A Group Five Publication

INSITE
A Group Five Publication May 2008

M E S S AG E
F RO M M I K E
U P TO N, C E O
Since my previous communication in the Insite of December 2007,
South Africa has experienced some fundamental changes, the
most drastic being the power crisis, which, although not totally
unexpected, caught us slightly off-guard. But the secret is to turn
adversity into opportunity and I believe we are doing just that.
We saw the opportunity in power some four to five years ago through our
relationship with GE. Our first experience in the power sector was in the
Middle East. And from there we moved to West Africa where we are
partnering with a number of technology providers doing turnkey gasturbine
projects.
So when the power problems hit South Africa we were in a position to
play a part in the solution. This positioning has the group placed as a
constructor/partner to the big power station projects, whether they are
directly for Eskom or as a construction partner to the suppliers of the
technology packages. With our multi-disciplinary group structure, we are
also in a position to put together complete packages for design and
construct power plants.
At the beginning of 2008 we revised our core revenue streams by
separating our Manufacturing and Construction Materials cluster into two,
,giving us four clusters to further support our strategy of building a
balanced portfolio to provide integrated building, infrastructure and
engineering solutions, particularly on mega projects such as we have at
King Shaka Airport and Moses Mabhida soccer stadium.
The group's strength lies in the alignment and integration of the skills
and resources from each of the clusters. In order to co-ordinate this
effectively we have created a special projects business which will
concentrate on the management of mega projects from conception to
execution and handover.
To take advantage of opportunities in the Middle East we have expanded
the Engineering MEP business into Dubai, where it has joined forces
with our Civils business which has been operating successfully in the
region since early 2004. In late 2007 Group Five entered into a 50:50 joint
venture with Al Naboodah and since then the partnership has been
awarded contracts worth R6-billion.
In closing I would like to thank the investment analysts who recently
devoted an entire day to attend our Investor Management Day, during
which we were able to update them on our strategy and plans for future
growth.
Mike Upton CEO
Contents
PG
PG
Message from Mike Upton, CEO 2
Exco appointment 3
Bernoberg joins the Construction Materials cluster 3
Stats at Durban Harbour 4
Group Five Al Naboodah JV kicks off 5
King Shaka Airport 6 & 7
Tempory housing solution at Tshepiso 8
Everite welcomes asbestos ban 9
Intertoll Poland 10
A1 starts tolling 11
Inyoni Creek 12
Group Five in Sandton 13
State of the art: New Life Sciences building at
the University of the Western Cape 13
Tank 12 at Molongo 14
Port of Durban 15
Songo Songo Gas-to-Electricity project 16
Making copper at Ruashi 17
Progress at Moses Mabhida 18 & 19
Landscaping at Palm Lakes 20
Challenges at Hulamin 21
Installation of the ball mill at Lumwana 21
Marine outfall a first for Group Five 22
Engineering rides the waves of success 23
Concession project in Europe 23
Launch of Group Five/DBSA Construction Skills
Training Academy 24
COVER
A storm over the Moses Mabhida soccer stadium in early February was captured by video cam
(see page 18-19) Photo courtesy of: Strategic Projects Unit, eThekwini Municipality

ExCO
ApPOINTMENT
Willie Zeelie, managing director of Group Five Energy, has been
tasked with implementing the new Group Five Special Projects
Company and has been appointed to Exco, whilst retaining his current role.
Willie trained in power engineering at college and at Eskom during the
construction programme in the 1980s, where he was part of the engineering
project team for aspects of the Eskom build on Tutuka, Lethabo, Kendal,
Matimba and Palmiet power and pumped storage schemes respectively.
Subsequently he held senior and board positions in various technology and
project companies such as Alstom, Rolls Royce and ABB. He joined Group
Five in 2003 and has built and expanded the Group's Energy business
covering electrical contracting, power generation and oil and gas.
Willie Zeelie
BERNOBERG JOINS THE CONSTRUCTION
MATERIALS CLUSTER
Following hot on the heels of Group Five's 50:50 joint venture agreement
with Barnes Reinforcing Industries in August 2007, the group acquired
Bernoberg, a small niche manufacturer of cement extender, in October 2007.
Bernoberg joins the Construction Materials cluster, which comprises Quarry Cats
and Sky Sands.
Tim Woodhead, executive director of Group Five Construction Materials, points
out that granulated blast furnace slag, a by-product of the steel-manufacturing
process, is milled and sold in bulk form to ready-mix concrete producers.
“The demand for slag-based cement extenders frequently exceeds the
available supply due to the limited quantities of suitable granulated slag
produced from South Africa's steel mills,” Tim said.
“Bernoberg has a minimum contractual off-take of blast furnace slag
from Arcelor Mittal's Vanderbijlpark works, which is then milled at
Bernoberg's new factory in Vanderbijlpark. There is spare milling
capacity at the factory which exceeds current production rates.
Bernoberg, which has been in operation since February 2007, has a small
client base including Group Five's commercial ready-mix concrete
supply subsidiary, Afrimix,” Tim pointed out.
“Bernoberg further diversifies our business portfolio in the construction
materials supply sector and complements our existing product range. As
with our previous acquisitions in this cluster, Bernoberg will be value
enhancing as it will operate at higher margins than our group's average.
Our further investment in this specific business and the broader
materials supply sector also enhances our ability to meet the crucial
demands of South Africa's drive for greater infrastructure.”
Bernoberg factory in Vanderbijlpark
PG 3

