The contract is scheduled to commence at the beginning of July 2025 and will run until 2030 marking a significant long-term investment in the country’s growing copper sector. JCHX will assume operations from Barminco, an Australian contractor that has held the underground mining services contract at Khoemacau since December 2019. Barminco’s initial five-year agreement, valued at $800 million, was extended last year to June 2025, with approximately A$240 million remaining in value. Upon contract completion, Barminco is expected to sell all onsite equipment to Khoemacau Copper Mining.
Sources close to the matter indicate that the new agreement with JCHX was primarily driven by cost effectiveness, particularly in light of Khoemacau's planned expansion. “The transition is expected to help streamline operations whilst maintaining production targets at lower costs,” a source noted. In preparation for the changeover, Khoemacau recently issued a public call for general labourers, signalling the beginning of a recruitment phase. BusinessWeek has established that the new hires will be integrated into the existing workforce, retaining experienced Barminco employees whilst also creating new employment opportunities for Batswana. “With the incoming contractor, more Batswana will be absorbed whilst some of the Australians who were working for Barminco will go to other Barminco sites,” said the source. The transition signals a strategic shift in operations at Khoemacau at the project moves into its next phase of developments. The development comes a year after a Chinese state majority firm, MMG acquired Khoemacau mine to the tune of $1.7 billion (P23.2billion).
