LIST OF TABLES:
Table 1 Recent Hike In Excise And Import DutiesTable 2 Gold
jewelry consumption by country in tonesTable 3 legal and
administration law of mining in south africaTable 4 PESTLE
analysis
LIST OF FIGURES:Fig 1 A Swiss-cast 1 kggold barFig 2 a map of
South Africa where gold industry locatedFig 3 a gold pieceFig 4
Gold is commonly formed into bars for use in monetary exchangeFig 5
Mochegold necklace depicting feline heads.Larco MuseumCollection.
Lima-PeruFig 6 TheTurin Papyrus MapFig 7 Funerary maskof
TutankhamenFig 8 Jasonreturns with the golden fleece on
anApulianred-figurecalyx kraterFig 9 Ancient Greek golden decorated
crown, funerary or marriage materialFig 10 The entrance to an
underground gold mine inVictoria,Australiafig 11 The Witwatersrand
BasinFig 12 The Layout of a Gold Mine
Fig 13 system analysis in miningFig 14 mining sub-sector
view
ABBREVIATIONSAAC Anglo-American CorporationAECI African
Explosives and Chemical IndustriesAGRS African Gold Recovery
SydicateAMM Association of Mine ManagersAS & TS Associated
Scientific and Technical Societies of South AfricaBIC Bushveld
Igneous ComplexBSAEC British South African Explosives CompanyC-P
Continuous and PureC-R Continuous and RivalCMMSSA Chemical,
Metallurgical and Mining Society of South AfricaCOMRO Chamber of
Mines Research OrganisationCOMSA Chamber of Mines of South
AfricaCORDIS Community Research and Development Information
ServiceCOST Co-operation in the field of Scientific and Technical
ResearchCPC Coal Producers CommitteeCSF Collective Supply
FunctionCT Cape TechnikonD-P Discrete and PureD-R Discrete and
RivalDASA Dental Association of South AfricaDBMC DeBeers Mining
CompanyEMMC Empire Mining and Metallurgical CongressERPM East Rand
Proprietary MinesESCOM Electricity Supply CommissionESS
Evolutionary Stable StrategyEU European UnionEUREKA Pan-European
network for market-oriented, industrial research and developmentFER
Far East RandFRI Fuel Research InstituteFWR Far West RandGFSA Gold
Fields South AfricaGPC Gold Producers CommitteeGS of SA Geological
Survey of South AfricaGSSA Geological Society of South AfricaHSRC
Human Sciences Research CouncilICT Information and Communication
TechnologyINUS Insufficeint, but Necessary part of a complex of
conditions which together are Unnecessary but Sufficient for the
effectIRC Research CommitteeISCOR Iron and Steel CorporationIMSSA
Institute of Mine Surveyors of South AfricaJCI Johannesburg
Consolidated Investment CorporationJCMMSA Journal of the Chemical,
Metallurgical and Mining Society of South AfricaJSAIE Journal of
the South African Institution of EngineersJSB Johannesburg Sanitary
BoardMASA Medical Association of South AfricaMIM Mining and
Industrial MagazineMLST Malukmahomed Lappa Sultan TechnikonMMOA
Mine Medical Officers AssociationMTC Mine Trials CommitteeMWU Mine
Workers UnionNCOS Natal Coal Owners SocietyNRC Native Recruiting
CorporationOFS Orange Free StatePET Port Elizabeth TechnikonPGSSA
Proceedings of the Geological Society of South AfricaPT Pretoria
TechnikonPUK Potchefstroom UniversityRCORC Rand Central Ore
Reduction CompanyRDIC Rock Drill Investigations CommitteeRGB
Research Grant BoardRMAC Rand Mutual Assurance CompanySA South
Africa / South AfricanSAAA South African Association of
AssayersSAAAS South African Association for the Advancement of
ScienceSABBSI South African Branch of the British Standards
InstituteSABS South African Bureau of StandardsSACI South African
Chemical InstituteSAICE South African Institute of Civil
EngineersSAIE South African Institution of EngineersSAIEE South
African Institution of Electrical EngineersSAIME South African
Institution of Mechanical EngineersSAIMM South African Institute of
Mining and MetallurgySAIMR South African Institute of Medical
ResearchSAMEJ South African Mining and Engineering JournalSAMJ
South African Medical JournalSTCIR Scientific and Technology
Committee on Industrial ResearchTAC Technical Advisory
CommitteeTCOA Transvaal Coal Owners AssociationTB TuberculosisTEBA
The Employment Bureau of AfricaTIME Transvaal Institution of
Mechanical EngineersTNU Transvaal National UnionTWR Technikon
WitwatersrandUCT University of Cape TownUFH University of Fort
HareUFS University of the Free StateUNISA University of South
AfricaUoN University of NatalUoP University of PretoriaUoS
University of StellenboschUSA United States of AmericaVFP Victoria
Falls Power CompanyWits University of the Witwatersrand
Introduction of South Africa
South Africa, officially theRepublic of South Africa, is a
country located at the southern tip ofAfrica. It has 2,798
kilometers (1,739mi) of coastline that stretches along the South
Atlantic and Indian oceans.To the north lie the neighboring
countries ofNamibia,Botswanaand Zimbabwe; to the east
areMozambiqueandSwaziland; and within it liesLesotho,
anenclavesurrounded by South African territory. South Africa is
the25th-largest countryin the world by land area, and with close
to53 million people, is the world's24th-most populous nation. South
Africa is amultiethnic societyencompassing a wide variety of
cultures, languages, and religions. Its pluralistic makeup is
reflected in the constitutions recognition of 11 official
languages, which is among the highest number of any country in the
world.Two of these languages are of European
origin:EnglishandAfrikaans, the latter originating fromDutchand
serving as the first language of mostwhiteandcolouredSouth
Africans. Though English is commonly used in public and commercial
life, it is only the fourth most-spoken first language. About 80
percent of South Africans are ofblack Africanancestry,divided among
a variety of ethnic groups speaking differentBantu languages, nine
of which have official status.The remaining population consists
ofAfrica's largest communities ofEuropean,Asian,
andmultiracialancestry. All ethnic and linguistic groups have
political representation in the country'sconstitutional democracy,
which comprises arepublican nine provinces. Since the end
ofapartheid, South Africa's unique multicultural character has
become integral to its national identity, as signified by
theRainbow Nationconcept. South Africa is ranked as an upper-middle
income economy by theWorld Bank, and is considered to be anewly
industrialized country. Its economy is the largest and most
developed in Africa and the 28th-largest in the world.In terms
ofpurchasing power parity, South Africa has theseventh-highest per
capita incomein Africa, although poverty and inequality remain
widespread, with about a quarter of the population unemployed and
living on less than US$1.25 a day.Nevertheless, South Africa has
been identified as amiddle powerin international affairs, and
maintains significant regional influence.
President: Jacob Zuma (Since 2009)
Total Area: 1,219,912 sq. Km (471008 sq. mi)Land: 1,214,470 sq
km Water: 4,620 sq km
Population: 48,810,427 (in 2012)
Capitals: Pretoria (Administartive Capital) Cape Town
(Legislative Capital) Bloemfontein (Judiciary Capital)
Government: Republic
Dialing Code: 27
Currency: South African rand
Languages: Afrikaans language, English language, Zulu language,
Sotho language, Tsonga language, Venda language, Swati language
etc. The nation of SA is ranked as an upper-middle income nation by
the World Bank, which makes the countryside one of the only four
countries in Africa stood in this category (the others being
Botswana, Gabon and Mauritius). About a quarter of the population
is unemployed and about the equal proportion lives on less than US
$1.25 a day. Advanced development is localized around four areas:
Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Durban, and PretoriaJohannesburg. Ahead
of these four economic centers, development is minor and poverty is
still widespread.. Consequently, majority of the South Africans are
poor, however, recently the key marginal areas are having rapid
growth. Those areas include Rustenburg area, Nelspruit area,
Bloemfontein, Mossel Bay Plettenberg Bay, Cape West Coast, and the
KwaZula-Natal North Coast.
POPULATION GROWTH RATE: (-0.38% (2011 EST)
BIRTH RATE: (19.48 Births/1000 Population (2011 EST)
DEATH RATE: (17.09 deaths/1000 population (July 2011 EST)
MEDIAN AGE: Total: 25 years Male: 24.7 years Female: 25.3
years
GEOGRAPHY OF SA Continent Africa Region Southern Africa
Coordinates 2900 S 2400 E Area Ranked 25th 1,221,037 km2 (471,445
sq mi) Indias GDP growth rate (2011-2012): 8.2% Growth of Mining
Industry in GDP (2011-2012)YearYear on year rates of growth(%) in
Mining
2010-20115.8
2011-20126.0
MINERAL & RESOURCES SAs mining industry has been and remains
a foundation of Africas economic powerhouse.
Policy & Initiatives Mining and minerals policy is based on
the principles of Freedom Charter, as per which the mineral wealth
below the layer of the soil will be transferred to the ownership of
the people as s whole.
African Mining Partnership (Amp) The African Mining Partnership
initiated in 2004 to further the New Partnership for Africas
Development (Nepad) objectives through mining and mineral
initiatives in the hunt of economic development in the
continent.
Mining Industry The discovery of world-class diamond and gold
deposits in the latter half of the nineteenth century laid the base
for the upcoming of South Africa, an essential agricultural land to
the modern industrial era.
Industrial Minerals There are some 674 producers of industrial
minerals in SA, of which about half are in the sand and aggregate
sector.
Transportation Electronic National Traffic Information System
(Enatis) Enatis is the official and legal register for all vehicle,
drivers license, and contravention and accident data.
Non-Motorized Transport (NMT) The promotion of NMT primarily
aims to increase transport movability and convenience, mainly in
rural part.
New Partnership for Africas Development (Nepad) From a
transports point of view, key issues in forming an effectively
co-ordinated African response to global market challenges are
market access, mobility and systems integration.