STATS AT DURBAN HARBOUR
The contract to widen Durban Harbour by 100m and deepen it by 6m, currently underway by Group Five Civil Engineering in joint venture with Belgian
company, Dredging International, is providing some unusual statistics. The R1,8-billion contract forms part of Transnet's bigger port infrastructure
upgrade initiative across 13 terminals in six ports, to meet the increasing maritime traffic demand and growth in containerised cargo.
A Mammoet
4 100 475 ton
crawler crane
is in place on
the north side
to lift the dolosse
and antifer cubes
into place
The north side of the harbour precast yard where
550 dolosse are being manufactured to reinforce the
realigned breakwater. The dredger, Marieke, is berthed
after returning from a trip to Richards Bay
3 800 antifer cubes weighing 5 tons and 10 tons will be
used with the dolosse on the north breakwater
On the south side of the harbour,
1 000 precast concrete antifer cubes of
30 tons and 4 000 at 45 tons each will be
used to reinforce the sea side of the breakwater
Workers prepare the formwork for a dolos
Group Five's Hyundai Robex 500LC-7A with its
19,7m extended boom to give it the reach required for
the excavations. The machine operating weight
is 62 tons

G RO U P F I V E A L NA B O O DA H
J V K I C K S O F F
Group Five in Dubai and its joint venture partners, Al Naboodah, kicked off the year with the award of new contracts totalling some AED3,934-billion
(R7,488-billion) with Group Five's portion being R3,744-billion over a two and a half year period.
Jebel Ali
Of the new contracts, three are located at the Dubai World Central, Jebel
Ali airport in Dubai, where Group Five is currently completing the ground
service equipment tunnel for the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA).
“The airport, one of the largest in the world, will be surrounded by
several small cities. Our joint venture has two identical contracts
for staff villages at Residential City and Logistic City, each valued
at AED1,3-billion,” said operations manager, Frans van der Meer. “The
villages comprise four-storey accommodation blocks constructed
with 425 000m 2 of precast concrete panels.”
The two year contract started on 1 March 2008 and is for the Department
of Civil Aviation with Pioneers of Experts as consulting engineer and TTS-
Page Kirkland as quantity surveyors.
The third contract at Jebel Ali is for a bridge valued at AED75-million.
Jumeirah
In February this year the team started on comprehensive improvements to
the roads in Jumeirah, a suburb of Dubai. The AED288,5-million contract
includes five concrete post-tensioned pre-stressed bridges, three
underpasses and a pedestrian crossing, all of which must be completed
within a tight 24 month construction period stipulated by the Roads and
Transport Authority.
The joint venture team is working closely with consulting engineer,
Parsons-De Leeuw Cather Overseas to maintain the programme.
Residential complex at Al Quoz
“This was one of the first contracts to be undertaken by the joint venture
team and is valued at AED1,187 (R2,5-billion),” said Frans. “It is for eleven
five-storey residential blocks, each housing some 48 apartments with high
quality finishes.”
The apartments range in size from three to five bedrooms and each unit has
its own maid's room. The scope of works includes all external roads,
services, parking areas, a mosque, a clinic, a nursery and all the mechanical,
electrical and piping installations.
The architect and consulting engineer is Arif & Bintoak with Hepher
Quantity Surveying as quantity surveyor. The structures, founded on
210 000m 2 of hollow core precast concrete slabs, will be built using
120 000m 2 of reinforced concrete and 12 000 tons reinforcing. Work started
in November 2007 and is due for completion in April 2009.
Al Quoz, an industrial suburb of Dubai, is also home to the world-renowned
Godolphin Al Quoz Stables owned by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin
Rashid Al Maktoum. The stable has become synonymous with international
competition, aiming its best horses at the world's major races. Each winter
the team of horses that will carry the royal blue colours the following
season is brought to Al Quoz to be prepared for the international campaigns
that lie ahead.
Established in 1992, the stables were surrounded by desert which has long
since been swallowed up by the city.
In the business world, the rearview mirror is always clearer than the
windshield. Warren Buffet PG 5

K I N G S H A K A A I R P O RT
Following a belated start on the King Shaka Airport, at La Mercy on
the KZN north coast, the Ilembe Consortium is on schedule for
delivery of a fully functional airport to ACSA by early 2009.
The Ilembe Consortium, named after the district in which the airport is
located and meaning 'strong and clever' in Zulu, comprises 18 companies
and is led by WBHO, Group Five and Pandev who are responsible for
managing the entire project.
Project director, Duncan Barry, heads up a team that includes Jon
Broadhead (ex-BAA) as project services director recruited by Turner and
Townsend and Ryan Marzullo (ex Continental Airlines) project manager for
the terminal building.
“The success of the project is based on our experienced teams
and working closely with the client, professional teams and subcontractors
to maintain the very tight programme and build a world
class facility for ACSA,” says Duncan.
He is in full support of the stringent environmental regulations that are
audited on a monthly basis.
Before construction could start an in depth analysis followed the flight
patterns and habits of a large flock of barn swallows who return to roost
in the area year after year.
“They established that the airport and the barn swallows could
co-exist, which, as a keen birdwatcher, came as a great relief to
me,” says Duncan.
Auditing takes account of the flora and fauna and the quality of water
and air.
“With almost 6 000 000m 3 of earthworks to complete on the 20km 2
site, dust control is a major issue, but we are coping well and are
achieving an overall compliance of 84%.
Bearing in mind that the Ilembe Consortium will be delivering a fully
functional airport in two years time, the following statistics are somewhat
staggering (page 7).
Piling for the terminal building
By March 2008 a forest of cranes could be seen over
the terminal building and car parks
An aerial view of the site

