Debswana sees bigger Orapa Mine running by 2022

The Cut 3 project involves the expansion of the 48-year-old Orapa Mine pit to access more resources currently unreachable. While little information has been made available on the project thus far, it is known that the project will involve the removal of 96 million tonnes of waste to access the new orebody. By comparison, the Cut 8 project at Jwaneng involved the stripping of more than 700 million tonnes of waste to access 95 million carats.

Debswana group manager for mining, Len Dimbungu said at present, the focus was on progressing studies into Cut 3 from pre-feasibility to feasibility.