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| Selebi Phikwe |
Population : 49,724.
Elevation:
878 m (2,881 ft)
Location: Selebi Phikwe, Central, Botswana.
Website: Official
site.
Selebi-Phikwe (also spelt Selibe Phikwe) is a
mining town located in the Central District of Botswana. It had a population of
49,849 in 2001 which is now estimated to have risen to c.52000. The town is an
administrative district, separate from the surrounding Central District.
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| Selebi Phikwe |
Nickel mining commenced in 1973 and has been
the main activity since. The complex includes a mine and a smelter. All
operations are now deep mining. Originally there were two tiny places called
Selebi and Phikwe, which straddled a large undiscovered deposit of copper and
nickel in the area. When the mineral wealth of the area was discovered in the
1960s a mine and township was built in the woodland between the places with the
combined name of Selebi-Phikwe. The main source of employment is the Bamangwato
Concessions Ltd. (BCL) mine which excavates and smelts mixed copper-nickel ore
from several shafts in deep and opencast mines. The opencast pit is now unused.
Ore is transported from the shaft by rail for smelting. Surprising to some the
locomotives used are steam powered, having been bought from National Railways
of Zimbabwe (NRZ) and South African Railways (SAS).
Street
View of Selebi Phikwe
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