GENERAL AIRPORT INFORMATION QUANTITY COMPARISON
Area of the site
2 060ha
Number of passengers the airport will handle on the opening day
7,5million
Terminal building floor space 100 000m 2 9 soccer pitches
Terminal building roof area 35 000m 2
Number of air-bridges 15
Number of check-in desks 72
Number of baggage reclaim carousels
5 carousels
Number of escalators 12
Number of lifts 24
Number of aircraft stands 27
Retail, food and beverage inside the TMB (excluding storage) 5 244m 2
Retail concourse (area of shops) 3 630m 2
CONSTRUCTION FACTS QUANTITY COMPARISON
Length of the runway 3,7km 100 soccer pitches
Number of public parking spaces
- In the multi-storey parkade 1 500
- Surface level parking 3 000
Amount of concrete to be used altogether on site 104 000m 3 Would fill 46 Olympic
swimming pools
Height of the control tower
63m
Amount of structural steel to be used 4 700 tons 1/2 as much as the
Eiffel Tower
Amount of reinforcement to be used
1 600 tons
Amount of asphalt to be used
230 000 tons
Number of kilometres of cabling to be installed
700 km (L.V)
Number of piles to be drilled on site 2 177
Number of tower cranes at peak 9
Amount of diesel needed to operate for the duration of construction
9 million litres
Amount of earthworks 5,8-million m 3 2 500 Olympic pools
PEOPLE FACTS
People that will be involved on the project at peak 5 000
Non-SA based companies that are involved in delivering KSIA
New Zealand, Germany, Italy, Spain and Malaysia

TEMPORARY HOUSING SOLUTION
AT TSHEPISO
ADepartment of Housing plan to relocate a community,
living in an informal settlement south of Vereeniging,
backfired when the contractors were unable to meet their
commitment to provide 300 modified containers as temporary
accommodation.
Jurgen Stragier speaking at the handover event, As can be
seen here, the houses are grouped in threes around a
communal courtyard so that families can be together.
The DoH approached Group Five's Manufacturing operation,
Everite, and SCIP Engineering Group, who stepped into the
breach and in less than eight weeks had built 186 secure and
insulated units using Nutec products.
“Originally we were using wooden frames, but close to
the completion of the contract we started using our new
steel frames which are pre-formed at our factory in
Klipriver,” said Jurgen Stragier, managing director of Everite
speaking at the handover of the houses in mid-January this year.
The event was attended by the executive mayor of Emfuleni
Municipality, D R Tsotetsi, local councillors and other
distinguished guests.
In her speech the mayor referred to the 'crisis situation' that
had occurred with the non-delivery of the containers. “A new
contractor was appointed by Government to urgently
complete the project,” she said.
Everite and SCIP took up the responsibility in November 2007
agreeing to the targets placed before them:
• To build temporary accommodation units within a short
period of time
• To train members of the local community and offer them
skills so as to create employment opportunities
• To work with community structures who represent the
interests of the community
“The contractor worked through the December 2007
holiday period to complete the project. We must
applaud their effort …” the mayor said. She voiced her
approval of the houses which, she said, provided instant
quality housing giving decent living conditions to the
beneficiaries.
The 24m 2 units are being used to accommodate a community
of informal dwellers at Tshepiso North whilst permanent
housing is constructed on the land they were occupying. In
terms of the agreement 85 local people were trained in a
variety of skills, during the course of the contract.
Temporary accommodation using
Everite products
For the things we have to learn before we can do them,
we learn by doing them. Aristotle PG 8

EVERITE WELCOMES ASBESTOS BAN
The management of Everite welcomed the publication by the
Department of Environmental Affairs & Tourism of regulations
banning the use of asbestos and asbestos containing materials on 28 April
2008.
Excessive exposure to respirable asbestos fibres can cause a range of
lung diseases, including cancer, and has been banned in Everite products
since 2002.
“Since completing the switch to asbestos-free products we had to
compete with cheaper asbestos-cement products imported from
Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Brazil,” said Everite managing director,
Jurgen Stragier.
“The new regulations do not apply to asbestos products already in
use, such as roofing sheets, ceiling boards or pipes because the
respirable fibres are encapsulated in cement,” says Jurgen.
“Numerous international studies have demonstrated that asbestos
containing building materials in place present little or no risk to the
public. However, extreme caution is needed during installation,
maintenance or removal to avoid exposure to respirable asbestos
fibres.”
The Asbestos Regulations 2001, published by the Department of Labour, set
out strict requirements for working with asbestos products but, according
to Jurgen, these are often ignored on building sites and policing is difficult,
particularly in rural areas.
The banning legislation, which will give manufacturers and merchants a
four month period of grace to clear all asbestos products from their shelves,
bans all use of asbestos.
Asbestos-free Nutec cladding was used extensively on
the Le Telfair Hotel in Mauritius

INTERTOLL POLAND
Scenes from the ‘dry run’
A group becomes a team when each member is sure enough of himself and
his contribution to praise the skills of the others. Norman Shidle PG 10