Public Entities And Other Agencies The Department of Transport
has established various different bodies to take over certain
elements of governments operational activities.
Toll Roads The current toll road network comprises about 19% (3
120 km) of the current natural road grid. Some 1 832 km of these
toll roads are managed by Sanral.
SA Maritime Safety Authority SAMSA is a statutory body which
reports to the Minister of Transports.
INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN SA
Automobile industry SA's automotive industry is a global,
turbo-charged for the making and export of vehicles and
components.
Power Frost & Sullivan analyst Ross Bruton said that
investment in renewable power in Africa, which totaled a mere
$3.6-billion by 2010, "is expected to grow to $57.72-billion by
2020.
Wind, solar, geothermal This noteworthy challenge does, however,
have a huge caliber upside. The need to give electrification to
remote communities is one of the key drivers of renewable energy
development on the continent.
New technologies New investments in the continents electricity
infra are also likely to incorporate new, smart technologies and
standards, which will see information and communication technology
(ICT) development going on alongside electrification.
SA Trade: Exports SAs primary export commodities include gold,
diamonds, platinum, other metals and minerals, machinery and
equipment. SAs exports were worth $67.93 billion in 2009, down from
$86.12 billion in 2008. 12
SA: Imports SAs primary import commodities include machinery and
equipment, chemicals, petroleum products, scientific instruments,
and food materials.
BALANCE OF PAYMENT SITUATION The SAn Reserve Bank released its
September 2010 Quarterly Bulletin on September 22, with details on
the balance of payments and the demand side of the nation.
IMPORT TAXES Value added tax (VAT) the valuation of imported
goods for VAT based on the f.o.b value plus 14 percent of that
value, plus any non rebated customs duty (Tariff plus
Surcharge).
SA RESTRICTIONS The following is a list of common products
restricted for import into the Republic of SA: Bank Notes Firearms
and Explosives Cheese Endangered Wildlife Medicine 13 General
Import Restrictions LICENSING All companies that are registered
with SAs department of trade and industry can participate in import
tread without a need to apply for unique trading rights. Licensing
are required for certain product these include shoes, waste
products, petroleum and certain agriculture products. NATION OF SA
SA is a middle-income, emerging market with an abundant supply of
natural resources; well-developed financial, legal, communications,
energy, and transport sectors; a stock exchange that is the 18th
largest in the world; and modern infrastructure supporting a
relatively efficient distribution of goods to major urban centers
throughout the region.
INTRODUCTION TO SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN SA Several important
scientific and technological developments have originated in SA
Cardiac surgeon Christian Barnard performed the first
human-to-human heart transplant at Groote Schuur Hospital in
December 1967. SAASTA The South African for science and Technology
Advancement aims to advance public awareness appreciation and
engagement in science, engineering and technology in South Africa
SAASTA is a business unit of the National Research Foundation.
OVERVIEW OF SAS S&T RESEARCHThe abolition of the apartheid
system in 199091, followed by the first free elections in 1994,
caused a change of emphasis and diminished activity in SAs S&T
sector. In recent years, SA has begun to rebuild its research
program. In recent years, SA has begun to rebuild its research
program. During the apartheid era, the government emphasized
military research, including nuclear weapons programs and energy
self-sufficiency, especially coal-to-liquid fuel conversion.
CURRENT TECHNOLOGY AVAILABLE IN SA
Innovation An innovation chasm between basic and applied
research prevents SA from converting basic research into consumer
products and services.
Biotechnology In biotechnology, most of SAs successes have been
in first-generation applications, namely the use of selected
biological organisms for agricultural production.
Advanced Manufacturing Technology/ICT SAs strategy for research
in advanced manufacturing technology focuses on applying innovative
methods to a number of industry sectors.
Nanotechnology In 2006 the Ministry of Science and Technology
announced SAs new National Nanotechnology Strategy. According to
this strategy, SA is dedicated to using nanotechnology to stimulate
not only industrial growth, but also social development.
PERCENTAGE OF GNP INVESTED IN RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT Science
and Technology Minister, Mr. Naledi Pandor showed his concern about
the decline in the percentage of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
spent by SA on Research and Development (R&D) in the 2007/8
financial year. Despite this increase, investment in R7D as a
percentage of GDP, declined slighlty to 0.93%, compared with 0.95%
in the previous year.
Marriage in South Africa Marriage in South Africaexists in a
number of different forms, as a result of the diversity of
religions and cultures in the country. Historically the legal
definition of marriage, derived from the Roman-Dutch law, was
limited to monogamous marriages between opposite-sex couples. Since
1998 the law has recognized marriages,
includingpolygynousmarriages, conducted under African customary
law,and in 2006 South Africa became the fifth country in the world
to allowsame-sex marriage. According to the 2011 census, 36.7% of
South Africans aged 20 or older was married. During the year 2011 a
total of 173,215 new marriages were recorded.
Gender Distribution in South Africa
Cuisines of South Africa Indigenous cookery Figure literally
translated "small pot food", is astewprepared outdoors in a
traditional round,cast iron, three-legged pot. This one is being
cooked on a barbecueIn the pre-colonial period, indigenous cuisine
was characterized by the use of a very wide range of foods
including fruits, nuts, bulbs, leaves and other products gathered
from wild plants and by the hunting of wild game. The introduction
of domestic cattle and grain crops by Bantu speakers who arrived in
the southern regions from central Africa since 10,000 BC and the
spread of cattle keeping toKhoisangroups enabled products and the
availability of fresh meat on demand. The pre-colonial diet
consisted primarily of cooked grains, especially sorghum, fermented
milk (somewhat like yogurt) and roasted or stewed meat. At some
point, maize replaced sorghum as the primary grain, and there is
some dispute as to whether maize, a Central American crop, arrived
with European settlers or spread through Africa before white
settlement via Africans returning from the Americas during the era
of the slave trade. People also kept sheep and goats, and
communities often organized vast hunts for the abundant game; but
beef was considered the absolutely most important and high status
meat. The ribs of any cattle that were slaughtered in many
communities were so prized that they were offered to the chief of
the village The vegetable is often some sort of pumpkin, varieties
of which are indigenous to South Africa, although now many people
eat pumpkins that originated in other countries.Riceandbeansare
also very popular even though they are not indigenous. Another
common vegetable dish, which arrived in South Africa with its many
Irish immigrants, but which has been adopted by South Africans, is
shredded cabbage and white potatoes cooked with butter. For many
South Africans have meat as the center of any meal. The Khoisan ate
roasted meat, and they also dried meat for later use. The influence
of their diet is reflected in the common Southern African love of
barbecue (generally called in South Africa by its Afrikaans name, a
"braai") and biltong (dried preserved meat). As in the past, when
men kept cattle as their prized possession in the rural areas,
South Africans have a preference for beef. Today, South Africans
enjoy not only beef, but mutton, goat, chicken and other meats as a
centerpiece of a meal. On weekends, many South African families,
like white South Africans, have a "braai," and the meal usually
consists of "pap and vleis," which is maize meal and grilled meat.
Eating meat even has a ritual significance in both traditional and
modern South African culture. For weddings, initiations, the
arrival of family members after a long trip and other special
occasions, families will buy a live animal and slaughter it at
home, and then prepare a large meal for the community or
neighborhood. Participants often say that spilling the blood of the
animal on the ground pleases deceased ancestors who invisibly
gather around the carcass. On holiday weekends, entrepreneurs will
set up pens of live animals along the main roads of townshipsmostly
sheep and goatsfor families to purchase, slaughter, cook and eat.
Beef being the most prized meat, for weddings, affluent families
often purchase a live steer for slaughter at home.Vegetarianismis
generally met with puzzlement among Black South Africans, although
most meals are served with vegetables such as pumpkin, beans and
cabbage.
Decline of indigenous cookery Urbanisationfrom the nineteenth
century onward, coupled with close control over agricultural
production, led Black South Africans to rely more and more on
comparatively expensive, industrially-processed foodstuffs like
wheat flour, white rice, mealie-meal (maize) and sugar. Before the
arrival of crops from the Americas,papwas mostly made from sorghum,
but maize is much more prevalent today. Often these foods were
imported or processed bywhitewholesalers, mills and factories. The
consequence was to drastically restrict the range of ingredients
and cooking styles used by indigenous cooks. Settler cookeryA piece
ofdrowors, a dried sausageSouth Africa was settled from the
seventeenth century onwards by colonists fromPortugal,
theNetherlands,Germany,France, and the United Kingdom. These
colonists brought European cookery styles with them.
TheAfrikanershave their succulentpotjiekos, tamatiebredie(tomato
bredie), or stews of lamb and mutton withtomatoandonionsauce, with
or withoutrice. There are many European contributions
likeDutchfried crueler orkoeksister,Malva Puddingandmelktert(milk
tart). FrenchHugenotsbrought wines as well as their traditional
recipes.During the pioneering days of the 17th century, new foods
such asbiltong,drowors(dried sausage) andrusksevolved locally out
of necessity.
Cape DutchA very distinctive regional style of South African
cooking is often referred to as "Cape Dutch". This cuisine is
characterized by the use of spices such asnutmeg,allspiceandchili
peppers. The Cape Dutch cookery style owes at least as much to the
cookery of theslaves brought by theDutch East India Companyto the
Cape fromBengal,JavaandMalaysiaas it does to the European styles of
cookery imported by settlers, and this is reflected in the use of
eastern spices and the names given to many of these dishes. The
Cape Malay influence has brought spicycurries,sambals, pickled
fish, and variety of fishstews.Bobotieis aSouth Africandish that
has Cape Malay origins. It consists of spicedminced meatbaked with
an egg-based topping. Of the many dishes common to South Africa,
bobotie is perhaps closest to being the national dish, because it
isn't made in any other country. The recipe originates from
theDutch East India Companycolonies inBatavia, with the name
derived from the Indonesianbobotok. It is also made with curry
powder leaving it with a slight "tang". It is often served
withsambal, a hint of its origins from theMalay Archipelago.
