Ivanplats off-topic here
But Friedland-activities has interest (I hope)
From a analyst memo:
Robert Friedland thinks that a unique geology allows the development of his Platreef prospect to avoid the labour difficulties that currently plague mining in South Africa
Ivanplats Ltd.’s (IVP – TSX) “Platreef discovery in the northern limb of South Africa’s Bushveld complex will be ‘transformative’ for a platinum industry that is living on ‘borrowed time’, the company’s founder and executive chairman Robert Friedland said,” according to MiningNews.net.
“He …gave particular attention to …Platreef… due to its unique geology, which he said would lead to a ‘radical’ shift for the platinum industry….’Compelling people to go down there for $15 a day with unacceptable safety records is a proposition that is really … dead. It’s just not viable.… the platinum industry as we know it is living on borrowed time, because it is wildly labour-intensive mining in those conditions, and I would challenge anybody here to go there and live like that underground. You might do it for a day or a week, but you wouldn’t want to go down there for the rest of your life'....
The ‘incomprehensively large’ ore body’s flat nature at Platreef meant rubber-tyred equipment was possible and everything could be mechanised, 'so it will be radically different in the platinum industry as we know it….there will be no fatalities. Everybody working on the mine will be operating air conditioned equipment. There will be no muscle power used in the mining whatsoever’”.