WALVIS BAY – Rössing Uranium says that the potential impact of the devastating fire that occurred last week Friday at the mine’s Final Product Recovery plant on the operation, upstream and downstream is continually being assessed and considered.
In a statement released yesterday afternoon, Rössing revealed the initial assessment of the affected area at the FPR plant showed that the fire was confined to the roasters inside the facility only.
According to the company’s Chief Executive officer, Werner Duvenhage, the ongoing focus is on the structured implementation of a detailed project plan to manage the incident safely and within a reasonable timeframe.
“A lead investigator is currently on site, assisted by experts from Rössing and the Swakopmund Fire Brigade. The investigation team continues to work to identify the causes of the fire,” he said in his statement.
He added that Rössing’s Radiation Safety department conducted contamination measurements in the areas surrounding the FPR plant. As said earlier, no contamination was found. There has been no spill of uranium oxide from the roasting area to other areas. There has also been no additional radiation exposure to people as a result of the fire,” he explained.
He added that the mines operations will continue as usual. “Rössing will continue to produce in accordance with its 2015 production plan and uranium oxide will be exported in line with customer commitments. All operations of the mine continue as normal apart from the FPR where the fire occurred,” he concluded.