As Zambia’s copper mining focus shifts west from Kitwe, Ndola and Chingola to the growing operations at Solwezi and Kalumbila, blasting leader BME supplies some of the largest minerals operations in the country – with further potential for growth across the border in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Getting real-time data from a blast block during drilling, charging and stemming operations is difficult with traditional manual reporting systems – but BME’s XPLOLOG system has changed all that.
Not only do poor blasting practices erode mines’ financial bottom lines – they are also bad for the environment, according the BME technical director Tony Rorke.
Cullinan Diamond Mine, owned and managed by Petra Diamonds since 2008 and previously known as Premier Mine, is located to the east of Pretoria. The mining operation is rich in South African history as mining commenced in 1903, it employed ±14 000 people at the time of World War I and produced the 3 106 carat gem diamond, the world’s largest gem diamond to date.
After more than three decades of product evolution and advancement in its emulsion offerings, South Africa-based explosives leader BME is subsuming its well-known brands such as HEF, and Megapump under the name of Innovex.
Explosives leader BME (JSE Omnia group) has completed the acquisition of Australia-based Advanced Initiating Systems Pty Ltd (AIS), a company that BME was instrumental in establishing five years ago; the move signals a rebranding and expansion of BME’s technical services and products in Australia.