A 1 S T A R T S T O L L I N G
Alittle after midnight on 20 February 2008, Intertoll Polska collected
its first toll on the A1 in Poland. This was the required 60 days
after the start of the operations and maintenance section of the first stage
for Phase 1 of the A1 toll road concession agreement with the Gdansk
Transport Company, the special purpose concession company for the
project, in which Group Five's Intertoll has a 15% equity participation.
Dave Williams, technical manager for Group Five Infrastructure Development
Services takes up the story:
“We had opened the road to the public on 22 December last year
but we weren't tolling at that stage. The toll process in Poland is
similar to that in France where the road user takes a ticket on entry,
much like our parking garages. The ticket is surrendered to a toll
collector on exit and the amount calculated from the distance
travelled and the category of the vehicle.
“So it was very necessary for us to do a dry run to get motorists
used to stopping, taking a ticket and then handing it back on exit.
We made plans to do the dry run starting in the morning of
16 February. But like so many plans, they went a bit awry.
“First of all, after weeks of good weather the heavens opened with
a serious layer of snow, temperatures plummeted and the wind
added to the drama. (Snow is exciting for us South Africans, but not
on this particular day.) So our dry run was also a very wet run.
Added to that, the tickets got stuck and tempers flared. It was a very
swift learning curve.
Above: Team member, David Buckley doing his bit by clearing the snow
Below: Piotr Rotter, John Gartshore and George Jamieson operations
director – Europe
“The TV cameras were there and we even had a few protesters
who felt that the fees are too high.
“Thanks to the dry run, the official launch on 20 February went
relatively smoothly. Shortly after midnight we started to collect
tolls. It was very exciting seeing the project reach its objective. Our
directors, George Jamieson and Uwe Sauerberg, gave up the
warmth and comfort of their beds to join us in the excitement.
“There were a few irate drivers but thankfully the team under the
leadership of Piotr Rotter and John Gartshore, who had quite
literally weathered the storm through the dry run, were so inured
that the angry remarks were like water off a duck's back.”
Dave Williams,
technical manager:
Group Five IDS, with
a toll collector
A snow plough
clears the way through the plaza

INYONI CREEK
The large airy clubhouse has a comfortable lounge, a dining
room, bar, snooker room, library and patio for the convenience of
the residents. Phase II will have a large communal swimming
pool with a clubhouse, gym and hairdressing salon
The houses are face brick with powder coated aluminium
window frames, aluminium sliding doors and tiled roofs. To the
left can be seen one of several large open areas, hydro-seeded
to create an eco-friendly environment
Acomfortable retirement in lovely surroundings, within easy reach of
all amenities, is the hope of most of us and one that the residents
of Inyoni Creek Retirement Village in Edenvale have had realised and more.
Located just north east of Johannesburg the village is within easy reach of
major highways and shopping malls, offers comfortable homes in
beautifully landscaped grounds and has a range of facilities for the
residents.
Group Five Housing, on the strength of the successful handover of phase I
of the village for 46 free-standing three-bedroom cottages with double
lock-up garages, has started on phase II for 133 units, with completion due
at the end of 2008.
The second phase consists of 47 cottages similar to those in phase I, six
two-bedroom cottages with double garages and 80 one-, two- and threebedroom
apartments, each with its own garage.
Whilst this large workshop built in the 1970s will be
demolished to make way for phase II, the small thatched
church to the left, will be retained.
With a combined value of R160-million for both contracts, Group Five is
working for Rand Aid Welfare Development Trust with Neill Powell Neill
Architects, Trans African Consulting Engineers and quantity surveyor, Neil
Duncan.

G R O U P F I V E I N S A N D T O N
The Sandton CBD is a living portfolio of Group Five Building's
work, from the Michelangelo Towers, dominating the Sandton
skyline, to the JSE, Sandhurst Towers and a multitude of renovations,
a building completed or refurbished by Group Five can be seen on
almost every street. The most recent additions to this portfolio are Axis
and The Place.
The Axis Building is a six-storey 17 000m 2 office block with three parking basements located on the corner of Grayston Drive and Rivonia Road.
Surrounded by a busy main road and existing building access during construction was severely restricted.
The full volume atrium of the axis is
divided by the modern glass and
aluminium sided lift shaft and illuminated
with low voltage downlighters
Designed by TPS Architects, the interior of the building is
bathed in natural light that streams through glass and steel
skylights into a full volume atrium divided by the lift lobby,
which is connected to the offices by suspended walkways
The Place is an ultra-modern 97 000m 2 fourstorey
office block with five levels of parking
situated on a prime
property adjacent to Sandton City
STATE OF THE ART: NEW LIFE SCIENCES
BUILDING AT THE UNIVERSITY OF
THE WESTERN CAPE
The largest and most advanced Life
Science Research Institute on the African
continent is presently under construction by
Group Five Building (Western Cape) at the
University of the Western Cape and due for
completion in August 2009. The Life Sciences
building includes a Medical Bioscience department
and an SA Herbal Science and Medicine Institute
and Biotechnology department, making it a world
class facility accommodating some 2 500 staff
and students.
The R350-million contract was started in
September 2007 and comprises a six-storey
4 500m 2 laboratory building, and a double-storey
2 400m 2 organic curved learning centre. The architest’s model for the UWC building

