MOPANI DONATES VENTILATION EQUIPMENT VALUED AT OVER K168,000 TO SUPPORT CBU’S SCHOOL OF MINES
Mopain Copper Mines Plc has donated underground ventilation equipment valued at over K168,000 to the Copperbelt University (CBU) School of Mines and Mineral Sciences.
The donation is aimed at strengthening teaching and learning by equipping the University’s Vent Lad facility with tools needed to better prepare students for real-world underground mining conditions.
The University made the request to enhance its ventilation training capacity, and Mopani responded by providing a comprehensive set of instruments and equipment designed to support ventilation design, monitoring, and safety standards.
The donated items will enable students to practically understand key ventilation processes, assess working areas, and apply accurate measurements during training.
The ventilation equipment includes vent fans (air movers that push air into underground workings), and vent ducts, which act as conduits for directing air to operational areas. In addition, Mopani provided ventilation condition-checking tools, including dust samplers such as Konimeter and Kestrel, as well as airflow survey instruments such as the vane anemometer for measuring air velocity and the distometer for determining airway cross-sectional areas.
To further support full ventilation analysis, the donation includes temperature measurement equipment such as whirling hygrometers for measuring wet and dry bulb temperatures, as well as thermometers used to measure dry bulb temperatures.
Mopani also donated noxious gas sampling equipment for measuring gases including carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and sulphur dioxide.
Speaking during the handover ceremony at Mopani Central Offices, CSR & Sustainability Manager, Lorraine Tembo, said the donation reflects Mopani’s continued collaboration with CBU and its commitment to sustainability through practical capability-building.
“We are very much looking forward to the equipment being handed over today being useful on your end. And because we are so keen on sustainability, we would like this relationship not to end here, but to continue so we can learn about some of your achievements and build on them. This is an attestation of a great future together,” Ms Tembo said.
Presenting demonstrations of the instruments to the CBU delegation, Mopani Ventilation Superintendent, Derries Chilufya, expressed confidence that the donation will help the School of Mines and Mineral Sciences bridge academic instruction with the operational realities of the mining industry.
“We are confident that this support will help the School of Mines and Mineral Sciences connect academic education to the reality on the ground in the mining industry,” Mr Chilufya said.
In his remarks, CBU Head of Mining Engineering, Dr. Mwango Bowa, highlighted that the institution continues to face infrastructure and equipment constraints due to the growing number of students pursuing mining engineering.
“We are really struggling at CBU. The number of students has increased, and we are now at 2,000 students from first year to fifth year pursuing mining engineering. From fewer than 100 students, we now have over 1,000 first-year students. We are using the same infrastructure and the same pieces of equipment,” Dr. Bowa explained.
Delivering the vote of thanks, CBU School of Mines and Mineral Sciences Associate Professor, Peter Chileshe, said the donation reaffirms the School’s belief in Mopani as the leading supporter and contributor to CBU’s skills development for the mining industry.
