Ticking more boxes at Koryx’s Haib in Namibia

 Last year, I visited Koryx’s project as part of the 2025 WhyAfrica Road Trip through Africa.  

 By Leon Louw founder of WhyAfrica and Endorphin Expeditions.  

Human ingenuity is at no time more profound than when staring at a greenfields exploration project in the middle of nowhere.

The sheer determination of mining pioneers is even more stark when that   project is ramping up to become a full-blown mining operation.

When standing on the sunbaked rock varnish of the southern Namibian desert watching the drill rigs assemble in the valley below, my first thought was: “How on earth do they do that?”

Anyway, my job is not to build mines or to run them (and I’m very thankful for that). My job is to look at the project and the country in which development takes place and to find boxes on my paper list that I cannot tick.

Questions about water and electricity

At Haib, and Namibia, there are few blank boxes. I did have a question mark inserted at the water and electricity supply box though.

My question was whether the mine can secure enough water and electricity to operate profitably for the next two to three decades.

Haib is earmarked to become one of Namibia’s top copper assets.

However, it is located in a remote region where infrastructure has long been viewed as one of the key hurdles to development.

Clarity in PFS

In the run-up to the release of the Pre-Feasibility Study at Haib, Koryx has now provided more clarity on these two critical requirements.

There are a few options in terms of water provision. The preferred one is to withdraw about 20 million cubic metres annually from the nearby Orange River.

Specialist hydrological studies indicate that supply can be secured through a combination of river abstraction and a dedicated storage reservoir.

This would allow water to be stored during periods of surplus flow and used during droughts or low-flow periods.

Hybrid system for power

On the power side, the plan is that Haib operates a hybrid system which will combine grid electricity from NamPower with large-scale solar generation and potential battery storage.

The mine’s projected power demand is substantial, requiring a new 220kV transmission line linking the project to NamPower’s Harib substation north of the Orange River.

Harib connects the Namibian power grid to South Africa via the Aggeneis-Kokerboom and Aggeneis-Harib interconnector powerlines.

A step closer to production

The infrastructure at Haib is being designed for future expansion, including the possible use of electric haul trucks.

Its seems that one of Namibia’s most promising projects is another step closer to production.

Image credit: At Haib. Image credit: WhyAfrica

Leon Louw is the founder of WhyAfrica and Endorphin Expeditions and provides independent consulting services to investors, businesses and organizations seeking a deeper understanding of Africa’s political, economic and natural resource landscape.

Ticking more boxes at Koryx’s Haib in Namibia