Mambare access difficulties in 2011. From RGM PDF9 Jan 2020 22:59
ACCESS IS A CHALLANGE
"The road connecting Popondetta with the Port of Oro Bay is fully sealed, but only around half of the road between Popendetta and Kokoda is sealed ; nonetheless it is viable. Both roads cross a number of rivers where many of the bridges were washed away in the November 2007 cyclone and resultant floods and two of which were made inaccessible while we were at site. Two of these bridges have yet to be replaced, restricting access to the site when heavy rain increases the depths and/or speed of the rivers (as the vehicles normally relied upon cannot cross).
Further, when there is heavy rain the eight wheel vehicle used to the cross the river (just beyond Kokoda and at the base of the mountain on which the Mambare Project lies) and climb the mountain cannot be used. This means that one must swim or float on a rubber tube across the river and hike up the mountain (which can take two to eight hours). This is not ideal when supplies need to be couriered to the camp or samples need to be brought down. The site does have a helipad and this is used to transport heavy loads (for example drilling equipment) but its high cost restricts its constant use, as does weather affecting visibility.
A road between Kokoda and the site is being considered. Such an investment would improve current operations significantly (and in any event would be needed when the mine goes into production). It would mean:
• drill access would be significantly easier (at present the drilling is restricted to man-portable rigs which
must be disassembled and carried in parts for up to several kilometres, with the heaviest part weighing
approximately 80 kilograms and carried on a stick by four men);
• transporting supplies, samples and equipment could be done with ease;
• the remote site camp is unnecessary (instead the base camp at Kokoda, which is currently almost
exclusively used to store samples, could solely be utilised); and the local employees could return to their homes each evening (decreasing the cost of messing and providing accommodation etc). This does not, however, solve the issue of the missing bridges between Popondetta and Kokoda and while it seems that the government has recently awarded the tenders to reconstruct the bridges (materials were seen near some of the sites of the missing bridges), not much confidence can be put in the government’s ability to finish this project swiftly and it is a real problem that funds may not be available. Further, the current political situation adds another layer of difficulty"
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