans for the industry are educated in the
Namibian Institute of Mining and Technology
The Namibian Institute of Mining and Technology (NIMT) is a technical vocational training institute in Arandis, Namibia, established in 1991. It had 4,000 students and 270 staff , Eckhart Mueller was its executive director until he was murdere ...
Keetmanshoop
Keetmanshoop is a city in the ǁKaras Region of southern Namibia, lying on the Trans-Namib Railway from Windhoek to Upington in South Africa. It is named after Johann Keetman, a German industrialist and benefactor of the city.
History
Befo ...
University of Namibia
The University of Namibia (UNAM) is a multi-campus public research university in Namibia, as well as the largest university in the country. It was established by an act of Parliament on 31 August 1992.
Background
UNAM comprises the follow ...
(UNAM)'s Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology in
Ongwediva
Ongwediva is a town in the Oshana Region in the north of Namibia. It is the district capital of the Ongwediva electoral constituency. it had 27,000 inhabitants and covered 4,102 hectares of land. Ongwediva has seven churches, two private sch ...
.
Namibia University of Science and Technology
The Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST), formerly known as Polytechnic of Namibia, is a public university located in the city of Windhoek, Namibia. Andrew Niikondo is its acting vice-chancellor. NUST was headed by the founding ...
(NUST)'s Faculty of Engineering in
Windhoek
Windhoek (, , ) is the capital and largest city of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around above sea level, almost exactly at the country's geographical centre. The population of Windhoek in 20 ...
also provides mining education.
Structure of the mineral industry
The Government encourages private sector exploration and development according to guidelines set out in its 2003 paper entitled "The Mineral Policy of Namibia". The Ministry of Mines and Energy and its Diamond Affairs, Energy, and Mining Directorates regulate Namibia’s mining and petroleum industries, and the Ministry concerns itself with the provision of national exploration and mining databases and competitive exploration and mining policy and regulations. The Ministry of Trade and Industry is responsible for regulating manufacturing activity, which includes mineral beneficiation, the production of cement, and the processing of semiprecious stones; the Ministry also promotes resource-based development.Epangelo Mining is a mining company owned by
the government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
. It was founded in 2009 with the aim to govern the rights on six mineral resources that are deemed
strategic
Strategy (from Greek στρατηγία ''stratēgia'', "art of troop leader; office of general, command, generalship") is a general plan to achieve one or more long-term or overall goals under conditions of uncertainty. In the sense of the "art ...
for Namibia, and for which new exploration rights must be held by government. The six resources are:
diamond
Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the Chemical stability, chemically stable form of car ...
s,
gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...
,
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal is formed when dea ...
,
uranium
Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...
,
copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...
, and
rare earth mineral
A rare-earth mineral contains one or more rare-earth elements as major metal constituents. Rare-earth minerals are usually found in association with alkaline to peralkaline igneous complexes, in pegmatites associated with alkaline magmas and in o ...
s.
The larger mining operations in Namibia tended to be funded and operated by domestic and international investors. Numerous local operations were involved in smaller-scale industrial mineral production, especially the semiprecious gemstone sector.
Commodities
Cement
Cement had been imported since the closure of the Otjiwarongo factory of African Portland Cement several years ago. Holcim (Namibia) (Pty.) Ltd., which was owned by Holcim S.A. of Switzerland, 54%, and the Aveng Group of South Africa, 46% (and known as Alpha Cement prior to 2004), imported about 25,000 metric tons per month of cement to meet local demand. In 2005, Cheetah Cement Factory, which was a joint venture of Whale Rock Cement of Namibia and CP Cimento e Participacoes S.A. of Brazil, proposed to import cement from Brazil until a 500,000-t/yr-capacity cement plant near Otjiwarongo was built. In late 2005,
Cheetah Cement
The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large Felidae, cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the Fastest animals, fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as suc ...
imported 36,000 metric tons of cement from Brazil.
