World’s deepest gold mine reaches 4 km, it takes miners 3 hours to reach down to work area, produces 8,000 kg of gold annually; It is…
New Delhi: Ever since the human race got involved in trade and commerce, it started to comprehend the nuances of the commerce sector. With time, it only grew, and today, this sector keeps the world’s economy running, albeit with fluctuations. With the burgeoning economies and industrialisation, the value of money and precious minerals and metals began to show their might. Talking about metals, gold is arguably the most valuable and has been celebrated as the most precious metal to be discovered and extracted from deep mines.
Most gold mines are located in Africa
There are numerous gold mines across the world, and a majority of them are located in Africa. Today, we will tell you about the world’s deepest gold mine, but before that, we will tell you about a few very deep gold mines.
The TauTona Mine in South Africa has a depth of 3.9 km. Before it was officially closed in 2018, it operated vast underground tunnels for decades with thousands of workers, producing hundreds of thousands of ounces of gold annually.
The Savuka Gold Mine in South Africa is 3.7 km deep. Savuka is famous for its deep underground workings. It is said that this place historically held several billion tonnes of gold ore and produced tens of thousands of ounces yearly.
The Driefontein Mine in South Africa is at the depth: 3.42 km. Driefontein is still active and among the largest gold producers globally. It stretches deep underground with advanced extraction methods and a large workforce.
The Kloof Mine in South Africa has a depth of 3.347 km. it has deep underground shafts drilling nearly 3.35 km below the surface. It produces gold and uranium and uses sequential grid mining to optimise extraction.
The Laronde Mine in Canada is at the depth of 3.260 km. It is Canada’s deepest mine, extracting gold mixed with copper, silver, and zinc. It uses modern mining technology to operate safely at such depths.
World’s deepest gold mine
The world’s deepest gold mine is the Mponeng Gold Mine in South Africa. It reaches a depth of nearly 4 km. Miners spend almost three hours just traveling down to their work area. Deep below the surface, rock temperatures can rise to about 150°C, making the job extremely hard and dangerous. Powerful cooling systems help keep workers safe.
It produces over 8,000 kilograms of gold annually by processing massive amounts of rock, making it a key part of the global gold supply. Working here is not easy. One small mistake can leave miners trapped deep below the earth, far from light and rescue.