Suppliers platform and B2B feature to be introduced at the 9th Mining Expo and Conference
The Chamber of Mines of Namibia has announced that the 9th Mining Expo and Conference, scheduled for 31 August and 1 September, will be the first in-person event for the mining industry after the COVID-19 Pandemic.
This comes as the Chamber also revealed that the 2022 Mining Expo will introduce a dedicated suppliers platform and Business 2 Business feature, which enables exhibitors to arrange direct meetings with players in the mining sector. According to the Chamber Chief Executive Veston Malango, this offers exhibitors new avenues to market their products and engage with the sector.
“The whole Chamber team is gearing up and preparing for what promises to be an exciting and successful Mining Expo & Conference at the Windhoek Showgrounds,” said Malango.
Moreover, this year’s event coincides with an improving outlook for the mining industry supported by a buoyant mineral commodity market, and a fast-paced operating environment that is evolving with rapid technological advancements being made in the mining sector, the Chief Executive added.
“The current landscape most certainly augurs well for a valuable event that will see business ventures catalyze from these dynamic opportunities,” he said, adding that the “outlook for mining remains as favourable as ever and we are eagerly following a sustained recovery in the price of uranium, and a continued surge in mineral commodity prices as the world transitions to green energy solutions.”
Meanwhile, the mining sector is involved in exploring new frontiers such as using natural resources like gas or solar power to produce green hydrogen, which has applications in mining operations. “For instance, using hydrogen fuel cells to power haul trucks and ammonium nitrate being a product from ammonia has a wide application as a major component for explosives (ANFO),” he asserted.
Malango also indicated that the Chamber is at the forefront of the discussion around a green hydrogen industry in Namibia and linkages with other sectors of the economy and chairs one of the Private Sector Green Hydrogen Working Groups.
On the other hand, Chamber members stepped up, in partnership with other key private sector players under the Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry-led Business Namibia COVID-19 Response Initiative to address the countrywide oxygen shortfall by donating and distributing oxygen and other medical supplies to state medical hospitals, he said.
“The Chamber is also excited to announce that Rand Merchant Bank is the official sponsor of the Mining Conference, the cocktail event, and the Expo marketing channels that include the B2B and the Supplier’s Platform.”
According to Malango, the conference programme will feature speakers from a variety of industry players who are excited to share innovative ways of Breaking New Frontiers in a Post-Pandemic Era covering topics on the resurgence of Namibia’s uranium sector, the re-opening of historic mines, new frontiers of resilience, transitioning Namibia’s mining sector into the Fourth Industrial Revolution, green hydrogen and the catalyst for establishing a sustainable and environmentally responsible phosphate-based industry, among others.
