LYDFORD MINING Company Limited, a privately-owned facility in St. Ann, is making strides in mining high purity limestone from reclaimed bauxite lands which are leased from the Government.
General manager of the 15-year-old mining company, Leo Cousins, said that the company has contributed much to the Jamaican economy, especially in the last 12 years of its operation.
"We pay a lease to the Government for the land and we also pay a royalty for every ton of material that we ship out, plus we employ about 65 people," Cousins said.
The company, which produces on average, 150,000 tons of White Ingrid limestone per year, pays $10 per ton to the Govern-ment. This means that, in addition to taxes, the Government should earn some $21 million this year, inclusive of $20 million paid annually for the use of the Ocho Rios Port from which the material is shipped to their clients in the United States.
SUPPLIES BERGER
The company currently supplies one per cent of its limestone product locally to Berger Paints, Diamond Paints, Omni Plastics Jamaica Limited, with the remaining 99 per cent supplied to the United States-based companies, JM Huber, Polar Minerals and Pleus Stauffer.
Operations director, Jackie Millington, who guided a tour of the facility on June 20, explained to JIS News that the company currently produced two grades of limestone. "One grade is used for use on the industrial scale and another for food and drugs. And, with only one person at the helm at any one time, we have full accountability. The technology also allows us to keep track of our batch production rates and operation trends," Millington said.
Systems and Products director, Eddie Cousins, told JIS News that investment in appropriate technologies has facilitated smooth operation and high productivity at the facility.
"The systems here are fully automated, so whether we are here, in Miami or wherever, we can control the plant by the touch of a button using GPS technology," the Director explained. He said the use of Global Positioning System technology has been paramount to the operation of the mine.