Ohorongo Cement
Ohorongo Cement is a cement factory on farm Sargberg near Otavi in the Otjozondjupa Region of Namibia. It is one of two Namibian cement factories and has a production capacity of per annum.
The ground breaking ceremony for the construction of ...
near
Otavi
Otavi is a town of 4,000 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of central Namibia. Situated 360 km north of Windhoek, it is the district capital of the Otavi electoral constituency.
Geography
The towns of Otavi, Tsumeb (to the north) and Gro ...
started production in 2010. Cheetah Cement also got a factory in 2018, so that there is now an oversupply of cement to the Namibian market.
Copper
In 2006, Weatherly International plc of the United Kingdom agreed to acquire 56% interest in financially distressed Ongopolo; Weatherly subsequently increased its equity interest in the company to 100%. Ongopolo operated the Kombat, the Matchless, and the Otjihase Mines. Ongopolo suspended operations at the Tsumeb copper smelter in mid-2006, relined the 30,000-metric-ton-per-year (t/yr)-capacity reverberatory furnace, and reopened the smelter in August. A second reverberatory furnace at Tsumeb remained inactive, pending renovation.
Ongopolo evaluated the development of an underground mine at the Tschudi copper-silver prospect. Other copper exploration activity in Namibia included that of Copper Resources Corp. of South Africa on the Haib project, Helio Resource Corp. of Canada on the Honib prospect, Teck Cominco Ltd. of Canada on the Kaoko project, and Yale Resources Ltd. of Canada on the Leicester prospect.
Companies that explored for gold in 2006 included
Forsys Metals Corp.
Forsys Metals is a Canadian mining company with gold and uranium operations in Namibia, particularly the Norasa uranium project.
As of November 2011 the company had market capitalization of about CDN$55 million.
Forsys was listed on the Toronto ...
of Canada on the Ondundu prospect, Teal Exploration & Mining Inc. of Canada on the Otjikoto prospect, and Teck Cominco on the Vredelus prospect. Yale Resources worked on the Makuru (also known as the Otjimakuru) project. , the only operational gold mine in Namibia is the Navachab Gold Mine.Country report: Namibia AngloGold Ashanti website, accessed: 8 August 2010
Now new company called Auryx Gold Namibia was formed and exploring the Otjikoto Gold deposit
Diamond
Diamond remained the most economically significant mineral commodity produced by the mining industry of Namibia. The country produced about 2% of the world’s gem-quality diamonds, which placed it as the eighth-ranked producer of gem diamond in terms of value. Diamonds contributed N$2,5 billion (US$235 million) in revenue to the government in 2013.
In 2020, the Bank of Namibia forecasted a record decline of 24.6% in real terms due to a lower demand caused by
COVID-19 outbreak
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...
. The president of the Chamber of Mines of Namibia Zebra Kasete said the decline in demand dampened the flow in the diamond pipeline.
Namdeb Diamond Corp. (Pty.) Ltd., which was a joint venture between De Beers Centenary AG and the Namibian Government, with each having 50%, was the country’s leading diamond producer. During 2006, Namdeb, its contractors, and its subsidiaries produced more than . The partners also negotiated the Namdeb Sales Agreement in 2006, which created the Namibia Diamond Trading Co., to sort and value the volume of Namdeb’s production that would be marketed to the domestic diamond-cutting industry.
Granite
Granite
Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...
is mined in Walvis Bay.
Iron
Lodestone’s
Dordabis
Dordabis is a settlement in the Khomas Region of central Namibia, 80 km east of the capital Windhoek
Windhoek (, , ) is the capital and largest city of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around ...
iron ore mine is a small mine that produced 4,000 tons of low-grade
iron ore
Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the fo ...
when it started in 2015. It is Namibia’s only iron mine and also produces
magnetite
Magnetite is a mineral and one of the main iron ores, with the chemical formula Fe2+Fe3+2O4. It is one of the oxides of iron, and is ferrimagnetic; it is attracted to a magnet and can be magnetized to become a permanent magnet itself. With the ...
and
hematite
Hematite (), also spelled as haematite, is a common iron oxide compound with the formula, Fe2O3 and is widely found in rocks and soils. Hematite crystals belong to the rhombohedral lattice system which is designated the alpha polymorph of . ...
products. Ohorongo uses the magnetite of this mine for cement manufacturing. Lodestone mine yielded 91,000 tons of iron ore between 2015 and 2022.
