 Panorama of Sishen Mine (2010) | |
| Location | |
|---|---|
| Location | Kathu |
| Northern Cape | |
| Country | South Africa |
| Production | |
| Products | Iron ore |
| Production | 29.2 MT |
| Financial year | 2019 |
| History | |
| Opened | 1953 |
The Sishen mine is a large iron mine located in central South Africa in Kathu, Northern Cape. Sishen represents one of the largest iron ore reserves in South Africa and in the world having estimated reserves of 2.43 billion tonnes of ore grading 58.6% iron metal.[1][2]
The Sishen mine has a geological structure producing a high-grade hematite ore, similar to those at the Beeshoek mine. There has been an investigation into a region known as the Sishen South exploration project which is 65 km south of the Sishen mine.[3] Hematite mineralization occurs along a strike length of 14 km, with a width of 3.2 km and a maximum vertical extent of 400 m below the original topographic surface.[4]
The Sishen mine was opened in 1947, and produced 30.9 million tonnes of iron ore in 2013.[5] In 2015, the mine produced far less and quarter on quarter results in 2016 show a decline in output.[6] In 2016, Kumba Iron Ore began the process of cutting nearly 4000 jobs in an attempt to restructure the Sishen mine and ensure profitability.[7]
The Sishen–Saldanha railway line that moves ore from the mines to international markets at the port of Saldanha is notable for the length of the 3,780 meter long trains that carry the ore.
- ^ "Sishen Mine, Northern Cape, South Africa". mining-technology.com. 2012. Retrieved 2013-06-10.
- ^ "Kumba's mineral resources including ore reserves". kumba.co.za. 2012. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
- ^ Carney, M. D.; Mienie, P. J. (2003-04-01). "A geological comparison of the Sishen and Sishen South (Welgevonden) iron ore deposits, Northern Cape Province, South Africa". Applied Earth Science. 112 (1): 81–88. doi:10.1179/0371745032501171. ISSN 0371-7453. S2CID 128539593.
- ^ Stoch, B.; Anthonissen, C. J.; McCall, M-J.; Basson, I. J.; Deacon, J.; Cloete, E.; Botha, J.; Britz, J.; Strydom, M. (2018-08-01). "3D implicit modeling of the Sishen Mine: new resolution of the geometry and origin of Fe mineralization". Mineralium Deposita. 53 (6): 835–853. Bibcode:2018MinDe..53..835S. doi:10.1007/s00126-017-0784-y. ISSN 1432-1866. S2CID 133813594.
- ^ "Iron ore: seeking a second Sishen". Financial Mail. Archived from the original on 16 March 2014. Retrieved 2016-07-21.
- ^ Creamer, Martin. "Kumba Iron Ore sales down". Retrieved 2016-07-21.
- ^ "Kumba Iron Ore to cut 3,933 jobs in South Africa's Sishen mine restructuring process". Mining Technology. 2016-01-28. Retrieved 2016-07-21.