TANK 12 AT MALONGO
ACaterpillar 320D series excavator,
purchased by Civil Engineering to do the
excavations for Tank 12 at Malongo, was flown
from Luanda to Cabinda in a Russian military
aircraft carrier.
Logistics manager for the Group Five Supply
Chain, Theunis Marais, says that there can be little
doubt that this aircraft is an Ilyushin IL76. “This
is a slightly newer military model. Note the
tail-gunners cockpit that has been blanked out
together with the gun portholes which have been
modified into tail lights.”
The CAT, at 9,5m long, 2,9m wide and 2,45m high,
is dwarfed by the massive aircraft.
Group Five is contracted to do the design and civil
works on Tank 12 which, at 18m high x 115m
diameter, is significantly larger than its predecessor,
Tank 11, which was completed by Group Five in
2007 and measures 15m high x 95m diameter.
WO O D M E A D
R E TA I L PA R K
Keeping to a very tight programme, Group Five Building had the new 45 000m² Woodmead Retail Park in Woodmead, Sandton, ready
for the official opening on 24 April 2008 as scheduled. Crowds poured into the R500-million lifestyle centre which is anchored by a
15 300m² Pick ‘n Pay Hypermarket and a 3 000m² full line Woolworths. Other major national retailers include Mr Price, Sheet Street, Dischem
and Mugg & Bean. Open air parking caters for 2 000 cars.

P O R T O F D U R B A N
The old Queens Warehouse building in the Port of Durban,
which was recently refurbished and converted into offices for
Transnet Projects, is one of several such buildings that line the east side
of lower Point Road (now renamed Mahatma Gandhi Road), opposite
the quays where the old ships used to anchor. They were built during
the first decades of the twentieth century when access and parking did
not pose a problem.
Erecting shade cloth at the
Queens Warehouse staff parking
What a pleasure that must have been, but dwelling on the past does not
change the fact that today access and parking is a major problem and
one that Transnet Projects needed to alleviate urgently.
Based on the work done by Group Five KZN on the Edwin Swales Drive
and the Western Freeway contracts, Transnet Projects awarded them a
contract for the access road, visitors’ parking and to upgrade the
existing staff parking. The contract was subject to a very tight
programme and turned out to be more complex than initially expected.
“The area for the new visitors' car park and the existing staff
car park is criss-crossed with underground services, including
the main electricity supply to the Port of Durban,” reports Donald
Davies, Group Five site manager.
This in itself posed a major hazard, but added to that were sewer and
storm-water drains, potable water supply pipelines, CCTV cable ducts
and Telkom services, creating a minefield of services to be protected as
the excavations went down to the two metre level required for the
construction of new services.
Schoolchildren at
the new bus stop
Putting up fencing during
the early part of the contract
“To work our way through this labyrinth we had to interface
with local service providers such as Telkom and Durban
Transport, and Local Government Authorities including the
eThekwini Metro Municipality and in particular the eThekwini
Transport Authority (ETA),” Donald says. He explains that the ETA's
Roads Section is responsible for approving proposals for new roads and
the Traffic Section is responsible for traffic control.
“The success of the project really depended on our ability to
deal with these existing underground services, and the
installation of the new ones. The team's combined experience,
gained on similar projects, contributed a great deal to the
project and must have inspired confidence in Transnet Projects
as they have awarded us another contract at the Port of
Durban,” Donald concludes. The new contract he refers to is for the
widening and upgrading of Quayside Road which was started at the end
of February this year.
Protecting the children
In spite of the arduous task at the Queens Warehouse parking, the site
team took long hours in campaigning to get a bus stop, adjacent to the
site, moved to a safer position. Approximately 50 schoolchildren were
using the bus stop on a daily basis, but due to the hoarding surrounding
the space where they used to congregate, their safety was at stake. It
wasn't easy, but Donald and the team, with the assistance of parents,
teachers and the site safety officer, managed to get the bus stop moved
to a safer position.
PG 15

S O N G O S O N G O G A S - T O -
E L E C T R I C I T Y P R O J E C T
Arelationship forged between Group Five Energy and Songas on
the Ibom gas-fired power station in Nigeria, has been rekindled
with the award of a US$38-million (R280-million) contract on the remote
island of Songo Songo off the southern coast of Tanzania. Having worked in
partnership with Group Five at Ibom, Songas is now the client.
The company will develop the Songo Songo gas field by constructing gas
processing facilities on the island and transporting natural gas to the
capital, Dar-es-Salaam, via a pipeline where it will be used as the principal
fuel supply for five gas turbine electricity generators.
As only some 7% of Tanzanians have access to electricity, the goal of the
Songo Songo Gas-to-Electricity project is to provide the people with a
reliable source of low cost electricity. The project will form the basis of the
development of the gas industry and infrastructure in Tanzania.
Willie Zeelie, managing director of Group Five Energy, explained that the
contract calls for the upgrade of the existing gas conditioning plant from
two trains to four, thereby doubling its capacity.
“It is an EPC (engineer, procure and construct) contract and
includes the design verification, detailed engineering, issue of IFC
drawings and all the civil, structural, mechanical, piping, electrical
and instrumentation installations,” he said.
The logistics of getting materials to this remote location, approximately
200km south of Dar-es-Salaam and 25km offshore, will be a key part of the
project.
“Access to the island is by a 45 minute charter flight from the
capital, so complex forward planning for all our requirements will
be crucial if we are to meet our 14 month contract period.”
Songas was first established in October 1995 and comprises Ocelot
Tanzania Inc. and TransCanada Pipeline Limited, in partnership with the
Government of Tanzania, Tanzania Electric Supply Company Limited and
Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation.
Apart from producing a reliable source of electricity for the national grid, it
will also bring gas to other industrial users in Dar-es-Salaam.
The gas processing plant on
Songo Songo island