Lead and zinc
Contributing to the decline in Namibian zinc output in 2006 was the nearly 3-week fire-related suspension of zinc metal production operations at the Skorpion zinc facility and a strike at the Rosh Pinah Mine for higher wages, which lasted for about 2 weeks and adversely affected lead and zinc concentrate production. Kumba Resources Ltd. of South Africa proposed to reduce its 89.5% equity interest in Rosh Pinah to about 50%. A local investor group, which included PE Minerals (Namibia) (Pty.) Ltd., was expected to acquire Kumba’s divested interest.
Marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...
is mined near Karibib.
Petroleum
Offshore petroleum activity included exploration on Block 1711 by the joint venture of Z.A.O. Sintezneftegas of Russia (70%), Petroleum, Oil & Gas Corp. of South Africa ( PetroSA) (10%), EnerGulf Resources Inc. of the United States (10%), and the
National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, ce ...
(NAMCOR) (7%). Onshore exploration included that of the joint venture of Circle Oil Namibia Ltd. (90%) and NAMCOR (10%). In 2006, Mitusi Atlantic Energy BV (15%) joined the joint venture of
BHP
BHP Group Limited (formerly known as BHP Billiton) is an Australian multinational mining, metals, natural gas petroleum public company that is headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
The Broken Hill Proprietary Company was founded ...
of Australia (75%) and PetroSA (10%), which held Blocks 2813A, 2814B, and 2914.
Phosphate
The
Sandpiper
Sandpipers are a large family, Scolopacidae, of waders. They include many species called sandpipers, as well as those called by names such as curlew and snipe. The majority of these species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil. ...
phosphate
In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthophosphoric acid .
The phosphate or orthophosphate ion is derived from phospho ...
mine is a planned activity on the seabed of the
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
Salt
Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quantitie ...
is produced at the Atlantic coast of Namibia through solar evaporation of sea water. There are two major producers. Walvis Bay Salt produces around 1 million tons per annum, both for the chemical industry and, under the "Cerebos" brand, for domestic use. Salt Company Swakopmund produces only table salt. The annual production is approximately 120,000 tons, the salt is marketed as "Light Flow".
Uranium
Namibia was the sixth ranked producer of uranium, producing about 8% of the world’s uranium in 2006. Due to the opening of the Langer Heinrich Uranium (LHU) mine in 2007, the country in 2009 had raised its share to nearly 10%, but when Uranium prices fell after the Fukushima incident production was reduced. In 2012, Namibia produced 7.1% of Uranium oxide, behind
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, and
Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languages Some of the factual statements are only available in the offline version of this article.
Rössing Uranium Ltd. processed about 12 million metric tons of ore in 2006 and produced 3,617 t of U3O8. Production was exported to the Asia and the Pacific, the European, and the North American markets by Rio Tinto Uranium; Rössing shareholders had no offtake rights.
Earlier this decade, Rössing had announced that the Rössing Mine would be closed in 2009. By 2005, the increase in the world market price of uranium allowed Rössing to plan to extend operations to 2016. In 2006, positive exploration results and continued favorable uranium market conditions allowed Rössing to propose that the mine’s life could be extended to 2021.
In late 2006, Paladin Resources Ltd. commissioned the Langer Heinrich uranium (LHU) mine and oxide (U3O8, or yellowcake) plant. LHU produced 1 170 tonnes of processed uranium called yellow cake in 2009. This mine is under care and maintenance since 2018, awaiting higher uranium prices.
