By Mbatjiua Ngavirue WINDHOEK The Purity Manganese Mine has not “collapsed” as incorrectly reported in an article published in Friday’s New Era, but is in full production and in the process of increasing output at the mine. Project Adviser to Purity Manganese (Pty) Limited, Asi Eretz, took strong exception to several statements made about his company in the article, which he said were false. Eretz said that although it was true that Purity Manganese had downscaled its operations in 2002 – when it retrenched 130 employees – the company subsequently continued operating. He pointed out that at the moment, the company has 22ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 000 tonnes of bulk ore at the port of Walvis Bay waiting for export. Purity Manganese has a mining licence that is valid until 2014 and the company is presently carrying out drilling and blasting operations aimed at increasing production and ore yield. Production at the mine is currently 10ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 000-15ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 000 tonnes of concentrate a month but, according to Eretz, the company is in the process of raising output to 30ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 000-40ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 000 tonnes a month. He however said it was difficult to project exact production levels as this depends on the mix of high-grade and low-grade ore. Eretz said the claim in the New Era article that Purity Manganese produces low-grade concentrate, is untrue. “People write things about us that are not true because they don’t talk to us. We are not in competition with anyone; we are concentrating on improving our own mining operations,” he said. While declining to give specific figures on the grading of the concentrate – for competitive reasons – he indicated that it is above 40 percent. Purity Manganese in 2004 received an Investment Certificate from the Ministry of Trade acknowledging a total investment N$54 million in Namibian assets by the company. Since then, Eretz says, Purity Manganese has invested an additional N$30-40 million in Namibia. The company was forced to retrench staff in 2002 because it was employing 150 more workers than it needed. “We don’t want to employ people just for the sake of saying we are employing a lot of people. We want to run a proficient and cost-effective operation,” he explained. Purity currently employs 40 people, but the monthly wage bill of the company, according to Eretz, is nevertheless in excess of N$150ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 000 excluding payments to outside contractors. The total monthly expenditure of the company in Namibia, he added, is well over N$700ÃÆ’Æ‘ÀÃ…ÃÆ”šÃ‚ 000, which includes payments to contractors and service providers. The companies with which the mine works include TransNamib, Namport’s Walvis Bay bulk terminal, Windhoek Transport Services and Windhoek Renovations. Eretz said people needed to look at the fraud charges brought against Boris Bannai, the sole director of Purity Manganese, in their proper perspective. “They are just charges, and Bannai has brought counter-charges against the other party. The court case will, in any case, have no bearing on operations in Namibia,” he reassured the public. Overall, he sees a bright future for Purity Manganese after an initially hesitant start to the company’s operations in Namibia. “We are looking to increase our volumes of production. We plan on increasing mine development in the Otjozondu area, and increasing our employment, but everything will be done in stages,” Eretz said.