Indian cookeryAn example ofbunny chow, served in
Durban,KwaZulu-Natal.Currieddishes are popular with lemon juice in
South Africa among people of all ethnic origins; many dishes came
to the country with the thousands of Indianlaborers brought to
South Africa in the nineteenth century. The Indians have introduced
a different line of culinary practices, including a variety of
sweets,chutneys, fried snacks such assamosa, and other savory
foods.Bunny chowis a dish fromDurban, where there is a large Indian
community that has adapted into mainstream South African cuisine
and has become quite popular.
Beverages Beerhas been an important beverage in South Africa for
hundreds of years among indigenous people long before colonization
and the arrival of Europeans with their own beer drinking
traditions. Traditional beer was brewed from local grains,
especially sorghum. Beer was so prized that it became central to
many ceremonies, like betrothals and weddings, in which one family
ceremoniously offered beer to the other family. Unlike European
beer, South African traditional beer was unfiltered and cloudy and
had a low alcohol content. Around the turn of the centuries, when
white owned industry began studying malnutrition among urban
workers, it was discovered that traditional beer provided crucial
vitamins sometimes not available in the grain heavy traditional
diet and even less available in urban industrial slums. Compared to
an American, Korean or western European diet, milk and milk
products are very prominent in the traditional Black South African
diet. As cows were considered extremely desirable domestic animals
in precolonial times, milk was abundant. In the absence of
refrigeration, various kinds of soured milk, somewhat like yogurt,
were a dietary mainstay. A visitor to any African village in the
1800s would have been offered a large calabash of cool fermented
milk as a greeting. Because milk cows allowed women to wean their
children early and become fertile more quickly, local cultures had
a number of sayings connecting cattle, milk and population growth,
such as the Sotho-Tswana saying, "cattle beget children." Today, in
the dairy section of South Africa's supermarkets, one will find a
variety of kinds of milk, sour milk, sour cream, and other modern
versions of traditional milk products.
Restaurants and fast food outletsSouth Africa can be said to
have a significant "eating out" culture. While there are
somerestaurantsthat specialise in traditional South African dishes
or modern interpretations thereof, restaurants featuring other
cuisines such asMoroccan,Chinese,West African,Congolese,
andJapanesecan be found in all of the major cities and many of the
larger towns. In addition, there are also a large number of
home-grown chain restaurants, such asSpurandDulce Cafe.There is
also a proliferation offast foodrestaurants in South Africa. While
some international players such asKentucky Fried Chicken andWimpy
are active in the country, they face stiff competition from local
chains such asNando's,Steers, Chicken Licken, Barcelos, and King
Pie. Many of the restaurant chains originating from South Africa
have also expanded successfully outside the borders of the
country.
Typical South African foods and dishes Mageuis a traditional
South African non-alcoholic drink, popular among many of theNguni
people, made fromfermented mealiepap. Home production is still
widely practiced, but the drink is also available at many
supermarkets.Amasi, sour milkBiltong, a salty dried meat (similar
tojerky), although the meat used is often from different types of
Antelope or other venison.BiryaniBobotie, a dish ofMalaydescent, is
likemeatloafwithraisinsand with bakedeggon top, and is often served
with yellowrice,sambals,coconut,bananaslices, andchutney.Boerewors,
asausagethat is traditionallybraaied(barbecued).Bunny
chow,currystuffed into a hollowed-out loaf of bread. A bunny chow
is called Kota by the locals.Chakalaka, a spicy South African
vegetable relish.Chutney, orBlatjang, a sweet sauce made from fruit
that is usually poured on meat.Frikkadelle-meatballsGatsby, food
mainly popular in Cape Town, comes in the form of a long roll with
fillings of anything ranging from polony to chicken or steak and
hot chips.Gesmoorde vis, saltedcodwithpotatoesandtomatoesand
sometimes served withapricotjam.Koeksisterscome in two forms and
are a sweet delicacy. Afrikaans koeksisters are twistedpastries,
deep-fried and heavily sweetened. Koeksisters found on theCape
Flatsare sweet and spicy, shaped like large eggs, and
deep-fried.Mageu, a drink made from fermented mealie pap.Mala
Mogodu, a local dish equivalent of tripe. The locals usually enjoy
mala mogodu with hotpapandspinachMalva Pudding, a sweet
spongyapricotpuddingofDutchorigin.Mashonzha, made from themopane
worm.Melktert(milk tart), a milk-based tart or dessert.Melkkos(milk
food), another milk-based dessert.Mealie-bread, sweet bread baked
withsweet corn.Mielie-meal, one of the staple foods, often used in
baking but predominantly cooked intopaporphutu.Ostrichis an
increasingly popularproteinsource as it has a low
cholesterolcontent; it is either used in a stew or filleted and
grilled.Pampoenkoekies(pumpkin fritters), flour has been
supplemented with or replaced bypumpkinorsweet potato.Potbrood(pot
bread or boerbrood), savoury bread baked over coals in cast-iron
pots.Potjiekos, a traditionalAfrikaans stew, made with meat and
vegetables and cooked over coals incast-ironpots.Rusks, a
rectangular, hard, drybiscuiteaten after being dunked
inteaorcoffee; they are either home-baked or shop-bought (with the
most popular brand beingOuma Rusks).Samosa, orsamoosa, is a savoury
stuffedIndianpastrythat is fried.Skilpadjies, lamb's liver wrapped
in netvet and braaied over hot coals.Smagwinya, fat
cakesSmokedorbraai'edsnoek, a regional gamefish.Sosatie, kebab,
grilled marinated meat on askewer.Tomato bredie, alambandtomato
stew.
INTRODUCTION OF GOLD INDUSTRY
HISTORYThe price of gold is determined through trading in the
gold andderivativesmarkets, but a procedure known as theGold Fixing
in London, originating in September 1919, provides a daily
benchmark price to the industry. The afternoon fixing was
introduced in 1968 to provide a price when US markets are open.
Historically goldcoin agewas widely used as currency, whenpaper
moneywas introduced; it typically was areceiptredeemable for gold
coin orbullion. In amonetarysystem known as thegold standard, a
certainweightof gold was given the name of a unit of currency. For
a long period, the United States government set the value of the US
dollar so that onetroy ouncewas equal to $20.67 ($664.56/kg), but
in 1934 the dollar was devalued to $35.00 per troy ounce
($1125.27/kg). By 1961, it was becoming hard to maintain this
price, and a pool of US and European banks agreed to manipulate the
market to prevent furthercurrency devaluationagainst increased gold
demand.
Fig 1.1 A Swiss-cast 1 kggold barOn 17 March 1968, economic
circumstances caused the collapse of the gold pool, and a
two-tiered pricing scheme was established whereby gold was still
used to settle international accounts at the old $35.00 per troy
ounce ($1.13/g) but the price of gold on the private market was
allowed to fluctuate; this two-tiered pricing system was abandoned
in 1975 when the price of gold was left to find its free-market
level.Central banksstill hold historicalgold reservesas astore of
valuealthough the level has generally been declining. The largest
gold depository in the world is that of theU.S. Federal Reserve
BankinNew York, which holds about 3%of the gold ever mined, as does
the similarly ladenU.S. Bullion DepositoryatFort Knox. In 2005
theWorld Gold Councilestimated total global gold supply to be 3,859
tonnes and demand to be 3,754 tonnes, giving a surplus of 105
tonnes. Sometime around 1970 the price began in trend to greatly
increase, and since 1968 the price of gold has ranged widely, from
a high of $850/oz ($27,300/kg) on 21 January 1980, to a low of
$252.90/oz ($8,131/kg) on 21 June 1999 (London Gold Fixing).The
period from 1999 to 2001 marked the "Brown Bottom" after a
20-yearbear market.Prices increased rapidly from 2001, but the 1980
high was not exceeded until 3 January 2008 when a new maximum of
$865.35 pertroy ouncewas set.Another record price was set on 17
March 2008 at $1023.50/oz ($32,900/kg). In late 2009, gold markets
experienced renewed momentum upwards due to increased demand and a
weakening US dollar. On 2 December 2009, Gold reached a new high
closing at $1,217.23. Gold further rallied hitting new highs in May
2010 after the European Union debt crisis prompted further purchase
of gold as a safe asset. On 1 March 2011, gold hit a new all-time
high of $1432.57, based oninvestorconcerns regarding
ongoingunrestinNorth Africaas well as in theMiddle East. Since
April 2001 the gold price has more than quintupled in value against
the US dollar, hitting a new all-time high of $1,913.50 on 23
August 2011,prompting speculation that this longsecular bear
markethas ended and abull markethas returned.
Minning in south AfricaMining inSouth Africahas been the main
driving force behind the history and development ofAfrica'smost
advanced and richest economy. Large scale and profitable mining
started with the discovery of diamondon the banks of theOrange
Riverin 1867 by Erasmus Jacobs and the subsequent discovery and
exploitation of the Kimberleypipes a few years later.Goldrushes
toPilgrim's RestandBarbertonwere precursors to the biggest
discovery of all, the Main Reef/Main Reef Leader on Gerhardus
Oosthuizen's farm Langlaagte, Portion C, in 1886, theWitwatersrand
Gold Rushand the subsequent rapid development of the gold field
there, the biggest of them all. gold production may now be well
down from their peaks, though South Africa is still no. 5 in
goldbut South Africa remains a cornucopia of mineral riches. Its
the world's largest
producerofchrome,manganese,platinum,vanadiumandvermiculite. The
second largest producer ofilmenite,palladium,rutileandzirconium.
