A Zimbabwean company has secured a contract to manufacture warehouses for one of the world’s largest mining companies’ operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Baldmin Projects, a wholly owned Zimbabwean company, recently signed agreements for two tenders to manufacture warehouses for Lulu KCC Mine, a division of the global giant Glencore group. The contracts are worth over $1.2 million, including consumables and orders from Leo Foods. Glencore runs KCC copper mines in DRC and is making site upgrades for their new product lines.
“The DRC Lulu project scope of works is to design and manufacture warehouses for the mine. It involves two structural warehouses design, manufacturing, shipping and assistance with site installations,” Baldmin Projects Managing Director Costar Takawira Mangwende said.
The steel structures are over 108 tonnes of steel and cladding with 4250 square metres of roofing sheets.
The projects are turnkey and have created at least 10-15 artisanal jobs for boilermakers and welders including 10 other skills such as painters and assistants.
Takawira says this project is a defining moment for Baldmin as it is their first project in the sprawling Central African state, globally renowned for its rich and abundant mineral resources.
Baldmin has spread into South Africa over the last decade and now has a presence in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Lubumbashi in the DRC.
The company is building gold process plants (leach plants) worth over US$850,000 for Urumaya, a Bulawayo-based company that is part of the LOC group of companies. Manufacturing is underway and Urumaya will soon receive the plant.
“We will continue to explore new opportunities. This way, we build positive news about our country and create opportunities for other players to participate in serious business ventures,” says Takawira.
“We want to grow our business locally and in the SADC region do as to bring back the much-needed foreign currency in the country hence creating more employment opportunities.”
He said the business environment has been challenging.
“We are getting a lot of enquiries from the DRC but our biggest challenge is funding, most banks are hesitant to offer project funding even in South Africa, but we are managing and working with our clients on how best to deliver the projects.”
