Patience is driven to succeed in the mining industry

Patience Pelo - Mining Intern at Phalanndwa Colliery

Delmas local Patience Pelo (28) is a Mining Intern at Phalanndwa Colliery. She started her internship at the mine in April 2021. She has completed her Experiential Training (P1 And P2) and holds a B-Tech in Mining Engineering.  

Her passion for the mining sector came about by chance.  Patience recounts that in Grade 9 she was going through some pamphlets that her sister had brought back from a career exhibition in Delmas. “There were too many different careers to choose from. But for some reason mining stood out to me. I think it was the curiosity around the process behind getting diamonds and the like in your hand. We always see the finished product, but people never rarely get to see the process of extracting and processing the minerals and metals.” 

“Mining offers so many opportunities to get involved in various career paths in the same field. You are not just confined to being just a miner, but you can be involved in mine planning, environmental, metallurgical, etc ... The broadness of the career opportunities in the mining sector still excites me to this day,” Patience enthuses. 

She has rotated through the various departments at the mine such as engineering and mining and gained valuable experience. “I started with blasting which was interesting because I was granted the opportunity to go to the colliery Training College (CTC) to further my knowledge and practical skills.  I then worked in the plant, the weighbridge, and the mining pit. I also spent some time with the supervisors to learn about mine production. This provided me with particularly important insights into how a mine operates,” Patience states. 

She will soon be writing her Blasting Ticket board exam, which along with Blasting Assistant and the Competent A certifications will provide her with critical qualifications to further her career in the mining sector. 

“At times it can be challenging being a woman in the mining sector. But I feel like every workplace has its own challenges. Therefore, I do not believe we can single out mining. For anything you need to work at it. Nothing comes easy. Ultimately, I would love to go up the ranks in the mining sector and get as much exposure as possible,” Patience states.