And also the world's third largest coal exporter.South Africa also
a huge producer of iron ore in 2012, it overtook India to become
the world third biggest iron ore supplier to China, who are the
worlds largest consumers of iron ore. Due to a history of
corruption and maladministration in the South African mining
sector, ANC secretary-generalGwede Mantasheannounced at the
beginning of 2013 that mining companies misrepresenting their
intentions could have their licenses revoked.Gold Mining in South
AfricaThe known history ofgold mininggoes back as far as the 4th
millennium BC. During the Bronze Age, the use ofgoldsteadily
increased as it was found to have very malleable and manipulative
properties mainly used for its aesthetic qualities. Its not until
2600 BC thatgoldbecame associated with wealth, as the ancient king
Tushratta boasted of Egypt that goldwas more plentiful than dirt.In
more recent years,goldrushes around the world saw the establishment
of regions such as California, Victoria in Australia and the
Transvaal inSouth Africaby luring thousands of wealth seekers into
built-over-night shanty towns. Mostgoldrushes werent sustained and
many areas became abandoned as the disillusion of quick money wore
off. This paved the way for the formalizedgoldmining sector to take
control and regulate thegold mining in South Africa. Today,
companies like Anglo American, Harmony Gold and BHP Billiton, etc.
are established as industry managers ofgold mining in South
Africa.Gold mining in South Africatypically involves methods such
as panning, sluicing, dredging, hard rock mining, and by-product
mining. For most effectivegold mining in South Africa, the method
used is hard rock mining, since reserves are typically fully
encased in rock deep underground. The invention of industrial air
cooling and air quality control systems sawgoldmines reach
unprecedented depths the deepest being 3 900 meters.This method is
accompanied by chemical beneficiation, where chemicals, such as
cyanide, or activated carbon are added to rough ore and processed
sometimes with heat, water, agitation, electro-winning etc. Modern
gold beneficiation methods can produce gold of 99.9999%
purity.Making the refining process more thorough and economically
viable,gold mining in South Africaprojects, such as the ERGO Mines
Joint Venture in Brakpan, will facilitate the re-processing of 1.7
billion tones of gold tailings to refine a further 15 million
ounces ofgold.Over 50% of allgoldreserves are found inSouth Africa,
where the Witwatersrand holds the worlds largest gold reef deposit.
In 2007,gold mining in South Africa employed over 240 000 people
and accounted for R49 billion in foreign currency earnings.Gold
mining in South Africahad, by 1975, produced 40% of gold ever
mined. However, by 2009, China affirmed its status as the worlds
largest gold producer with a production of 324 tones, followed by
Australia at 222.8, andSouth Africawith 219.8 tones (a decrease of
6%).
Gold mining in South Africacontinues to be a major contributor
to the economy and the establishment of the nations infrastructure.
New mines, such as the Burrstone Mine, 80km south-east of
Johannesburg with an estimated value of ZAR 3, 5 billion, continue
to open. Typical ofgold mining inSouth Africa, the project is
estimated to have a lifespan of 25 years. The opening of
othergoldmining projects, such as the R1 billion Doorknob South
Reef Mine expected to deliver 82.8 tones of gold within a 20-year
period ads to the idea thatgold mining inSouth Africais still a
viable and lucrative industry.Goldis achemical elementwith the
symbolAuandatomic number79. It is a dense, soft, malleable,
andductilemetalwith an attractive, bright yellow color and luster
that is maintained without tarnishing in air or water. Chemically,
gold is atransition metaland agroup 11 element. It is one of the
least reactive chemical elements, solid under standard conditions.
The metal therefore occurs often in free elemental (native) form,
asnuggetsor grains in rocks, inveinsand inalluvial deposits. Less
commonly, it occurs in minerals as gold compounds, such as
withtelluriumascalaverite, sylvaniteandkrennerite.Gold resists
attacks by individual acids, but it can be dissolved byaqua
regia(nitro-hydrochloric acid), so named because it dissolves gold.
Gold also dissolves in alkaline solutions ofcyanide, which have
been used in mining. It dissolves inmercury, formingamalgamalloys;
is insoluble innitric acid, which dissolvessilverandbase metals, a
property that has long been used to confirm the presence of gold in
items, giving rise to the termacid test.This metal has been a
valuable and highly sought-afterprecious metalforcoinage, jewelry,
and other arts since long before the beginning ofrecorded
history.Gold standardshave sometimes beenmonetary policies, but
were widely supplanted byfiat currencystarting in the 1930s. The
lastgold certificateandgold coincurrencies were issued in the U.S.
in 1932. In Europe, most countries left the gold standard with the
start ofWorld War Iin 1914 and, with huge war debts, did not return
to gold as a medium of exchange.A total of 174,100tonnesof gold
have been mined in human history, according toGFMSas of 2012.This
is roughly equivalent to 5.6 billiontroy ouncesor, in terms of
volume, about 9261 m3, or acube21.0 m on a side. The world
consumption of new gold produced is about 50% in jewelry, 40% in
investments, and 10% in industry. Besides its widespread monetary
and symbolic functions, gold has many practical uses
indentistry,electronics, and other fields. Its
highmalleability,ductility, resistance to corrosion and most other
chemical reactions, and conductivity of electricity has led to many
uses, includingelectric wiring, colored-glass production, andgold
leafing.Most of the Earth's gold probably lies at its core, the
metal's high density having made it sink there in the planet's
youth. Virtually all discovered gold is considered to have been
deposited later bymeteoritesthat contained the element, with the
asteroid that formedVredefort craterhaving been implicated in the
formation of the largest gold mining region on earth,Witwatersrand
basin
Minning industry in indiaIndians have a huge fascination for
gold. This is evident in the fact that India is the largest
consumer as well as importer of gold in the world. Gold plays a
very important role in the social, religious and cultural life of
Indians. India Gold Market looks poised to achieve greater heights
given the fascination for gold in the country. India consumes about
800 MT of gold which accounts to about 20% consumption of gold
globally. More than 50% of this is used for making gold jewelry.
Size of India Gold MarketThe domestic India gold market is
estimated to be more than US$15 billion and is expected to rise
significantly in the coming years. During April 2008 to February
2009, gems and jewelry worth US$ 17.79 billion was exported from
the country. United Arab Emirates imported more than 30% of gems
and jewelry from India, making it the largest importer from the
country. Hong Kong was the second largest importer with 25%
followed by United States with 20%. The gem and jewelry industry
accounts for more than 10% of India's total commodities
exports.Gold certification in India
The government has taken steps to protect the public from buying
adulterated gold; Hallmarking of gold jewelry is one such step.
Hallmarking of gold jewelry indicates the accurate finding out and
official recording of the proportionate content of precious metals
present in gold. The marking is done either by laser marking
machine or by punches. Hallmark is the official mark used in
several countries across the world as an assurance of purity or
fineness of gold jewelry. The Bureau of Indian Standard or BIS was
named by the Government as the lone agency in the country for
providing hallmarking of gold jewelry under the provisions of the
BIS Act, 1986.
Indian Standard on Gold and Gold alloysIS 1417 Grades of gold
and gold alloys, Jewelry/Artefacts-Fineness and MarkingIS 1418
Assaying of Gold in Gold Bullion, Gold alloys and Gold Jewelry/
Artefacts - Cupellation (Fire Assay Method)IS 2790 Guidelines for
manufacture of 23, 22,21,18,14 and 9 carat gold alloysIS 3095 Gold
Solders for use in manufacture of Jewelry
Features of India Gold Market
Though India is the leading consumer of gold in the world, the
gold market in India is largely fragmented and unorganized. Due to
the non availability of a benchmark price, the gold prices in India
vary very much from region to region. The festive and the wedding
season in the country witnesses a heavy demand for gold. Despite
the global economic recession, the gold consumption in the country
during these times has not abetted.Factors affecting India Gold
Market
The monsoons and the harvest of the country have a significant
affect on the sale and purchase of gold in the country. Both these
factors determine the amount of purchasing power that people will
have, which in turn decides on the amount of gold consumption and
other consumptions as well. Purchasing gold and other precious
metals on occasions like Akshaya Tritiya is considered.Recent Hike
in Excise and Import Duty
India is the largest importer of gold in the world. India has
imported $45.5 billion worth of gold and silver in first three
quarters of FY12 itself, which is 53.8% over the year-ago period. A
government notification said customs and excise duties would be
levied on the value of gold and silver instead of a fixed amount in
January 2012. The move is aimed at reducing the negative balance of
payments position as gold and silver imports have grown
tremendously in-spite of rise.
Import DutyExcise Duty
StatusGoldSilverGoldSilver
Current2% of the value6% of the value1.5% of the value4% of the
value
EarlierRs 300/10 gm.Rs. 1500/kg.Rs 200/10 gm.Rs 1,000/kg.
At a 2% rate, the import duty on gold will double to over Rs 540
per 10 grams at current pricesEtymology"Gold" iscognatewith similar
words in manyGermanic languages, deriving viaProto-Germanic. The
symbolAuis from theLatin:aurum, according to some sources meaning
"shining dawn",from Sabineausum"glowing dawn"although according to
definitions within Latin dictionaries the meaning of the
wordaurumis the same as today's use ofgoldin reference to the
metal. The disagreement between definitions is possibly due to the
accumulation of evidence from archaeology of the original anciency
of the metal in civilization; in reference to "the dawn of
civilization",and in this respect has become the adopted modern
meaning, disassociated from the original etymological Latin.
