Eskom supplies Harmony with 75% power
Johannesburg. Sunday 27 January 2008. Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited (Harmony) today attended a meeting at Eskom’s Megawatt Park offices where other senior executives from industrial and mining companies were present.
The mining industry was notified that Eskom could only supply sufficient power to put the mines in “safemaking” mode. In addition, Eskom committed to giving the mining industry four hours prior notice of any impending black-outs. This situation is an improvement on the situation that existed in the past three days where no persons have been underground, except those on essential services.
Harmony has temporarily agreed to power rationing and is to be supplied with 75% of its normal average consumption in order to secure and make-safe its mines until Wednesday when another meeting will be held to discuss the build-up plan; in essence the possibility of increasing our power supply from 75% to 90%.
Harmony is presently strategising on how best to optimise our plants and operations with the amount of power we will be supplied. Harmony’s nightshift will go underground tonight and tomorrow to commence with making areas safe to resume production as soon as we are supplied with 90% energy. Elandsrand Gold Mine, which is currently Harmony’s biggest safety risk mine, sent workers underground this morning to begin with cleaning and safemaking.
We will endeavour to continue to update shareholders and stakeholders on the situation as it unfolds. The production and financial impacts will be estimated and communicated as soon a possible.
For more details contact:
Graham Briggs
Chief Executive Officer
+27(0)11 411 2012
+27 (0)83 265 0274
Amelia Soares
General Manager, Investor Relations
+27 11 411 2314
+27 (0)82 654 9241