M A K I N G C O P P E R AT RU A S H I
On 31 March CEO Mike Upton received a message from the Group
Five Projects team at Ruashi announcing that “we are making
copper at Ruashi.”
“In spite of all the set-backs we managed to meet some very tight
deadlines and in January 2008 commissioning started on each
section as we completed it.
Mike replied: “Fantastic success story, well done to you and the
team. Have a celebration for us! Please express our shared
excitement with you on our first 'alliance' mining project.”
This ground breaking event was the culmination of a contract that started
back in 2005 when Group Five Projects was contracted to move an existing
copper processing plant from Springbok in the Northern Cape to Ruashi in
the DRC. The successful execution of this led to the award of Phase 2 for
project management, procurement, SMPP and E&I in alliance with the
designers, TMP, and the owners, Metorex, which started in early 2007.
Werner van der Berg, construction manager, takes up the story:
“With no final design or programme we accepted a challenge that
the plant would produce its first copper before the end of March
2008. Little did we know what we had let ourselves in for as we
started earthworks in the rainy season of 2007, but with a lot of
commitment we cast the first concrete on 13 March 2007.
“By the end of March we had poured 14 000m 2 , some 3 000m 2 over
our estimate of 11 000m 2 . Then as we started the SMPP erection and
E&I installations, the rains came again. The only constant was the
deadline for pouring the first copper.
“We were all beginning to breathe a sigh of relief, believing that
meeting the challenge was a possibility, when disaster struck as
one of the transformers for the electrowinning was involved in an
accident on its way from KZN. A quick response from our head
office and the alliance team saved the day and a replacement
transformer was delivered to site.
“Commissioning the EW circuit was started a week before the
deadline, but even that was not without its tribulations as the
electricity kept tripping.
“But on 31 March 2008, we successfully started the EW circuit with
just eight hours to go before the deadline.”
Even with this remarkable achievement behind them, the team has no time
to rest on its laurels as they work on completing the solvent extraction and
cobalt salt system.
Werner expressed his thanks to the team with special mention of project
leader, Roux Terblanche who, he said, led from the front.
Part of the
processing
plant at Ruashi
The site as it was in mid-2007
The cosmopolitan team comprising Congolese, South
Africans and Filipino with sheets of copper

PROGRESS AT MOSES MABHIDA
The start of construction: 20 April 2007
These photos show the progress on
the structure as at 7 April 2008
The site as at 7 April 2008 with 12 tower cranes
Erection of the columns: The columns are cast in situ up to level
3 (first deck seen in the photo). Above that are precast columns,
15m long and weighing up to 65 tons, comprising a stub at the base (seen
here in the space between the column top and the deck at level 3) and the
upper finished section. The stub is bolted down to the column below after
which the precast columns are placed onto the stubs and bolted down. The
raking columns are further secured by means of a push-pull tie on the field
side of the bowl. Once the columns are correctly positioned and bolted
down, the splice section is shuttered and concreted up and the gap
is grouted.

THE SEATING: The formwork for the cast in-situ raking beams has been designed
to very tight tolerances to accept the precast concrete seat elements.
SOME QUANTITIES
AT THE STADIUM
• Excavations 58 000m 3
• Backfill 280 000m 3
• Concrete 90 000m 3
• Reinforcement 9 000 tonnes
• Formwork 277 000m 2
• Bricks 5,2-million
• Plaster 104 000m 2
THE ARCH FOUNDATIONS:
To contain the horizontal and
vertical forces that the arch will
exert, the foundations comprise
concrete diaphragm walls 30m
deep anchored into rock.
Behind the structure can be seen
completed columns topped by steel
caps that will hold the ring beam
carrying forces from the roof. Each
base plate is custom made to
exacting standards to meet
measurements taken from the
column.
A 450t Kobelco crane, supplied by Johnson's Crane Hire, lifts the carbon steel arch segments into position. The crane has a super lift
configuration and a 72m boom with a 42m luffing jib giving a total length of 112m. The heaviest lift will be a 210t section. Arch
segments can be seen behind and to the left of the crane

Landscaping includes large
natural water features
Palm Lakes is an upmarket development on the KZN north coast
at Tinley Manor where Group Five Housing is constructing
244 residential units on 47 sites. Extensive landscaping will maintain
the integrity of the development.
An avenue of the
palms that give the
development its name,
line the entrance to
Palm Lakes
LANDSCAPING AT PALM LAKES
As the first cluster of units nears completion, the extensive gardens are landscaped

