Planning the Closure of an 80-Year-Old Iron Ore Mine

The scope of work was to transition of the 80-year-old Thabazimbi Mine from active operations to a successful closure and decommissioning phase. VBKOM delivered a structured risk management framework to navigate the geotechnical, financial, and legal complexities associated with shutting down a large-scale iron ore operation, with emphasis on robust technical analysis, stakeholder alignment, and, decision support.

Key activities and outputs included a Comprehensive Risk Register, a detailed identification and ranking of closure-related risks, including geotechnical stability (following historical slope failures) and environmental liabilities. The plans also included Mitigation and Contingency Plans, practical strategies and "what-if" scenarios developed to ensure the safety of personnel during decommissioning and the long-term stability of the remaining landforms. Further to this, VBKOM assisted the client in regards to Compliance & Strategic Alignment, ensuring the closure process adhered to the Anglo American Closure Standards and South African regulatory requirements (MPRDA), facilitating a smooth handover or sale of the asset.

Technical activities were undertaken with specific consideration for the Iron Ore Surface Mining environment in South Africa. This ensured that the assessment reflected the conditions, constraints and project-specific factors relevant to the work.

The workstream was structured to maintain continuity between the available information, technical assessment, project activities and final outputs. This ensured that each component of the assignment contributed directly to the agreed objectives and required outcomes. Findings were consolidated into clear supporting documentation, giving the client a structured technical basis from which to evaluate the results, consider recommendations and determine the appropriate next steps.