Characteristics Gold is the most valuableof all metals; a single
gram can be beaten into a sheet of 1 square meter, or anounceinto
300 square feet. Gold leaf can be beaten thin enough to become
transparent. The transmitted light appears greenish blue, because
gold strongly reflects yellow and red. Such semi-transparent sheets
also strongly reflect infrared light, making them useful as
infrared (radiant heat) shields in visors of heat-resistant suits,
and in sun-visors forspacesuits. Gold readily dissolves inmercuryat
room temperature to form anamalgam, and formsalloyswith many other
metals at higher temperatures. These alloys can be produced to
modify the hardness and other metallurgical properties, to
controlmelting pointor to create exotic colors.Gold is a
goodconductor of heatandelectricityand reflectsinfrared
radiationstrongly. Chemically, it is unaffected byair,moistureand
mostcorrosive reagents, and is therefore well suited for use
incoinsandjewelryand as a protective coating on other, more
reactive metals. However, it is not chemically inert. Gold is
almost insoluble, but can be dissolved inaqua regainor solutions of
sodium orpotassium cyanide, for example.Commonoxidation statesof
gold include +1 (gold(I) or aurous compounds) and +3 (gold(III) or
auric compounds). Gold ions in solution are readily
reducedandprecipitatedas metal by adding any other metal as
thereducing agent. The added metal isoxidizedand dissolves,
allowing the gold to be displaced from solution and be recovered as
a solid precipitate.Applications
Monetary exchange
Fig 1.2 Gold is commonly formed into bars for use in monetary
exchange.Gold has beenwidely usedthroughout the world asmoney, its
efficient to indirect exchange (versusbarter), and to store wealth
inhoards. For exchange purposes,mintsproduce standardizedgold
bullioncoins,barsandother unitsof fixed weight and purity.The first
coins containing gold were struck in Lydia, Asia Minor, around 600
BC.Thetalentcoin of gold in use during the periods of Grecian
history both before and during the time of the life of Homer
weighed between 8.42 and 8.75grams.From an earlier preference in
using silver, European economies re-established the minting of gold
as coinage during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.
Bills(that mature into gold coin) andgold certificates(convertible
into gold coin at the issuing bank) added to the circulating stock
ofgold standard money in most 19th century industrial economies. In
preparation forWorld War Ithe warring nations moved to fractional
gold standards, inflating their currencies to finance the war
effort. Post-war, the victorious countries, most notably Britain,
gradually restored gold-convertibility, but international flows of
gold via bills of exchange remained embargoed; international
shipments were made exclusively for bilateral trades or to pay war
reparations.AfterWorld War IIgold was replaced by a system of
nominallyconvertible currenciesrelated by fixed exchange rates
following theBretons Woods system.Gold standardsand the direct
convertibility of currencies to gold have been abandoned by world
governments, led in 1971 by the United States' refusal to redeem
its dollars in gold.Fiat currencynow fills most monetary
roles.Switzerlandwas the last country to tie its currency to gold;
it backed 40% of its value until the Swiss joined theInternational
Monetary Fundin 1999. Central banks continue to keep a portion of
their liquid reserves as gold in some form, and metals exchanges
such as theLondon Bullion Market Associationstill clear
transactions denominated in gold, including future delivery
contracts. Today,gold miningoutput is declining.With the sharp
growth of economies in the 20th century, and increasing foreign
exchange, the world'sgold reservesand their trading market have
become a small fraction of all markets and fixed exchange rates of
currencies to gold have been replaced by floating prices for gold
and goldfuture contract. Though the gold stock grows by only 1 or
2% per year, very little metal is irretrievably consumed. Inventory
above ground would satisfy many decades of industrial and even
artisan uses at current prices.The gold content of alloys is
measured incarats(k). Pure gold is designated as 24k. English gold
coins intended for circulation from 1526 into the 1930s were
typically a standard 22k alloy called crown gold, for hardness
(American gold coins for circulation after 1837 contained the
slightly lower amount of 0.900 fine gold, or 21.6 kt). Although the
prices of someplatinumgroup metals can be much higher, gold has
long been considered the most desirable ofprecious metals, and its
value has been used as the standard for manycurrencies. Gold has
been used as a symbol for purity, value, royalty, and particularly
roles that combine these properties. Gold as a sign of wealth and
prestige was ridiculed byThomas Morein his treatiseUtopia. On that
imaginary island, gold is so abundant that it is used to make
chains for slaves, tableware, and lavatory seats. When ambassadors
from other countries arrive, dressed in ostentatious gold jewels
and badges, the Utopians mistake them for menial servants, paying
homage instead to the most modestly dressed of their party.
Investment
Fig 1.3 Gold prices (US$ per troy ounce), in nominal US$ and
inflation adjusted US$.Main article:Gold as an investmentMany
holders of gold store it in form ofbullioncoins orbarsas a hedge
againstinflationor other economic disruptions. However,
economistMartin Feldsteindoes not believe gold serves as a hedge
against inflation or currency depreciation. TheISO 4217currency
code of gold is XAU.Modernbullion coinsfor investment or collector
purposes do not require good mechanical wear properties; they are
typically fine gold at 24k, although theAmerican Gold Eagleand the
Britishgold sovereigncontinue to be minted in 22k metal in
historical tradition, and the South AfricanKrugerand, first
released in 1967, is also 22k.[36]Thespecial issueCanadian Gold
Maple Leafcoin contains the highest purity gold of anybullion coin,
at 99.999% or 0.99999, while thepopular issueCanadian Gold Maple
Leaf coin has a purity of 99.99%.Several other 99.99% pure gold
coins are available. In 2006, theUnited States Mintbegan producing
theAmerican Buffalogold bullion coin with a purity of 99.99%.
TheAustralianGold Kangaroos were first coined in 1986 as
theAustralian Gold Nuggetbut changed the reverse design in 1989.
Other modern coins include theAustrianVienna Philharmonic bullion
coinand theChinese Gold Panda.JewelryMain article:Jewelry
Fig 1.4 Mochegold necklace depicting feline heads.Larco
MuseumCollection. Lima-PeruBecause of the softness of pure (24k)
gold, it is usuallyalloyedwith base metals for use in jewelry,
altering its hardness and ductility, melting point, color and other
properties. Alloys with lower carat rating, typically 22k, 18k, 14k
or 10k, contain higher percentages of copper or other base metals
or silver or palladium in the alloy.Copperis the most commonly used
base metal, yielding a redder color.[37]Eighteen-carat gold
containing 25% copper is found in antique and Russian jewelry and
has a distinct, though not dominant, copper cast, creatingrose
gold. Fourteen-carat gold-copper alloy is nearly identical in color
to certainbronzealloys, and both may be used to produce police and
otherbadges. Blue gold can be made by alloying withironand purple
gold can be made by alloying withaluminium, although rarely done
except in specialized jewelry. Blue gold is more brittle and
therefore more difficult to work with when making
jewelry.[37]Fourteen- and eighteen-carat gold alloys with silver
alone appear greenish-yellow and are referred to asgreen gold.
White gold alloys can be made withpalladiumornickel. White 18-carat
gold containing 17.3% nickel, 5.5% zinc and 2.2% copper is silvery
in appearance. Nickel is toxic, however, and its release from
nickel white gold is controlled by legislation in Europe.
Alternativewhite goldalloys are available based on palladium,
silver and other white metals,but the palladium alloys are more
expensive than those using nickel. High-carat white gold alloys are
far more resistant to corrosion than are either pure silver
orsterling silver. The Japanese craft ofMokume-ganeexploits the
color contrasts between laminated colored gold alloys to produce
decorative wood-grain effects.Cultural history
Fig 1.5 TheTurin Papyrus Map
Fig 1.6 Funerary maskof Tutankhamen
Fig 1.7 Jasonreturns with the golden fleece on
anApulianred-figurecalyx krater
Fig 1.8 Ancient Greek golden decorated crown, funerary or
marriage material, Gold artifacts found at theNahal Kanacave
cemetery dated during the 1980s, showed these to be from within
theChalcolithic, and considered the earliest find from the Levant
(Gopheret al.1990).[60]Gold artifacts in theBalkansalso appear from
the 4th millennium BC, such as those found in theVarna
Necropolisnear Lake Varna inBulgaria, thought by one source (La
Niece 2009) to be the earliest "well-dated" find of gold
artifacts.Gold artifacts such as thegolden hatsand theNebra
diskappeared in Central Europe from the 2nd millennium BCBronze
Age.Egyptian hieroglyphsfrom as early as 2600 BC describe gold,
which kingTushrattaof theMitanniclaimed was "more plentiful than
dirt" in Egypt. Egypt and especiallyNubiahad the resources to make
them major gold-producing areas for much of history. The earliest
known map is known as theTurin Papyrus Mapand shows the plan of
agold minein Nubia together with indications of the localgeology.
The primitive working methods are described by
bothStraboandDiodorus Siculus, and includedfire-setting. Large
mines were also present across theRed Seain what is nowSaudi
Arabia.The legend of thegolden fleecemay refer to the use of
fleeces to trap gold dust fromplacer depositsin the ancient world.