C H A L L E N G E S AT H U L A M I N
Constructing foundations for the new
foil rolling mill at Hulamin in Pietermaritzburg
has proved to be something of a challenge to the
Group Five KZN team working on the project,
which forms part of the second phase of
Hulamin's expansion.
The deep excavations are surrounded by existing
buildings, precluding the use of a crane and
limiting access to the site. Added to this, points
out Group Five KZN site manager, Veloshnee
Munian, excessive rain and water from the
diverted Tugela River, that used to run through the
site, have threatened the excavations.
“The foundation starts at 7,5m below the
ground,” says Veloshnee, adding that the
challenge the design team faced was how to
reach that depth in the very limited space.
“On the advice of geotechnical experts we
excavated vertically down two faces using
Esor as a sub-contractor. The vertical faces
were stabilised using soil nails and shotcrete
at 1,5m intervals into the clay layer.”
At 4,5m below ground level the team hit boulders
which were stabilised by casting concrete into
pockets or barrettes excavated in the rock layer and
anchored to the rock with post stressed cables.
“There is only one access onto site and
hardly any working space at the bottom.
During the excavation stage there was
always the danger that the sloped banks
could collapse after heavy rains. When we
reached the rock level, it was higher in
some places than anticipated so we had to
break through to get to design level, all the
time dealing with water seeping through
from the diverted river.”
Overcoming the challenges, the team has started
construction on the foundation using a chute in
the absence of a crane to cast the blinding.
Consulting engineers on the project are Kantey
and Templar.
The concrete foundations on the far
side show the barrettes after being
cast in the boulder layer. The small
woodpecker machine on the left
was used to break up the rolling
mill foundation
As the site is 40 years old there
were several foundations not
known to Hulamin. Amongst them
this rolling mill foundation was the
biggest and went down eight
metres
There is only one access to the
site which is surrounded by
existing and operating buildings
I N S T A L L A T I O N O F T H E
B A L L M I L L A T L U M W A N A
Installation of the ball mill. To the left can
be seen the flotation bases and columns
topped with 54 ton precast concrete flotation
heads
In late 2007, Group Five Civil Engineering in joint venture with WBHO completed a contract
for the civil works to the process plant at Equinox's new Lumwana copper mine in Zambia,
valued at US$25-million (R185-million).
Working closely with the client, Ausenco - Bateman, the joint venture overcame a slightly shaky
start as they adapted to Australian rules and regulations in the middle of the African bush, and
'stormed to a Blue Bulls type finish', to use the words of contracts director, Gerry Henny.
The mine as at April 2008

M A R I N E O U T F A L L A
F I R S T F O R G R O U P F I V E
The extensive use of marine outfall sewers is gaining popularity
worldwide as corporations and water management facilitators are
put under pressure to discharge waste into deeper waters than in the past.
Mhlathuzi Water, serving the Richards Bay area, has been using the system
for several years and now needs to carry out extensive refurbishment of its
B-Line marine outfall. To do this a new line has to be taken out to sea and
connected to the existing line.
Group Five was awarded the R60-million contract for a dense effluent
diffuser replacement early this year and started work at the end of March
with completion due in December 2007. This is the first project of its type
for Group Five and site agent, Craig Dart explains the process.
“Working on a site adjacent to the harbour, we are assembling
2 700 metres of 900mm diameter HDPE pipeline complete with a
450 metre diffuser (exhaust) section. We have also manufactured
642 precast concrete anchors with a 50Mpa early strength gain
concrete each weighing five tons. These are fixed to the pipe at six
metre centres.
“The pipeline is assembled in 900m sections and, as each is
completed, we float it out to sea and connect it to an existing sea
line by means of a controlled sinking operation.
“Not something that can be seen every day is these 900m long pipe
sections floating with 750 tons of weight acting on them.”
Precast concrete anchors weighing 5 tons
A section of the pipeline being assembled
The sections can only be floated under ideal conditions, so
a wave rider buoy is used to feedback real time data and
imaging of sea conditions, providing the team with a
window period for the process.
Once the new pipeline is commissioned, the existing B-Line
will undergo an extensive refurbishment and have the newly
welded second diffuser attached as a backup to the new
2 700m C-Pipeline.
Group Five is working closely with NRB Piping Systems and
Subtech Offshore as sub-contractors and consulting
engineers, WSP (Entech) Consultants of Stellenbosch.

