Highlights
Underground decline development continues with 76m of underground development completed to date.
Surface infrastructure and 100tph plant earthworks and civils construction continues
50 cases of COVID-19 are confirmed in
Newfield Executive Director,
Immediate Impact of Pandemic on Operations
The GoSL has implemented various emergency measures to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, including curfews and in-country travel restrictions. However, the Company has been granted permission to continue work within the constraints of various lockdown measures. Whilst expatriate staff are currently unable to rotate in and out of
The Company has accordingly reviewed and updated its emergency response policy and procedures, and all staff are being briefed on new operating standards which comply with emergency requirements of the GoSL and recommendations of the WHO. This includes work site entry and exit health assessments, distancing protocols, additional hand washing facilities, information updates and personal and family health practices. After the practices were enthusiastically adopted by the work force, they were briefed to the wider community via well-attended special briefing and awareness sessions and easy to understand visual aids. This ongoing education process is helping reduce the risk of local spread of the COVID-19 virus should it arrive within the local community. Quarantine quarters have been identified on the mine should they be required
Underground development drill and blast operations continue, and to date the decline development has advanced some 76m. The ongoing development of the 6m x 4m decline tunnel is critical to the project progress, as each blast brings us closer to the first ore stopes. Whilst supply chain delivery of spares and consumable items has been severely impacted by interim limitations imposed by local and international institutions, the Company presaged these restrictions and made special arrangements before the limitations were implemented, such that it is possible to continue underground development operations, at least for the short term. The development work at Tongo therefore continues within the constraints of the new COVID-19 safe working protocols. Progress has been achieved with 133 LTI free days as at the
Mine infrastructure construction continued with good progress made on the 100 tph plant earthworks foundations and civils. Furthermore, construction continued on mine administrative offices, the site clinic and establishment of a potable water supply at the main camp and mine site. At the mine site, the change house, lamp room and offices approach completion. Supply chain delivery of construction and mining materials is now experiencing tightening and is likely to delay completion of some of these structures. The likely impact of such delays on the overall project programme is being actively monitored as events unfold in
METC Engineering of
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