Gold is mentioned frequently in theOld Testament, starting
withGenesis2:11 (atHavilah), the story ofThe Golden Calfand many
parts of the temple including theMenorahand the golden altar. In
theNew Testament, it is included with the gifts of themagiin the
first chapters of Matthew. TheBook of Revelation21:21 describes the
city ofNew Jerusalemas having streets "made of pure gold, clear as
crystal". Exploitation of gold in the south-east corner of theBlack
Seais said to date from the time ofMidas, and this gold was
important in the establishment of what is probably the world's
earliest coinage inLydiaaround 610 BC.From the 6th or 5th century
BC, theChu (state)circulated theYing Yuan, one kind of square gold
coin.InRoman metallurgy, new methods for extracting gold on a large
scale were developed by introducinghydraulic miningmethods,
especially inHispaniafrom 25 BC onwards and inDaciafrom 106 AD
onwards. One of their largest mines was atLas MedulasinLen (Spain),
where seven longaqueductsenabled them to sluice most of a large
alluvial deposit. The mines atRoia MontaninTransylvaniawere also
very large, and until very recently, still mined by opencast
methods. They also exploited smaller deposits inBritain, such as
placer and hard-rock deposits atDolaucothi. The various methods
they used are well described byPliny the Elderin
hisencyclopediaNaturalis Historiawritten towards the end of the
first century AD.DuringMansa Musa's (ruler of theMali Empirefrom
1312 to 1337)hajjtoMeccain 1324, he passed throughCairoin July
1324, and was reportedly accompanied by acamel trainthat included
thousands of people and nearly a hundred camels where he gave away
so much gold that it depressed the price in Egypt for over a
decade. A contemporary Arab historian remarked:Gold was at a high
price in Egypt until they came in that year. The mithqal did not go
below 25 dirhams and was generally above, but from that time its
value fell and it cheapened in price and has remained cheap till
now. The mithqal does not exceed 22 dirhams or less. This has been
the state of affairs for about twelve years until this day by
reason of the large amount of gold which they brought into Egypt
and spent there .Chihab Al-Umari, The Portuguese overseas expansion
started in 1415 with the taking ofCeuta, to control the gold trade
coming across the desert. Although the caravan trade routes were
then diverted, the Portuguese continued expansing southwards along
the coast and eventually buying the gold directly (or less
indirectly) from the Africans in theGulf of Guinea. The European
exploration of the Americas was fueled in no small part by reports
of the gold ornaments displayed in great profusion byNative
Americanpeoples, especially inCentral
America,Peru,EcuadorandColombia. TheAztecsregarded gold as
literally the product of the gods, calling it "god excrement"
(teocuitlatlinNahuatl), and afterMontezumawas killed, most of this
gold was shipped to Spain. However, for theindigenous
peoplesofNorth Americagold was considered useless and they saw much
greater value in othermineralswhich were directly related to their
utility, such asobsidian,flint, andslate. Gold played a role in
western culture, as a cause for desire and of corruption, as told
in children'sfableslikeRumplestiltskin, where the peasant's
daughter turns hay into gold, in return for giving up her child
when she becomes a princess, and stealing the hen that lays golden
eggs inJack and the beanstalk.
The top prize at theOlympic gamesis thegold medal.There is an
age-old tradition of biting gold to test its authenticity. Although
this is certainly not a professional way of examining gold, thebite
testwas not to check if the coin was gold (90% gold coins are
fairly strong) but to see if the coin was gold plated lead. A lead
coin would be very soft and thus teeth marks would result. Fake
gold coins were a common problem before 1932 so weighing a coin and
also sliding a coin through a "counterfeit detector" slot was
common (making a lead coin thicker would add weight thus why slide
it through a measured slot). Most establishments (especially US
Western saloons) would never accept a gold (or silver) coin of high
value before weighing such an item. 75% of all gold ever produced
has been extracted since 1910.It has been estimated that all gold
ever refined would form a single cube 20m (66ft) on a side
(equivalent to 8,000 m3). One main goal of thealchemistswas to
produce gold from other substances, such aslead presumably by the
interaction with a mythical substance called thephilosopher's
stone. Although they never succeeded in this attempt, the
alchemists promoted an interest in what can be done with
substances, and this laid a foundation for today'schemistry. Their
symbol for gold was thecircle with a point at its center(), which
was also theastrologicalsymbol and the ancientChinese characterfor
theSun.Golden treasures have been rumored to be found at various
locations, following tragedies such as the Jewish temple treasures
in the Vatican, following the temple's destruction in 70 AD, a gold
stash on theTitanic, theNazi goldtrain followingWorld War II.The
Dome of the Rockon the Jerusalem temple site is covered with an
ultra-thin golden glasure. TheSikhGolden temple, theHarmandir
Sahib, is a building covered with gold. Similarly theWat Phra
Kaewemerald Budha temple inThailandhas ornamental gold statues
walls and roofs. Some European king and queen'scrownswere made of
gold, and gold was used for the bridal crown since antiquity. An
ancient Talmudic text circa 100 AD describes Rachel,Rabbi Akiba's
wife asking for a "Jerusalem of Gold" (crown). A Greek burial crown
made of gold was found in a grave circa 370 BCProduction
Fig 1.8 The entrance to an underground gold mine
inVictoria,Australia
Fig 1.9 Pure gold precipitate produced by theaqua regiarefining
process
Time trend of gold productionAt the end of 2009, it was
estimated that all the gold ever mined totaled 165,000 tonnes.This
can be represented by a cube with an edge length of about 20.28
meters. At $1,600 pertroy ounce, 165,000 metric tonnes of gold
would have a value of $8.5 trillion.World production for 2011 was
at 2,700tonnes, compared to 2,260 tonnes for 2008.Since the 1880s,
South Africa has been the source for a large proportion of the
world's gold supply, with about 50% of all gold ever produced
having come fromSouth Africa. Production in 1970 accounted for 79%
of the world supply, producing about 1,480 tonnes. In
2007China(with 276 tonnes) overtook South Africa as the world's
largest gold producer, the first time since 1905 that South Africa
has not been the largest. Minning Main article:Gold miningThe city
ofJohannesburglocated inSouth Africawas founded as a result of
theWitwatersrand Gold Rushwhich resulted in the discovery of some
of the largest gold deposits the world has ever seen. Gold fields
located within the basin in theFree StateandGautengprovinces are
extensive instrike and diprequiring some of the world's deepest
mines, with the Savuka andTauTonamines being currently the world's
deepest gold mine at 3,777 m. TheSecond Boer Warof 18991901 between
theBritish Empireand theAfrikanerBoerswas at least partly over the
rights of miners and possession of the gold wealth in South
Africa.Other major producers are the United States, Australia,
Russia, andPeru, as well as,Ghana,Burkina Faso,Mali, Indonesia and
Uzbekistan. Mines inSouth DakotaandNevadasupply two-thirds of gold
used in the United States. In South America, the controversial
projectPascua Lamaaims at exploitation of rich fields in the high
mountains ofAtacama Desert, at the border betweenChileandArgentina.
Today about one-quarter of the world gold output is estimated to
originate from artisanal or small scale mining.consumptionThe
consumption of gold produced in the world is about 50% in jewelry,
40% in investments, and 10% in industry. India is the world's
largest single consumer of gold, as Indians buy about 25% of the
world's gold, purchasing approximately 800 tonnes of gold every
year, mostly for jewelry. India is also the largest importer of
gold; in 2008, India imported around 400 tonnes of gold.Indian
households hold 18,000 tones of gold which represents 11% of the
global stock and worth more than $950 billion.
Table 1.1 Gold jewelry consumption by country in tones
Country2009201020112012
India442.37745.70986.3864
Greater China376.96428.00921.5817.5
United States150.28128.61199.5161
South Africa 75.1674.07143118
Saudi Arabia77.7572.9569.158.5
Russia60.1267.5076.781.9
United Arab Emirates67.6063.3760.958.1
Egypt56.6853.433647.8
Indonesia41.0032.755552.3
United Kingdom31.7527.3522.621.1
Other Persian Gulf Countries24.1021.972219.9
Japan21.8518.5030.17.6
South Korea18.8315.8715.512.1
Vietnam15.0814.36100.877
Thailand7.336.28107.480.9
Total1508.701805.60
Other Countries251.6254.0390.4393.5
World Total1760.32059.63487.53163.6
CHAPTER 3 STEEPLED ANALYSISThis section summarises the PESTLE+ED
(Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal , Environmental
Ethical and Demographical) factors that impact on the mining and
minerals sector.Social analysis of gold industry:Social Conditions
in south Africa:
Social conditions in South africa have improved in tandem with
improved economic performance. For instance, there are has been
significant reductions in the male and female labour force
participation rates, From 81% and 39% respectively in 1993 to about
81% and 61%, respectively in 2010.Additionally, South africa has a
literacy rate of 98% for females and 99.1% for males. The country
ranks highly on the Education Index of the United Nations Human
Developmen Report. South africa is ranked at number 37 which is
behind only Cuba and Barbados in the Caribbean and Argentinan
nearer in South America.Unfortunately in South africa there are no
training institutions providing skills development related to
Jewellery manufacturing thus jewelers rely on the apprenticeship
system where young goldsmiths/jewelers are trained by senior
goldsmiths/jewelers.
Ease of Doing Business (Institutional Conditions)South africas
institutions need to improve in order to allow for greater impact
on business development. Institutions as considered in this context
include tax, labour education and other agencies that have an
impact on industry growth and development. These can be assessed by
examining the World Banks doing business index. 31 South africas
rank in the World Bank ease of doing business index was 114 out of
184 Countries. This was below the average rank of 97 for the Latin
American and Caribbean region and, when compared to CARICOM states,
was higher than only Suriname and Haiti. the variables measured for
the ease of doing business index and gives an indication of the
institutions in South africa where the greatest need for
improvements exist. South africas ranks are better for dealing with
construction permits and enforcing contracts and worse for getting
credit and electricity, resolving insolvency and paying taxes.
South africas ranking on the ease of paying taxes (118) are even
lower than its overall ranking (114) and is lower than the average
(114) for the Latin American and Caribbean region and higher than
only Haiti (123) and Jamaica (163). Therefore the institutions with
the greatest need for reform in how they perform administratively
are; financial, tax and electricity agencies.
Corporate tax regulations:One of the challenges to the
competitiveness of businesses operating in South africa is the
level of corporate taxes firms are required to pay. Generally,
there are about 9 taxes or mandatory contributions firms must pay
in South africa. For example corporate income tax at a rate of 35%;
employer paid- social security contributions at the rate of 8%;
property tax (to central and local authorities) at a rate of 0.5%;
capital gains tax at a rate of 20% and value-added tax at a rate of
16%. These tax payments amount to about 36% of the profits of
firms. These taxes are not only an economic burden to firms but
also an administrative burden as about 263 hours of time that could
have otherwise been used productively must be spent filing
taxes.