E N G I N E E R I N G R I D E S
T H E W A V E S O F S U C C E S S
As a result of the successful completion of
a contract at the Langer Heinrich uranium
mine in Namibia and Phase II at the Ruashi
copper mine in DRC, Group Five Engineering
Projects has been awarded two contracts at the
new Kayelekera Uranium Project in Malawi by
Paladin Africa and one at the Kinsevere copper
project in the DRC by AMCK Mining SPRL.
Kayelekera Uranium Mine
With a combined value of US$26,7-million
(R197-million) both contracts started in January
this year. The first, which is scheduled for
completion in September 2008, is for the
design, supply, transport and erection of 33
tanks with a total mass of 630 tons of plate.
The second is due for completion in November
and is for the detailing, fabrication, transport
and erection of the steelwork, shop platework,
steel and HDPE piping, cladding and the
installation of all mechanical equipment for the
entire plant.
Contracts director, Tony de la Motte, says that
the site bristles with about 10 cranes varying in
size from 25 ton to 160 ton. “This is something
more commonly seen in South Africa than
in a remote part of northern Malawi, but
we are working over a large area and have
some heavy lifting to do.”
The high grade uranium deposit at Kayelekera
was discovered in the early 1980s, but eight years
later a full feasibility study indicated that the
open pit mining operation was uneconomic due to
the prevailing low uranium prices at the time.
In 1998 Paladin acquired a 90% interest in the
mine through a joint venture with Balmain Resources
and in 2005 acquired the remaining 10%.
Kinsevere Copper Project
As mentioned earlier, this project, which is for
stage two of the solvent extraction and
electrowinning (SX/EW) ore treatment plant,
was awarded to Group Five based on the
alliance model used for executing the Ruashi
Mine II project. The contract was negotiated
directly with Anvil Mining, whereby Group Five
will manage the SMEIP portion of the works.
“It is a matter of great pride to us that we
were able to negotiate the contract with
AMCK as a direct result of our performance
at Ruashi,” says Carlos da Silva, contracts
director. AMCK, he explains, is a JV company
formed between Anvil and local DRC Mining
Company Katanga of the DRC.
Group Five's Infrastructure Concessions
business, Intertoll, is part of a
consortium that has been awarded the
Euro 1,1-billion (R11-billion) M6 Phase III
Motorway Project in Hungary. Intertoll holds
10% of the concession company and will lead
the operations and maintenance activities for
this project.
Revenue will start flowing through to Intertoll
from the beginning of 2008, with full scale
operations commencing in 2010. Intertoll's
partners on the project are Strabag (Germany),
Colas (France) and John Laing Infrastructure
(United Kingdom).
Head of Group Five Infrastructure Concessions,
Eric Vemer, said that the 78 kilometre dual
carriageway project includes the construction
and maintenance of 55 structures and four
tunnels with a combined length of over three
kilometres.
“Intertoll is part of Group Five's
Infrastructure Concessions business and
offers toll system design, procurement,
implementation and operation, together
with related services such as routine road
Group Five is responsible for the management,
supply and erection of the structural, mechanical,
electrical, instrumentation and piping (SMEIP),
with a total value of US$70-million.The
management of the earthworks and the civil
contractor will be done by Ausenco. Work
started in January 2008 and is due for
completion in March 2009.
Kinsevere is set to become Anvil's biggest
investment in the DRC. The project will include
a major open cut mining operation, a heavy
media separation plant, an electric arc furnace
and Group Five's project, the 60 000 tonnes per
year SX-EW copper facility. The mine is located
27 kilometres north-north-east of Lubumbashi in
the provincial capital of the Katanga Province.
CONCESSION PROJECT IN EUROPE
Eric Vemer
Based on the alliance model at Ruashi
Phase II, the Kinsevere contract was
negotiated directly with Anvil Mining
maintenance,” Eric explained. The business
currently has equity interests in two other
service concessions in Eastern Europe and
operates toll roads in South Africa.
“Since joining the EU in 2004, the transit
traffic through Hungary from Romania and
Bulgaria has increased by more than 30%.
Hungary has ambitious plans to develop its
road infrastructure under an aggressive
timeline, and the M6 Phase III is an
essential part of this plan. We are
extremely pleased about winning this
important project and look forward to
working with our world-class partners.
The project reinforces Intertoll's position
in Hungary and adds to our growing profile
in Eastern Europe.”
The project was tendered and closed in record
time, with pre-qualifications announced in May
2007, tenders submitted in September 2007,
the preferred bidder chosen in October 2007
and financial closure of the 30-year concession
in November 2007.
PG 23

LAUNCH OF KGORO YA
TSHOLOFELO CONSTRUCTION
SKILLS TRAINING ACADEMY
The Group Five/DBSA Construction Skills Training Academy (CSTA)
in Midrand was officially opened on 18 April 2008 by Gwede
Mantashe, chairperson of JIPSA (Joint Initiative for Priority Skills
Acquisition) and the newly appointed Secretary General of the ANC,
together with Jay Naidoo, chairman of DBSA as guest speaker, and
Ebrahim Mia, representing the Mia family who donated the use of the land.
The academy, named Kgoro ya Tsholofelo (Door of Hope), is an initiative
between Group Five and DBSA who, in a move to bridge the gap between
required skills and the shortage thereof, last year signed a Memorandum of
Understanding to accelerate sustainable development as part of the
government’s Breaking New Ground programme. The DBSA has committed
R8-million to the CSTA project.
Speaking at the launch Jay Naidoo said: ”We must scale up initiatives
like this and start more. We must invest in education because the
most precious resource in our country is people".
When discussing the severe shortage of skills in South Africa, Gwede
Mantashe emphasised the importance of concentrating on developing
artisans. “People forget about the artisans, but this training centre
recognises their importance," he said, adding that some 10 000 artisans
were required throughout the country.
He added that he would like to see the centre become a catalyst making the
area a hub of training activity where other private sector construction
companies could establish centres of excellence.
Paul le Sueur (Group Five executive director: Building), Gwede
Mantashe (chairman: JIPSA) and Jay Naidoo (chairman: DBSA)
at the unveiling of the plaque commemorating the opening of the
Construction Skills Training Academy
CETA accreditation is currently run by the KZN CSTA which assisted in
launching the Midrand project along with representatives from Housing,
Building, Civil Engineering and the Academy. The next step is to establish a
similar facility at Grabouw in the Western Cape.
The first group of 25 students with Paul le Sueur (centre back) and Gwede Mantashe (right)
INSITE
Editor: Sally O’Donoghue
Telephone +27 11 806 0195 Facsimile +27 11 803 1324
Cellular 082 493 3823 Email sally@g5.co.za
Website www.g5.co.za Address 371 Rivonia Boulevard, Rivonia
Design and layout: Gillian Handy