- SICOMINES is set to build 18 solar-powered boreholes in communities in the DRC.
- The company is deploying the projects as part of its corporate social responsibilities (CSR).
- About 8,000 people will benefit from the boreholes.
Mining company Société sino-congolaise des mines (SICOMINES) is set to construct solar-powered boreholes to improve access to water in the province of Luluaba in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). About 18 boreholes will be built and supply four localities, Mutaka, Mapendo, Yenge and Biway. Each borehole will comprise a solar pump, two 5m3 capacity tanks, a standpipe and solar panels to power the whole.
SICOMINES Technical Director, Ntambwe Kashona, noted that the project would improve living conditions in the communities and aid agricultural productivity. SICOMINES is 32% owned by the government and a consortium of Chinese companies composed of China Railway Engineering Corporation (CREC) and Sinohydro. The company’s mining activities have come under scrutiny. The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) suspects the company of “wrongdoing”. The African Natural Resources Watch (AFREWATCH) notes that cobalt mining at SICOMINES’ facilities in Lualaba province is the cause of water, soil and air pollution, as well as health problems caused by the dumping of acids into the Kalemba River in the village of Yenge.