Available infrastructure:Infrastructure is one of the basic
requirements for improving competitiveness. On the global
competitiveness index South africa has a rank of 109 for
infrastructure with a score of 2.91 which is lower than its overall
score is 107 signalling that infrastructure is not of sufficient
quality to support effective business development
Effective policies that support the development of SMEs:South
africa has in recent times embarked on the formulation of a number
of policies to support the development of SMEs. These policies
recognize the importance of SMEs to business development in South
africa, which was estimated at about 30% of GDP. In the Latin
American region SMEs are said to account for nearly 99% of business
and 67% of employment32. The key challenge facing SMEs in South
africa is access to finance. In the doing business Index South
africa receives its lowest rank (167) for ease of accessing credit
which is almost two times worse than the average for the Latin
America and Caribbean region (87) and is in fact the worse in the
region.
The following are some of the policy initiatives that are in
place or that being pursued:1. Passing of the Small Business Act
(March 2004) from which will be established a Small Business
Council, Small Business Bureau and Development Fund to provide
financial and other forms of support to improve the productivity
and competitiveness of small businesses.2. Small Business
Development Finance Trust3. South africa Small Business Association
(GSBA),4. Linden Economic Advancement Programme,5. the Institute of
Private Enterprise Development,6. Women of worth7. National
Competitiveness Council, the small business representative Apart
from these initiatives, other wider development initiatives being
pursued will also support the development of SMEs. These
include:
1. The National Development Strategy2. The National
Competitiveness Strategy333. The Low Carbon Development Strategy
(LCDS) will support business development on a low-carbon model and
allow for improved access to financing through the following
mechanisms:32 National Competitiveness Strategy.
http://www.competitiveness.org.gy/index.php?start=133 Ibid IDS/UG
50th Anniversary Working Paper Series- Working Paper 6/1257a. A
Credit Guarantee Fund (CGF) to meet shortfalls in the collateral
requirements of small businesses seeking loans through the
commercial banking system as long as these are for ventures that
are in low carbon sectors.b. An Interest Payment Support Facility
will help the MSE pay off a percentage of its interest obligations
on the loanc. A Grant Scheme- to assist vulnerable persons to
access financing for their existing or potential business
venture.d. A Skills Voucher Scheme for technical training in
business management, marketing, accounting and financial
management.4. The South africa Youth Business Trust (GYBT) is an
NGO that provides financing opportunities for young people (aged
18-35yrs) interested in becoming entrepreneurs but who cannot
access conventional financing.5. Recently, the government has
announced plans to launch a Credit bureau34 bythe end of 2013
social factor affecting in indiaThe first factor is rather basic
and depends on the simple economics of supply and demand.This is
true of any commodity. If the demand for gold increases
(particularly in the Asian markets of India & China) suddenly
and the supply cannot meet the demand, the prices will increase.
Similarly, if production of gold is hit because of a miners' strike
and the supply falls, this will also lead to an increase in
prices.Although there are many hidden factors that are said to
influence price of gold, broadly speaking, there are only a few
factors that certainly do. The remaining factors are generally
speculative and not mutually agreed upon.The second factor is the
gold and other policies of central banks.The banks often invest in
gold as a hedge against inflation. Moreover, their other policies
on interest offered on savings also affect the prices. A higher
interest rate will lead to people investing in currency, whereas a
low interest will increase gold purchase.The third factor is the
social conditions prevalent. In times of war, emergencies,the price
of gold shoots up as the value of the prevalent currency is in
doubt. Since one can be sure of the value of gold, people try to
acquire as much gold as they can, pushing up the price of
gold.--The fourth factor is the state of the economy.If the economy
is in the doldrums with the markets performing in a shabby manner
like now, prices of gold will increase due to more people choosing
to invest in gold.--The fifth factor is the value of the US
Dollar.Since the dollar is the currency that most people incest in
any fall in its value will lead to the prices of gold shooting up.
The gold rate has always had this relationship with the Dollar ever
since the dollar became the global trading currency.The mining
industry experiences skills shortages in areas such as
professionals, technicians and trades workers, directors and
corporate managers, machine operators and drivers. In addition,a
recent study found that the average age of mining professionals in
india is between 50 and 55 years.The sector has among the highest
number of illiterate employees, high levels of HIV/AIDS infections
and a high incident of respiratory health conditions.There is also
increased emphasis on social licence to mine, which includes
commitment to the development and implementation of social and
labour plan
Technological Analysis of Gold Industry
Technological factor affecting in South Africa
Overview of the Gold Mining Production Process in technological
factor affecting:Before turning to specifics on cyanide
technologies below and the subsequent case on changing stoping
practices in Part Three, this section introduces the process of
gold mining on the Witwatersrand. Three groups of procedures
encompass a mines life: project, production, and decommissioning.
Project procedures include the exploration and identification of
the mineral deposit, feasibility studies, design, construction, and
commissioning of the operations.Production procedures are
day-to-day operations. Because mining involves adjusting
proceduresslightly as different geological characteristics of the
ore body are encountered, this might betterbe described as
continuous adjustments in the operating procedures to extract the
mineral resource. Lastly, decommissioning is the closure of the
mine site after completing the warranteddegree of mineral
extraction. The case studies are on aspects of the first two
phases.Exploration is a fundamental activity in mining. It ensures
that the mining firm has future deposit to extract, which given the
nonrenewable nature of mineral deposits, is their raison dtre.
Exploration is also critical to identifying the specific structure
of the mineral deposit and is thereby a critical input in the
design and operation of a mine. 20 See Chapter One in Worger (1987)
for details.fig 3.1 The Witwatersrand Basin
Mineral rights, infrastructure support, market evaluation,
estimated extraction costs, processingcosts, and the potential
variability of all these must be considered to determine whether
miningthe deposit is economical. Three distinct stages comprise the
project phase:1. Preliminary investigations - initial cost
estimates, research and development (R& D) to derivescope, and
front end engineering.2. Preliminary evaluations/feasibility
studies - initial engineering completed, final scopedevelopment,
detailed estimating.3. Project scope and cost defined/preliminary
project execution - detailed design, drafting, and project
management. Financial resources are brought together for
development.Based on analysis of the deposit and its location
during this phase many crucial estimates are made whose accuracy
will strongly influence realization of project viability. Detailed
plans and revisions occur during the early stages of this phase,
but the large scale of capital expenditures typically means that
the mining method and mine plan are locked in. With viability
established, the first stage of development involves building
headgear and sinking a shaft to access the gold bearing rock or
reef. Tunnels are excavated at various levels from the shaft to
intersect the sloping shores of the gold bearing rock; these
tunnels are called cross-cuts. Once the reef has been intersected,
it is extracted through a series of additional tunnels across, up,
and down the gold bearing deposits. The removal of gold bearing
rock is a process referred to as stoping. The stopes connect upward
and downward to access tunnels (See Figure 6.1). This stoping
process is somewhat analogous to the removal of a layer of icing in
a multi-layered cake. In this case the layer of icing being about a
meter or two thick with thousands of meters of rock above and
between subsequent layers, all of which slope to greater depths and
are fractured from tectonic action. Klerksdorp Mining the reef
involves a process of drilling and blasting similar to that used to
extract the tunnels. Several holes at various angles are drilled
into the rock, filled with explosives, and then the rock is blasted
out. The rock blasted on the stopes is transported to tipping
stations, sent down a rock chute, and then hauled to the surface
via a shaft. On the surface, the gold bearing rock is separated
from surrounding rock before being sent for processing to extract
the gold.Resource-basedindustries, such as mining, are a major
source of wealth, employment, skills upgrading and export earnings.
A resource base also provides a mechanism for successful
diversification of the economy through industrialisation.
Internationally, there are numerous examples of countries using
their natural resources to secure sustainable industrial
development.The development potential of natural resources can be
exploited in four main ways:-BeneficiationDownstream processingThe
development of internationally competitive input industries
supplying the natural resources sector.The diversification of
upstream or side stream industries into other unrelated sectors,
also described as lateral migrationIn South Africa, substantial
innovation and scientificknow-howhas been generated for the purpose
of dealing with specific challenges in the mining industry. There
are global and South African examples ofresource-basedcompanies
that have enabled the migration of technologies
fromresource-linkedapplications to those in higher growth, globally
traded sectors. This offers an important opportunity
forresource-basedeconomies seeking to shift to
highervalue-addedproduction.2.1.10 Input SectorsUsing its mining
activities as a base, South Africa has nurtured strongly
competitive sectors providing sophisticated inputs and services to
the global mining industry. Some South African companies are at the
centre of global mining operations, services and technology. South
African companies have become globally prominent in three areas,
namely:technology providers to the global mining industry;providers
ofknowledge-basedmining services; andspecialist mining
contractors.The country has producedworld-leadingcompanies in
mining explosives, drilling equipment and abrasives, metallurgical
processes and plants, and deliveringknowledge-basedservices to
mines everywhere.
FIGURE 3.2 The Layout of a Gold Mine
CYANIDER TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT
Previous PracticesOnce the gold bearing host rock reaches the
surface of the mine, it is processed to acquire a high purity gold
metal, a stage in the production process referred to as metallurgy.
Initially, metallurgy on the Witwatersrand involved three stages:
milling, concentration, and pyrometallurgy. In the milling phase,
the ore was first sent to crushers to break-up large pieces. It was
then brought to stamp-mills where water was added and the ore
ground to a small size, producing a pulp,21 with a ratio of one
part gold bearing ore to five parts water (King, 1949, p. 141).
Pulp was then passed over amalgam plates (large copper plates
covered in mercury). This process of concentration worked because
of the higher specific gravity of gold. Lighter minerals in the
pulp cannot sink through the mercury and become waste tailings.
After concentration through amalgamation, the gold amalgam enters a
pyrometallurgical stage to separate the mercury and gold. This
process, called retorting, heats the gold laden mercury to 800C for
several hours boiling and vaporizing the mercury,22 and leaving a
sponge gold. This extraction process removed between 75 to 80% of
the gold from the host rock (Adamson, 1972, p. 88).21 Pulp is
perhaps best thought of as a gold bearing muddy substance. 22 The
vaporized mercury being captured and water-cooled in a condenser
for re-use on the amalgam plates.
