The Civil Engineering Contractor February 2019 | Page 11

CONTRACTORS ON SITE
Palm Springs City in Accra,
Ghana (Phase 2)
Garatau Platinum Mine
A new city is due to be built in Ghana. The Palm Springs City is
situated in Gomoa Fetteh, which is 45km from Accra city centre,
52km from the Tetteh Quashie Interchange via the N1, and 7km
from the Kasoa township, which is one of the fastest-growing middle-
income residential and commercial centres in West Africa. The
construction of this new city will be carried out over seven phases:
• Phase 1: Serviced plots and apartment blocks;
• Phase 2: Full utility and road servicing;
• Phase 3: Shopping mall and hospital;
• Phase 4: Business district;
• Phase 5: Commercial district;
• Phase 6: Marina, hotels, and resorts; and
• Phase 7: Arena and theme park project. nn
A new platinum mine, Garatau Platinum
Mine — on the Farm De Kom 252 KT,
the remainder of the Farm Garatouw
282 KT, and Portion 1 of the Farm
Garatouw 282 KT — has reached pre-
development stage. The proposed site
is located approximately 25km north of
Steelpoort, in Limpopo. The estimated
project value is R6.5-billion, and
R8.3-billion will be needed to develop
the project.
This comes after a definitive feasibility
study confirmed the project’s viability.
In preparation for developing the
project, Nkwe Platinum has obtained
environmental and water use approvals.
Additionally, a power source has been
secured from Eskom. A mining licence,
which was in question for several
months, was reaffirmed.
A technical feasibility and commercial
viability of extracting these mineral
resources have been demonstrated
by the delivered feasibility study. The
Garabouw Project is ready to commence
mining, as the critical mining regulatory
authorisations, such as the mining right
and environmental authorisation, are
all in place. There are no exploration
activities currently taking place. nn
The new city is a commute away from Ghana’s capital, Accra.
25-storey building to be constructed in Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa is a thoroughly modern African city.
The OIB-Oda Tower, a 25-storey mixed-use complex, is to
be constructed on Sudan Street in Ethiopia’s capital city,
Addis Ababa. Plans for the building were unveiled at a recent
ceremony in which K2N Architecture, an Ethiopian firm,
www.civilsonline.co.za
was feted as the winner of the design competition. The
developer of the building is OIB Oda Real Estate, which is
a joint venture that includes Oromia International Bank and
Oromia Insurance Company among several individuals. The
building is scheduled to be completed in five years at an
estimated cost of about USD70-million. It will house offices,
apartments, as well as entertainment and leisure facilities.
Other designs submitted during the competition were
received from MH Engineering and Zeleke Belay Consulting
Architects who came second and third, respectively.
According to Dereje Gashaw, the deputy general manager
of K2N, the final design of the building will be ready in
about seven months, after which construction work will
commence with the appointment of a contractor. The
building, together with parking spaces, will rest on 2 795m 2
of land granted by Goma Kuteba Plc, and will have a total
floor space of 38 000m 2 and a height of 110m. This will place
it at around the 10th tallest building in Ethiopia. nn
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