Zuko Komisa

Vantage Goldfields has been permitted to reopen the Lily and Barbrook gold mines in Mpumalanga under Section 11 of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA) of 2002 by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE).
The 2016 incident at Lily Mine involved three mineworkers (Solomon Nyirenda, Pretty Nkambule and Yvonne Mnisi), who had fallen from the ground and became trapped below in a container. They were killed, and their remains were never found.
Following a meeting with stakeholders including Vantage Goldfields, the Lomshiyo Traditional Council, the Business Rescue Practitioner, organized labor, and government officials, Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe declared the mine’s reopening. Mantashe cautioned during the meeting that this is not a time for festivities in honor of the reopening.
“The company is expected to sink a decline/shaft to gain access to the underground workings to retrieve the container and the three missing employees at Lily mine, [We] all agree that at the centre of our work is to re-open Lily mine, retrieve the bodies and bring closure to the affected families and fellow mineworkers.
“Despite the approval of the section 11 which paves the way for the re-opening of the mines and retrieval of the containers, this is not the time for celebrations, but the time for us to put more efforts and ensure that the mines re-open in the shortest possible time.”
Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE).
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