Technological ChallengeOnce mining of the Witwatersrand
commenced in 1886, the miners followed the gold bearing layer
deeper and deeper into the ground. Eventually they reached depths
where the gold bearinghost rock was not oxidized and the
amalgamation method lost its effectiveness. At that time metallurgy
in general, but gold metallurgy in particular was in its infancy.
Only with the California rush of 1849, when amalgamated copper
plates were introduced, had any systematicindustrial gold
metallurgy been attempted (CMMSSA, 1934, p. 298). By the mid-1880s,
the onlyalternative extraction technology to amalgamation was a
process called chlorination. Inventedaround 1840, the chlorination
process was so expensive in its fixed and variable costs that
onlyrelative rich ores could be treated economically. The
Witwatersrand in that era was abundant inrelatively low-grade ores.
Thus, in the latter half of 1889, a dark cloud emerged on the
industrysfuture as the sulfide layer was intercepted and recovery
with amalgamation only extracted 50percent of the gold from the
host rock. The speculative bubble burst; by early 1890, the
marketvalue of the mines plummeted 70 percent, and a third of
Johannesburg population departed(Edwards, 1994, p. 251). The first
era of the Witwatersrands development was over and another,built
around the cyanide process, began (Webb, 1903, p. 23).Chlorination
and cyanidation methods are similar in that they introduce two
additional stages tothe extraction process: dissolution and
precipitation. Therefore, both were radical departures from
previous methods of extraction through concentration alone. Where
cyanidation held a huge advantage over chlorination was in
economies of operation, making the difference between profit and
loss for many of the Witwatersrand mines (Gray and McLachlan, 1933,
p. 383). Thecyanide process had been experimented with in
laboratories previously, but it was only throughthe efforts of John
S. MacArthur and his work with the Forrest Brothers in Glasgow
during themid-1880s that an industrial process of cyanide
extraction was developed. It is telling then that in1896 COMSA was
able to successfully contest and get the MacArthur-Forrest
patents
When the cyanide process was introduced on the Witwatersrand in
1890, it was met with greatskepticism as many competing methods
were being floated as saviors of the beleaguered goldfield.
MacArthurs Cassel Company operated the first pilot plant on the
Witwatersrand in June1890 at the Salisbury Mine (MacArthur, 1908,
p. 205). After favorable results at the SalisburyMine, a local
company, the African Gold Recovery Syndicate (AGRS), was granted
license overthe process patents. At the Robinson mine in December
1890, the AGRS opened the first commercial plant using the cyanide
process. With successful operation, the Robinson mine tookover the
plant from AGRS when their lease expired in June 1891. The
demonstrated efficiencyof the process at the Robinson Mine led to
its subsequent diffusion across the Witwatersrand(Caldecott, 1908,
p. 125). Looking back, the future of cyanide seemed assured,
however, as a newindustrial process many refinements were needed
before supremacy was realized. Thosechallenges led to an influx of
metallurgical professionals from around the world and gave birth
toone of the early professional societies in Johannesburg, the
Chemical and Metallurgical Society orthe Cyanide Club as it was
popularly known. This analysis focuses on a selection of
thoserefinements and the role played by research collaboration.The
first challenge was demonstrating cyanidations commercial
superiority over alternativemethods i.e. chlorination. In the
cyanide process, concentration through amalgamation isfollowed by
dissolution and precipitation phases (see Figure 6.2). After
separating the tailingsbetween relatively fine slime and coarse
sand, the pulp was charged with cyanide. Central to theprocess is
the chemical bond that cyanide forms with gold. The gold bearing
cyanide solutioncan then be separated from tailings. The next stage
is precipitation, where gold is separated fromthe cyanide solution
before being sent on for pyrometallurgical processing. Two
innovationsfrom dissolution and precipitation phases are
investigated: slime treatment and precipitationtechniques. These
three examples are representative of the various, primarily,
incrementalinnovations made through research collaboration in this
period.
Fig 3.3 system analysis in mining
Chlorination vs. CyanidationThe chlorination method was known
among the miners as an alternative to amalgamation beforethe
sulfide layer was intercepted on the Witwatersrand. Chlorination
could recover 99 percent ofthe gold from the host rock, but was
expensive and therefore only justified in treating
richconcentrates. In 1889, when amalgamation began to falter,
chlorination was introduced on theWitwatersrand, but met with
little success (Williams, 1899, p. 726). The Corner House
miningfinance-group subsequently hired an American metallurgist,
Charles Butters, to establishchlorination plants at its mines and
develop the method. In August 1891, Butters opened thefirst
chlorination plant at the Robinson Mine.25 In 1893, the COMSA
established a Concentratessub-committee to investigate the best
concentration techniques. Improved concentrationtechnology favored
chlorination over cyanide. However, in their report of 1894, no
significantimprovements in concentration were found that could
expand the application of the chlorinationprocess.26In 1892,
chlorination accounted for 17 percent of the gold extracted from
pulp afteramalgamation. By 1899, nearing the end of its days,
chlorination only extracted four percent ofthe gold after
amalgamation. The competition between chlorine and cyanide by the
late 1890s isbest summarized by Mr. Butters own words: There has
been a great deal of study given to theuse of chlorine as a
dissolving agent, but its use is very limited in comparison with
that veryeasily handled solvent, cyanide, so that I am prepared to
state that cyanide is slowly but surelydisplacing chlorine on the
Witwatersrand for all purposes. I have no doubt that upon these
fieldsthe use of chlorine will be discontinued...I must admit now
that [with current cyanide methods]as high a percentage of
extraction can be obtained with cyanide as with chlorine (Butters,
1897,p. 83). While a few chlorination plants continued to operate
after the Second Anglo-Boer War,by 1905 all chlorination on the
Witwatersrand mines had ceased.
Extraction of Gold from SlimeInitially, the cyanide method was
applied after amalgamation to relatively coarse sand. Becausethe
cyanide solution would not penetrate the fine material, all the
slime went untreated to dams,despite its gold content. Slime
accounted for between 30 to 40 percent of the pulp from the
millsafter amalgamation and represented an important shortfall in
economies from the cyanideprocess. Slime dams accumulated across
the Witwatersrand, building a stock of gold awaiting aninnovation
for its liberation.The members of the Chemical and Metallurgical
Society of South Africa (CMSSA) activelycontributed to development
of such a process. By 1897, they succeeded in developing aneconomic
means of treating slime. The series of advances leading to the
emergence of thisprocess are chronicled in their Proceedings
between 1894 and 1899.Early in 1894, John R. Williams, working at a
Corner House mine, first experimented with aslime treatment
process: decantation (Williams, 1897, p.93). 28 William Bettel,
working first at aJohannesburg Consolidated Investment Company
(JCI) group mine then at a Farrar group mine,made an important
contribution to the process by developing sorting and leaching
techniques. 29The zinc precipitation method, which did not work
well on the dilute cyanide and lime solutionused in decantation,
hindered further advances in the treatment of slimes. Thus,
decantation as amethod to extract gold from the slimes depended on
development of alternative precipitationmethods. In 1896,
alternative precipitation methods facilitated construction and
operation of thefirst decantation based slime treatment plant at
the Crown Reef mine (Williams, 1897, p.93). 30This plant marked the
first time in the ten-year history of the Witwatersrand that all
the goldbearing ore was processed.27 These are percentages of gold
bearing tailings after amalgamation.28 The slime decantation
process involved several large vats in which through a gradual
process of mixing the goldin the slime became attached to the
cyanide in liquid solution and separated from the sediment.29
Bettel (1894; 1895)30 See Stent and Adamson (1949, p. 199) for a
summary of the decantation method.84Charles Butters Rand Central
Ore Reduction Company (RCOR) made further refinements inslime
treatment.31 Another important source of innovation in slime
treatment came from thesharing of experiences amongst the
professional metallurgists of the CMSSA in various aspectsof slime
treatment through presentations, publications, and discussions.
Together these effortsby individuals, business organizations and
collaborations made slime treatment a reality, therebyimproving the
cyanide method and marking a major advance in the metallurgical
history of theWitwatersrand (Thurlow and Prentice, 1928, p.
253).
Technological factor in indiaGold PrecipitationAfter the gold
has formed a bond with cyanide and impurities filtered off to
create a clearsolution, precipitation follows. Precipitation
involves the separation of gold from cyanidesolution. When the
MacArthur-Forrest process was first introduced on the Witwatersrand
in1890, precipitation utilized zinc shavings. The gold bearing
cyanide solution was discharged intoa box with zinc shavings, where
gold precipitated on the shavings. This slimy precipitate thenwent
on for pyrometallurgical roasting and smelting into bullion.32 With
the introduction ofelectrolysis-based precipitation in 1894, a real
threat to the zinc shaving method emerged. Thenin 1898, an improved
lead-zinc process began to gain favor.Electrolysis precipitation,
specifically the Siemens-Halske process, was developed in Germany
in1887 and used at mines in Europe, Siberia, and the United States
from 1888. Andries vonGernet, working for the RCORC, introduced the
process to the Witwatersrand in 1894 at theWorcester mine. The
process worked on low strength cyanide solutions, regardless of its
acidity,which favored its use in the precipitation of slimes (Von
Gernet, 1894). A period of intensedebate about the comparative
superiority of the two processes followed.33
Electrolyticprecipitation is a reasonable simple process;
electrodes are surrounded by the gold bearingcyanide solution and
the gold precipitated upon the cathode covered in lead foil.
Theseauriferous lead sheets are then sent for pyrometallurgical
treatment.At the outset, the electrolitic process held several
advantages over zinc. First, the electroliticprocess had lower
royalty charges.34 Second, the electrolitic process was able to
treat the acidicor