Canyon Coal appears to be on the forefront of innovation and development.
Ndivhuwo Makahane made history this year when she was hired as the first woman engineer to be employed by Canyon Coal.
Moreover, more than 21 women joined Gugulethu Colliery in Mpumalanga within its first five months of operation.
Jarmi Steyn was hired as the mine’s General Manager.
Makahane said that she was humbled by the appointment.
“This means I have a greater responsibility ahead of me to inspire others and show that women have the technical skills and the knowledge to make it in the industry,” she said.
According to the Minerals Council SA, women make up just 12% of the mining workforce in South Africa.
But Canyon Coal is also breaking new ground in terms of connectivity.
In December 2022 Phalanndwa Colliery in Mpumalanga, signed an agreement that saw the mine adopting 5G technology.
And at Africa Tech 2023, a partnership between Menar, MTN and Huawei is laying the foundation for 5G connectivity at the Gugulethu coal mine in Mpumalanga as wel.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed on Wednesday in Cape Town between private investment company Menar, MTN and Huawei and will lead to the rollout of 5G technology.
This comes as Gugulethu, a newly developed mine in Mpumalanga edges closer to start producing in early 2024.
Menar’s Chief Innovation Officer Cleavon Moothoosamy said the MOU symbolises company’s drive to embrace technology across its operations.
“We want to be at the forefront of mining innovation, and this partnership is a bold step towards a future where technology and connectivity redefine the mining landscape,” said Moothoosamy.
There is also a possibility of rolling out a three-phased project to install 5G connectivity on the mine campus and shafts amongst other elements.
“Huawei's technological infrastructure serves as the backbone of this venture and could enable us to leverage cutting-edge solutions to drive productivity and sustainable practices within our operations,” Moothoosamy added.
BEING CONNECTED DURING LOAD SHEDDING
The importance of all South Africans obtaining access to great connectivity was also a priority at Africa Tech.
Zoltan Miklos, general manager, Access Planning and Architecture, MTN South Africa, spoke exclusively to IOL News on the importance of improving South Africa’s telecommunication networks.
He notes that South Africa's communications network faces two basic problems, that being power failures and fibre cuts.
“How to maintain a healthy and stable network has always been the focus of MTN's research. In addition to deploying batteries and backup generators at the base station sites to ensure power supply, we also use the latest network innovation technologies provided by Huawei.”
This has helped major areas where load shedding has impacted connectivity.
In the past, a number of areas would have had issues with being connected during a power cut and even after the power has been reconnected. MTN is now using batteries to mitigate these issues in order to ensure that consumers are connected in some way to the carrier.
IOL NEWS