Pendoring Multi-User Chrome and Ferrochrome Facility

Project Info

  • Construction Date

    May 2015 - March 2017

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Background


Project Value: R68m

South Africa is the world’s largest integrated ferrochrome producing country, having 80% of the world’s known chrome ore reserves. Due to the high capital cost associated with the establishment of rail and related infrastructure for the loading and transshipment of bulk commodities, many existing and emerging miners currently use road haulers to transport their chrome/ferrochrome from the North West Province to the ports of Durban and/or Richards Bay. In an effort to facilitate the national road to rail strategic objective, Transnet Freight Rail established a multi-user chrome and ferrochrome facility, in response to the positive outcome of a feasibility study in this regard, at Pendoring Station, near the town of Brits in the North West Province.

 

Key Features


The project entails the design and construction of a multi- user chrome/ferrochrome loading facility at Pendoring Station with, amongst others, the following objectives: Capture at least a monthly 100 000t of rail friendly bulk commodity volumes currently transported by road | Provide a cost effective rail based pit to port logistic solution for both existing miners as well as new entrants to the industry | Decrease road traffic to the ports of Durban and Richards Bay and reduce road congestion at these ports.

 

Services Provided


RCE Consultants provided the following professional services: Investigate and report on road access routes and perform traffic impact assessment | Detail Design of: two new railway lines; new raised platform intersection for access to the facility’s surfaced internal roads; chrome loading platform (850m long x 40m wide) | Further Detail Design of: storm water drainage system; potable water supply and reticulation; area lighting; admin and weighbridge buildings, including biological effluent treatment plants; Overhead Traction Equipment (OHTE) | Preparation of project specifications and bills of quantities | High level quality assurance.

 

Outcome


RCE successfully completed the designs within a very short timeframe, thereby ensuring that TFR project delivery timelines were met. In addition, regular quality checks during construction ensured successful project completion. The key objective of increasing the logistic efficiency and increasing rail-based volumes by 100 000t per month were also achieved by TFR.