Whether it’s at the start of the morning shift, lunchtime or prior to the evening shift, you will find employees and contractors enthusiastically lined up outside Phalanndwa Colliery’s Khethowakho canteen awaiting the many delightful meals and snacks the eatery has on offer. 

Selinah Motshabi (46), a resident of the Botleng township near Delmas, who is the Managing Director of Khethowakho Trading and Projects (KTP) says, “Since the inception of the canteen in March 2021, we have strived for excellence by providing staff at the mine with good quality meals that are affordable and in reasonably sized portions. We are making happy customers by providing them with quality meals, which is not simple as we produce over 690 meals a month on average,” she states.

Selinah is extremely proud that in the space of just over a year she has been able to create four permanent jobs for local community members. “Creating sustainable employment for our employees and therefore ploughing back into the community is very important for our company,” she emphasises.

Canyon Coal inaugurated the canteen which is operated by the women-owned catering company, KTP, at its Phalanndwa Colliery in Delmas, Mpumalanga in March 2021. KTP was among 98 companies that responded to the mine’s advertisement to bid for the opportunity. Canyon Coal provided the fully equipped canteen facility comprising a fully containerised kitchen with appliances.

The canteen serves scrumptious meals throughout the week. KTP strives to ensure that it always has adequate healthy meal alternatives for its customers. Selinah explains that one of the reasons for achieving success to date has been the company’s versatility and ability to offer fresh and affordable meals to the mine’s employees. “We utilise the feedback from our customers to tailor our meals according to what they need while ensuring we consistently provide good quality, value for money meals,” Selinah highlights.

Phalanndwa Colliery General Manager Kgotso Mongalo said that the canteen has not only given the local company opportunities to expand its business, but has also added significant value to the mine as it allows for staff members to access healthy, affordable meals easily.

Selinah says that even with the outbreak of COVID-19 and the higher running costs owing to the restrictions that were in place, the canteen has shown tremendous improvements in profitability. “Keeping this in mind, 2022 looks very promising and we aim for it to be another profitable year. We are very grateful to our loyal customers and for all the support we have received and continue to receive from Canyon Coal,” she states.

Canyon Coal is very pleased that this enterprise development initiative has achieved this level of success over a short period of time. Selinah and her team started this business during a challenging period owing to COVID-19 related restrictions, nonetheless, they have done a stellar job and Canyon Coal is committed to ensuring the company’s continued success at Phalanndwa.