Kathu is the iron ore capital of the Northern Cape and is home to several large iron ore and manganese mines – including Sishen, Khumani, Sedibeng iron ore dense medium separation plant and various smaller operations. The town is situated between Upington and Vryburg.
The Sishen mine is a large open-pit iron ore mine, 14km in length, which produces a leading quality lump ore and a premium fine ore. The mine is operated by Kumba Iron Ore. Kumba is also focused on cost optimisation, aiming to offset inflation.
Khumani Iron Ore Mine is located about 30km away from Kathu. A primary iron-ore producer, the mine was originally designed to produce 10 million tonnes of export-quality iron ore each year; it now has the capacity to produce 14 million tonnes. Iron ore mined at Khumani is exported via the Saldanha Bay iron ore bulk terminal. It is an open-pit, mechanised operation with a LOM of 20 years (https://www.assmang.co.za/assmang-khumani-2/).
