Diversified miner Assmang has placed an order worth R250 million for the supply of nine materials handling machines with Sandvik Materials Handling Africa for its Greenfield development at its Khumani Iron Ore mine near Sishen. Assmang has ordered four rail mounted bucket wheel reclaimers and five rail mounted stackers.

The stackers and reclaimers for the project will be designed and manufactured by Voest-Alpine Materials Handling, which is also a Sandvik company Work on the project will begin later this year and when completed, the iron ore will be mined from a series of open pits for hauling to the primary and secondary crushers.

Formerly known as the BKM development, the R3.2 billion Khumani Iron Ore mine is scheduled to begin production during the early part of 2008. Initially, the mine will produce 8.4 million tons of iron ore a year, but this will be doubled when the second phase is completed at an additional cost of about R1.8 billion, which is subject to board approval.

Mr Jan Detlof-Wismer SMHA's manager for business development said that the order is the biggest placed with Sandvik for a materials handling project in southern Africa and follows a major development late last year when ETS, one of South Africa's leading materials handling specialists, was integrated into the company's operations.