Multidisciplinary engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) firm Methano Group is in the late engagement stage with its strategic partners in setting up offices in Southern Africa Development Communities (SADC) countries, such as Zambia.

This, says group CEO Sereme Maphaka, will see the company focus on the Copperbelt in Africa, and work hard towards achieving innovative, multiculturally informed engineering solutions for the continent’s mining houses.

“We want to be agile in our approach towards strengthening our relationship with our clients, while becoming the leading EPCM in the African market,” he comments.

Methano serves the mining, renewable energy, water and industry market segments, and its attendance at this year Investing in African Mining Indaba provides it with an opportunity to meet its customers, as these are “one of the key stakeholders within our community”.

In addition, Maphaka says the company is hopeful that it will meet key decision-makers within the industry, as the projects the company is involved in are “mostly strategic”.

“Most of the work results in business cases that get approved by the key decision-makers of the mine house, including the boards, and we are really excited to be here to meet them and really interact with them in this environment,” Maphaka comments.

Further, the global market environment has had a direct influence on the company’s performance as a business.

For example, when platinum saw prices rise to $1 214/oz in May 2021, Maphaka received numerous inquiries for prefeasibility studies (PFSs) and feasibility studies. However, when the opposite happened, the tone changed.

“We acknowledge that we operate in a dynamic and cyclical market, so we see the benefit from this approach at times,” he adds.

Methano develops projects from the PFS and feasibility stages all the way to construction management.

“We help our clients to have insight of what the project will cost in the current market conditions and from time to time we will also assist with project economic evaluation for the project so that decision-makers can make informed decisions on whether to go ahead with the project or not.”