Exploration activity and evaluation of uranium mineralization in Namibia in 2006 included that of Bannerman Resources Ltd. of Australia on the Goanikontes and Swakop River prospects, Extract Resources Ltd. of Australia on the
Husab Uranium Project
The Husab Mine, also known as the Husab Uranium Project, is a uranium mine near the town of Swakopmund in the Erongo region of western-central Namibia. The mine is located approximately from Walvis Bay. The Husab Mine is expected to be the seco ...
, Forsys Metals on the Valencia project, Metals Australia Ltd. of Australia (formerly Australian United Gold Ltd.) on the Engo Valley and Mile 72 projects, Rössing Uranium on the SH and SK anomalies on Rössing’s mining lease near Arandis, UranMin Inc. on the Trekkopje deposit, and Western Australian Metals Ltd. of Australia on the Marinica project. In early 2006, Xemplar Energy Corp. of Canada acquired Namura Minerals Resources (Pty.) Ltd., which held the Aus, the Cape Cross, and the Warmbad uranium projects. Namura subsequently acquired a reconnaissance license in the Engo Valley area.
Mining towns
Several towns and settlements in Namibia were established solely for mining. Some of them are today ghost towns, and some are in danger of becoming one due to a lack of diversification of economic activities. The major mining towns in Namibia are:
* Arandis was established in 1978 for the workers of the Rössing uranium mine and until 1992 administered by its owner, Rössing Uranium Limited. The settlement was then handed over to the newly established Government of Namibia, and gained 'town' status in 1994. Arandis is close to three of Namibia's biggest mines: Rössing uranium, Husab Mine, and
Trekkopje mine
The Trekkopje mine is a shallow open pit mine which has been under care and maintenance since 2012. It is located at Trekkopje in the western part of Namibia in Erongo Region. Trekkopje represents one of the largest uranium reserves in Namibia, h ...
, all of which extract uranium. It is also the home of the
Namibian Institute of Mining and Technology
The Namibian Institute of Mining and Technology (NIMT) is a technical vocational training institute in Arandis, Namibia, established in 1991. It had 4,000 students and 270 staff , Eckhart Mueller was its executive director until he was murdere ...
.
* Karibib is close to the Navachab Gold Mine, by far the largest employer in town. It is also strategically situated for road and rail transport; 1,000 trucks pass the town per day. Marble is also mined near Karibib.
* Otjiwarongo services the
B2Gold mine
B, or b, is the second letter of the Latin-script alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''bee'' (pronounced ), plural ''bees''. It rep ...
which is the largest employer in the Otjozondjupa region. There is also the Okorusu
fluorspar
Fluorite (also called fluorspar) is the mineral form of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It belongs to the halide minerals. It crystallizes in isometric cubic habit, although octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon.
The Mohs scal ...
mine north of the town. Mining overall constitutes 20% of the town's economy.
*
Oranjemund
Oranjemund (German for ''"Mouth of Orange"'') is a diamond mining town of 4,000 inhabitants situated in the ǁKaras Region of the extreme southwest of Namibia, on the northern bank of the Orange River mouth at the border to South Africa.
Histo ...
was established in 1928 when rich
alluvial
Alluvium (from Latin ''alluvius'', from ''alluere'' 'to wash against') is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluv ...
diamond deposits were discovered north of the
Orange River
The Orange River (from Afrikaans/Dutch: ''Oranjerivier'') is a river in Southern Africa. It is the longest river in South Africa. With a total length of , the Orange River Basin extends from Lesotho into South Africa and Namibia to the north ...
. Industrial diamond mining started in 1935 by the diamond mining company
Consolidated Diamond Mines
Consolidated may refer to:
*Consolidated (band)
**''¡Consolidated!'', a 1989 extended play
*Consolidated Aircraft (later Convair), an aircraft manufacturer
*Consolidated city-county
*Consolidated Communications
* Consolidated school district
*Con ...
