Zimpapers Logo

Tinashe Makichi
Zimbabwe’s largest gold mining group, Metallon gold has undertaken a management reshuffling exercise targeted at improving the company’s operations.Mr Kenneth Mekani who was serving as the general manager for the group’s flagship asset, How Mine, has been appointed as the new designate group chief executive.

Mr Mark Tsomondo who was serving as the chief operations officer has been reassigned to position of director for geology and new business.
Metallon gold head of corporate affairs Mr Zenzo Nsimbi said the move was undertaken to improve company operations.

“Mr Mekani is now the new designate chief executive for the group while Mr Tsomondo assumes a new position as director for geology and new business while Mr Isadore  Matunhire has not been moved therefore maintaining his position as technical director,” confirmed Mr Nsimbi.

Metallon in its September 2014 report revealed that expansion plans are underway for the company to become a mid-tier producer in the next five years while an additional pipeline of exploration and development projects backed by production growth and stable cash flows are underway as well.

Metallon is looking at developing its Motapa project which is a brownfield project with sands and sulphide-gold resources (in-house estimate of 2,4 million ounces.)

The mining group said there has been a successful ultrafine grinding metallurgical processing tested (the Albion process) and the project contains the richer Motapa camp deposits (3-10grammes per tonne) of Club, B&S, Fossicker, Pluvius and Jupiter.

According to the report, Metallon is expecting to increase production through efficient use of capacity and to ramp up production to 100 000 ounces per annum in 2014 from 82 000 ounces per annum in  2013.

The group is also looking at the reduction of all-in-costs to under $900 per ounce while returning to previous production levels of approximately 156 000 ounces per annum.

The mining group has set Shamva Hill, Mazowe and Redwing Mines as high priority targets.

Drilling at Midwinter and Motapa, Zimbabwe and exploration in Democratic Republic of Congo and Tanzania has been put under the company’s future exploration projects.

The mining group is currently planning to implement a five-year strategy to become a mid-tier gold producer of 200 000 ounces of gold a year by 2016.

Despite operational challenges, Metallon has managed to reduce costs and was also able to recover from the 2008 global recession, which significantly affected Zimbabwe.

With labour disputes and the difficulty of having to mine deeper in South Africa, mining in Zimbabwe has proven to be a good mining investment destination.

Metallon has been operating in Zimbabwe since 2002 and owns and operates four mines in the country, including How mine, Shamva mine, Mazowe mine and Arcturus mine.