The Rosh Pinah mine is a mine near

Rosh Pinah Rosh Pinah is a mining town located in southern Namibia, close to the border with South Africa. It is situated south of Keetmanshoop in Namibia's ǁKaras Region. West of the town lies Diamond Area 1, the main diamond mining area of Namibia. Ro ...

in the

ǁKaras Region The ǁKharas Region (pronounced , with a lateral click, former name Karas Region, without the click) is the southernmost, largest, and least densely populated of the 14 regions of Namibia; its capital is Keetmanshoop. The name assigned to the r ...

of southern

Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...

. It is one of the largest and most important

lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...

and

zinc Zinc is a chemical element; it has symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodic tabl ...

mines in

. The mine is located in the extreme southwest, about north of the

Orange River The Orange River (from Afrikaans/Dutch language, Dutch: ''Oranjerivier'') is a river in Southern Africa. It is the longest river in South Africa. With a total length of , the Orange River Basin extends from Lesotho into South Africa and Namibi ...

and 50 kilometers east of the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

. The mine is owned by Appian Capital Advisory LLP since 2023.

History

German-born Jew Mose Kohan discovered zinc in the nearby Hunz Mountains in 1963. He also coined the name "Rosh Pinah" which is a Hebrew term for "cornerstone".Tonchi, Victor L., William A. Lindeke, and John J. Grotpeter
"Rosh Pinah Mine"
Historical Dictionary of Namibia. 2nd edition. (2012) Toronto: The Scarecrow Press, Inc, p. 373. The mine has been in continuous operation since 1969.

Glencore Glencore plc is an Anglo-Swiss Multinational corporation, multinational commodity trading and mining company with headquarters in Baar, Switzerland, Baar, Switzerland. Glencore's oil and gas headquarters are in London, London, England as well a ...

acquired 50.04% ownership of the mine in 2011 and increased its stake shortly thereafter to 80.08%. The remainder of the shares were owned by

Black Economic Empowerment Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) is a policy of the South African government which aims to facilitate broader participation in the economy by black people. A form of affirmative action, it is intended especially to redress the inequalities cr ...

(BEE) actors ''PE Minerals'', owned by Aaron Mushimba, ''Jaguar Investments Four'', and a trust representing mine employees. In June 2014, Glencore announced laying off 124 employees from the Rosh Pinah mine. In 2017 Glencore sold its majority stake along with other zinc assets to Trevali Mining Corporation for $400 million. In May 2018, Trevali increased its ownership to 90%. In 2020, Trevali Mining Corporation launched a drilling study to consider the expansion of the mining reserve, a project forecasted to cost $93 million. In June 2023, private equity company Appian Capital Advisory acquired the company.

Minerals

The mine has reserves amounting to 14 million tonnes of ore grading 2%

and 8%

thus resulting 280,000 tonnes of

and 1.12 million tonnes of

. The mine also produces copper, silver and gold as byproducts.

Environmental impact

Decades of mining lead and zinc in this mine have led to chronic lead exposure of Rosh Pinah's inhabitants. In 2020, a report was compiled by the company medical practitioner of the zinc mine, confirming chronic lead exposure of all 30 children that were tested. The report was not published, and the doctor was dismissed. When the lead poisoning came to light in 2023, accounts from local doctors hint at hundreds of cases over several years.

References

{{reflist, 30em Lead and zinc mines in Namibia Buildings and structures in ǁKaras Region 1969 establishments in South West Africa Hebrew words and phrases

History

Minerals

Environmental impact

See also

References