(today Namdeb). Houses for workers were erected in 1936. Oranjemund was privately owned, run and subsidised by the mining company and had no political leadership. The first mayor was elected in 2015 after the settlement was handed over to the Government of Namibia and declared a town in 2011. The entire area along the shore of the
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...
had been proclaimed restricted (the '' Sperrgebiet'') in 1908 due to the occurrence of
alluvial
Alluvium (from Latin ''alluvius'', from ''alluere'' 'to wash against') is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluv ...
diamonds. Since then the public was forbidden to enter it, and Oranjemund itself was accessible only for mine workers and their families. Entrance to town required an invitation from within, and crossing the border from
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
required prior application. Only in 2017 was the town opened to the general public.
*
Rosh Pinah
Rosh Pinah is a mining town located in southern Namibia, close to the border with South Africa. It is situated south of Keetmanshoop in Namibia's ǁKaras Region. West of the town lies Sperrgebiet, Diamond Area 1, the main diamond mining area of ...
is home to, and entirely dependent on, two mines, both mainly extracting zinc and lead. The
Rosh Pinah mine
The Rosh Pinah mine is a mine near Rosh Pinah in the ǁKaras Region of southern Namibia. It is one of the largest and most important lead and zinc mines in Namibia. The mine is located in the extreme southwest, about north of the Orange River and ...
was established in 1969 and has since then been in continuous operation.
Skorpion Zinc
Skorpion Zinc is a zinc mine in the ǁKaras Region of southern Namibia, producing Special High Grade (SHG) zinc. The mine is situated near Rosh Pinah. It was established at a cost of US$450 million by Anglo American in 2003. It is the tenth-larg ...
opened in 2001 and is the eighth-largest zinc mine in the world. It employs 1,900 people.
* Tsumeb is situated directly on a large mineralised pipe which was mined since prehistoric times. The town was founded as a mining and smelting town and until today runs an annual Copper Festival. The Tsumeb mine operated from 1907 to 1996, extracting copper, lead, zinc, gold,
germanium
Germanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ge and atomic number 32. It is lustrous, hard-brittle, grayish-white and similar in appearance to silicon. It is a metalloid in the carbon group that is chemically similar to its group neighbors s ...
and
cadmium
Cadmium is a chemical element with the symbol Cd and atomic number 48. This soft, silvery-white metal is chemically similar to the two other stable metals in group 12, zinc and mercury. Like zinc, it demonstrates oxidation state +2 in most of ...
Uis UIS may refer to:
*Uis, a village in Erongo Region, Namibia
*Underwater Inspection System, a component of the Underwater Port Security System developed for the United States Coast Guard
*Universal Interactive Studios (now Vivendi Games)
*University ...
was established in 1958 as workers' settlement to exploit local
tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal.
Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, t ...
deposits. Mining started in 1960 and grew to be the world's largest
open cast
Open-pit mining, also known as open-cast or open-cut mining and in larger contexts mega-mining, is a surface mining technique of extracting rock or minerals from the earth from an open-air pit, sometimes known as a borrow.
This form of mining ...
tin mine. Yield was very low, and the mine was sustainable only because South Africa was economically isolated due to its
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
politics. When sanctions were lifted in 1990, the Uis mine was no longer viable. In the 2010s investments and work started again at the old mine.
Rosh Pinah mine
The Rosh Pinah mine is a mine near Rosh Pinah in the ǁKaras Region of southern Namibia. It is one of the largest and most important lead and zinc mines in Namibia. The mine is located in the extreme southwest, about north of the Orange River and ...
, zinc and lead mine in
Rosh Pinah
Rosh Pinah is a mining town located in southern Namibia, close to the border with South Africa. It is situated south of Keetmanshoop in Namibia's ǁKaras Region. West of the town lies Sperrgebiet, Diamond Area 1, the main diamond mining area of ...
