Copper miner PanAust responded quickly to the pandemic to “ensure the safety of its workforce and local communities and safeguard the future of the business.”
At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, PanAust and its subsidiary companies responded quickly to implement strict safety measures. The measures were guided by direction from the Company’s shareholder, Guangdong Rising Assets Management (GRAM).
The heart of PanAust’s business is its Phu Kham Copper-Gold and Ban Houayxai Gold-Silver Operations in Laos, both are owned at operated by its Lao-registered company, Phu Bia Mining (PBM). COVID-19 preventative and containment measures were introduced across both Operations. These measures included:
- increased deep cleaning of equipment and facilities
- reducing personnel roster numbers to manage population density on site
- altered catering and accommodation facilities
- controlled people movements by transporting personnel to and from and between sites in Company-provided transport
- increased fitness for work screening programs
- mandated strict return to site safety inductions for all returning personnel
- implemented stringent hygiene and social distancing measures
- supplied more than 100,000 Company-issued face masks to employees.
Lockdown And Ceasing Operations
Following two of its site employees testing positive for COVID-19 in April, the Company locked down all Lao-operating sites and ceased all operations for 27 days. Rosters were extended during this time and all personnel were required to remain on site as an immediate and precautionary measure to protect the workforce and ensure the safety of the Company assets. This approach was also consistent with the Company’s shareholder and Government of Laos requirements to temporarily cease operations to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in country.
Lockdown impacted the Company’s local workforce who could not return to their villages at shift end. This approach was necessary to ensure there were no community transmissions resulting in a subsequent outbreak in neighbouring villages. In a bid to reduce population density, the Company constructed temporary site accommodation in line with health authority requirements, realigned rosters and implemented mandatory self-quarantine for returning personnel for each roster shift.
PanAust’s Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Dr Qun Yang said that GRAM provided the leadership and support to the Company’s management team to go above and beyond local advice from health authorities to prevent the spread of COVID-19, irrespective of the cost and production outcomes.
“At PanAust, the health, safety and wellbeing of our workforce is, and will continue to remain, our top priority. This value is common to all companies within the GRAM group. The Management Team at PanAust are grateful to the GRAM leadership team who provided the requisite support and guidance to our management team that empowered us to make decisions and implement programs that protected our people, our communities and our business at the onset of the pandemic.
“Our mandatory 14-day self-quarantine program in Laos is an example how the Company went above and beyond local Government requirements to reduce the risk of COVID-19 infections with invaluable support and input from GRAM. Whilst the approach was logistically and financially challenging, the program helped control the potential spread of
COVID-19 at our Operations and there were no further cases following the initial cases,” Dr Yang said.
PBM’s Managing Director, Shaun Massey said the Company acknowledged that its Operations are critical for the local economy and jobs. During this period PanAust anchored to its Zero Harm philosophy and provided the utmost care, respect and empathy for its people.
“The PBM Viral (COVID 19) Screening Program which called for mandatory PCR tests for all returning personnel to the Company’s Operations was a first of its kind in Laos and is another example of what the Company could achieve with support from GRAM and local Government authorities,” Shaun said.
“By its very nature, running a mining operation doesn’t leave much option for working remotely. We had to make decisions fast and ensured we were ‘people focussed’ in each one of those decisions. We knew the infection and outbreak risks were high and the makeup of our workforce meant we couldn’t take the cookie cutter approach. To protect everyone and in line with the shareholder’s requirements, we decided to go into lockdown with a view to gradual easing some measures overtime,” Shaun said.
Shaun added that the Company has people from all over the world working in its Lao operations.
Restarting operations
Following the lockdown in Laos, to safely restart operations, the Company implemented a two-phased restart plan that outlined a staged approach to maintaining safe production at a level that balanced business needs against the risk of the potential spread of COVID-19.
Stage one involved enhanced screening of all personnel returning to PBM-controlled worksites. This included a requirement to complete 14-day self-quarantine in Company-controlled accommodation.
In partnership with the Government of Laos, stage two saw the cessation of self-quarantine and the commencement of the PBM Viral (COVID 19) Screening Program for returning site-based personnel. The Screening Program aimed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 by early identification through testing and containment for the safety of its workforce and the broader Lao community. The reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing was administered by the Government of Laos’ National Centre for Laboratory and Epidemiology.
“It was very challenging to move hundreds of people in and from self-quarantine and then conduct more than 3,000 PCR tests but this staged relaxation ensured the safe, efficient and successful restart of our operations in Laos,” Shaun said.
The Company took extra steps to seek Government approval and meet stringent in country requirements to enable the safe movement of products in and out of the country while Laos was in lockdown. This included urgent COVID-19 sourcing requests face masks, hand sanitisers, PCR testing kits and medical items including ventilators for the Company’s aid donation package to the people of Laos.
“We can proudly say that during these difficult times we maintained contracted deliveries to our customers. It was our out-of-the-box thinking and innovative approach to the business of mining that helped us source highly in demand hygiene, sanitation and medical supplies and equipment and map how to reroute our concentrate haulage due to the closure of the Laos/Vietnam border,” Shaun added.
Helping The People Of Laos Fight COVID-19
PBM donated US$650,000 to the central Government of Laos and US$150,000 to Xaisomboun Province representing the Company’s pledge of in-kind medical aid and financial assistance to help prevent and control the spread of COVID-19 in Laos.
Shaun said that the Company’s shareholder GRAM and PanAust remain genuinely committed to supporting the Government and people of Laos through this unprecedented and rapidly evolving pandemic.
“An essential element of this commitment is our determination to increase access to quality healthcare for those in need. Laos is one of the least developed countries in the world and when we can, we take the opportunity to help enhance the quality of life of the people of Laos,” Shaun said.
Recent statistics collated by the PBM medical team highlight that adhering to strict personal hygiene measures on site have had positive flow on effects while also helping to prevent the potential spread of COVID-19 on site and in its communities. The medical team have monitored the number of people presenting to the site clinics for the treatment of common hygiene and respiratory related illnesses. From June 2019 to June 2020, there has been a positive downward trend of cases of common colds, Pharyngitis, Tonsillitis and Diarrhoea cases.
Shaun noted that while a number of other factors have contributed to the decline of these, certainly COVID-19 measures have delivered additional benefits to the safety, health and well-being of our employees and contractors on site. Additionally, the decline in medical presentations has reduced costs associated with medications and downtime related to ill members of the workforce.
“Long term we remain optimistic in the resilience of our people and operations. As one team we’re committed to quickly adapting and improving our responses for the safety of our people, communities and operations,” Shaun concluded.
More information available here: https://panaust.com.au/company-profile