Resource World Magazine

D E C E M B E R / J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 9 www.resourceworld.com 69 MININGWORLD The company also operates a fleet of Booster and Auxiliary compressors that allow drillers to achieve greater depths when RC drilling. The fleet of support equipment includes MAN all-wheel drive trucks, Toyota Landcruiser 4x4's, and purpose-built Rod Carriers. HIGHLY TRAINED WORKFORCE Geodrill has developed training programs in order to pro- vide personnel with the required skills and knowledge to perform drilling to the highest levels. The company operates Drill Training facilities at its Kumasi and Ouagadougou bases which are equipped with the latest training aids, literature and training staff. These programs are designed for new and existing personnel: drill, maintenance and transport crews to ensure the highest safety and techni- cal procedures are followed. "Training and refresher training courses are an integral part of what we do at Geodrill," says the company. "Drilling requires a high degree of skill and technical competence to ensure both an efficient drill program and accurate results." Geodrill states that the prof- itability of any given project is determined in part by how effectively the drill rigs can be operated and the samples col- lected. Management at Geodrill maintains that their training and monitoring programs facilitates effective drill programs. To date, Geodrill has approximately 1,000 employ- ees organized into two departments: Operations and Administration. Geodrill employs very few expatriates; approximately 90% of its employees are contract work- ers, while the remaining 10% are permanent employees. Geodrill's states that a large number of contract employees allows management to efficiently manage the size of its workforce in the event of a slowdown. The company says that it "has historically compensated its workforce at the high end of the industry range." The company's remuneration and benefits package and the extensive training programs have contributed to the com- pany's strong employee retention rate. Geodrill's centrally located state–of-the–art workshops manufactures up to 300 different, frequently replaced parts including drill rods ensuring their fleet is well-maintained and reducing downtime for their clients. Geodrill has invested in various corporate social respon- sibility projects over the years including providing power generators and water bores to local communities, school and orphanages. The company also built a local boxing gym (Bridge Boxing Gym) in Ghana and has been a gener- ous sponsor of the National Boxing Team and the Azumah Nelson Foundation in Ghana. For the six month period ended June 30, 2018, revenues totalled us $51,533,000.00 or $0.09 per share. As at January 12, 2018 Geodrill had 42.4 million shares outstanding, 45.5 fully diluted with a market capitalization of $90 million. n BQE Water signs mine water treatment agreement BQE Water, Inc. [BQE-TSXV], a leader in mine water management, has signed an Operating Services Agreement with AuRico Metals Inc., a wholly- owned subsidiary of Centerra Gold Inc. [CG-TSX], for water treatment at the Kemess Mine site located 430 km northwest of Prince George and 250 km north of Smithers, northern British Columbia, Canada. The treatment plant will remove heavy metals and selenium. The selenium removal portion of the overall treatment will utilize BQE Water's patented Selen-IX™ process and treat up to 6,400 m 3 /day of mine impacted water. The initial term of the agreement is five years beginning on January 1, 2020 and includes a provision for a three-year term extension subject to satisfac- tory plant performance. The services provided by BQE Water under the agreement and the compensation received, will be similar to the Raglan Mine (Ungava region, northern Québec) water treatment agreement with Glencore where BQE Water earns treatment fees linked directly to the volume of water discharged into the environment subject to effluent water quality meeting project requirements. The agreement follows an earlier Engineering Services Agreement between AuRico and BQE Water to implement the proposed treatment at the site. "We have been working with BQE Water for the past three years to advance our Kemess Underground Mine Project in BC," stated John Fitzgerald, VP Projects & Technical Services of Centerra Gold. "After a successful pilot program, we received regulatory approvals for advancing the project with Selen-IX™ as the means of controlling selenium in environmental discharge over the project life." David Kratochvil, President and CEO of BQE Water, commented, "The sign- ing of this agreement represents a major milestone for us. Not only does it increase the portfolio of plants operated by BQE Water and will contribute recurring revenue in North America, but crucially it assigns the responsibil- ity for the start-up and operation of the first commercial scale Selen-IX™ plant to us as the technology provider. Based on our 14 years of operations experience at the Raglan Mine project, we believe that this agreement provides an excellent platform for Centerra Gold and BQE Water to develop a long-term relationship vested in the success of the Kemess Underground project." Detailed engineering for the plant has been issued for construction and the project is currently in early stages of procurement and equipment fabrica- tion. The plant is expected to complete commissioning by the end of 2019 with operations beginning in 2020. The feasibility-stage Kemess Underground Project is host to the former Kemess South (KS) Mine, the KUG deposit and the KE deposit. The KUG deposit is about 6.5 km north of the existing KS processing plant and other infrastructure. n

• Cover