Skorpion Zinc
Skorpion Zinc is a zinc mine in the ǁKaras Region of southern Namibia, producing Special High Grade (SHG) zinc. The mine is situated near Rosh Pinah. It was established at a cost of US$450 million by Anglo American in 2003. It is the tenth-larg ...
mine in
Rosh Pinah
Rosh Pinah is a mining town located in southern Namibia, close to the border with South Africa. It is situated south of Keetmanshoop in Namibia's ǁKaras Region. West of the town lies Sperrgebiet, Diamond Area 1, the main diamond mining area of ...
fluorspar
Fluorite (also called fluorspar) is the mineral form of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It belongs to the halide minerals. It crystallizes in isometric cubic habit, although octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon.
The Mohs scal ...
B2Gold mine
B, or b, is the second letter of the Latin-script alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''bee'' (pronounced ), plural ''bees''. It rep ...
, an open-pit gold mine established in 2014 and owned by
B2Gold
B2Gold Corporation is a Canadian mining company that owns and operates gold mines in Mali, Namibia and the Philippines. The company is headquartered in Vancouver, and was founded in 2007, and was then listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, then lat ...
. It is located approximately northwest of Otjiwarongo and southwest of
Otavi
Otavi is a town of 4,000 inhabitants in the Otjozondjupa Region of central Namibia. Situated 360 km north of Windhoek, it is the district capital of the Otavi electoral constituency.
Geography
The towns of Otavi, Tsumeb (to the north) and Gro ...
Related to the mining industry, the main legislation is the Minerals (Prospecting and Mining) Act 33 of 1992 (Minerals Act). In the terms of this act, owners of the land don't have mining rights because natural resources belong to the state. For getting the right prospect or mine an area, a mining license or a mining claim is required, provided by the Minister of Mines and Energy of Namibia.
Namibia’s mining industry is regulated by the Diamond Act, 1999; the Minerals (Prospecting and Mining) Act, 1992; and the Minerals Development Fund of Namibia Act of 1996. The petroleum sector is governed by the Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Act, 1991; the Petroleum (Taxation) Act, 1991; the Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Amendment Act, 1993; the Petroleum Laws Amendment Act, 1998; the Model Petroleum Agreement, 1998; and the Petroleum Products and Energy Amendment Act, 2000.Philip M. Mobbs "The Mineral Industry of Namibia" ''2006
Minerals Yearbook
The ''Minerals Yearbook'' is an annual publication from the United States Geological Survey. It reviews the mineral
In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid chemical compound with a fairly well-def ...
''.
U.S. Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and ...
(April 2008). ''This article incorporates text from this U.S. government source, which is in the
public domain
The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work
A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...
.''
In 2006, the Government confirmed a royalty schedule that originally had been introduced in 2004. A 3% royalty was levied on the market value of base, precious, and rare metals and nonnuclear mineral fuels. A 2% royalty was levied on industrial minerals and nuclear mineral fuels.
In Namibia, mining legislation is under revision. According to the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals, and Sustainable Development (IGF), Namibia counts with a strong regulation around the development of environmental impact assessments and environmental management plans through the Environmental Management Act. However, legislation on occupational health and safety, and water and waste management is outdated.Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals, and Sustainable Development (2018). IGF MINING POLICY FRAMEWORK ASSESSMENT. Namibia '.
International Institute for Sustainable Development
The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is an independent think tank founded in 1990 working to shape and inform international policy on sustainable development governance. The institute has three offices in Canada - Win ...
.
Environmental legislation related to mining
Environmental Management Act 7 of 2007 promotes the sustainable management of the environment and the use of natural resources. This act gives the Minister of Environment and Tourism the authority to regulate activities that could damage the environment. Activities of mining and exploration require a certificate of an environmental commissioner.
Labour legislation related to mining
Labour legislation for mining consists of Labour Act 11 of 2007 and Labour Act of 1992. The Labour Act, 2007 requires a safe working environment, and without risk to the health of employees; safe plants, machinery, and systems of work; and safe use, handling, storage, and transportation of articles or substances. Labour Act, 1992 relates to the health and safety of workspace. It sets requirements for medical surveillance, first-aid and emergency arrangements, and safety of machinery, welfare, and facilities in the workplace.