Bindura residents’ associations have welcomed the commissioning of the US$3 million Masembura Water Pipeline, a project that strengthens water supplies to the town while securing a critical source of processing water for Mutapa Gold Resources’ Freda Rebecca Gold Mine, Mining Zimbabwe can report.
By Rudairo Mapuranga
The project was officially commissioned on Monday by Hon Christopher Magomo, Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution for Mashonaland Central Province.
Speaking on behalf of residents, Bindura Allied Residents Trust chairman Danny Tumozo said the community welcomed the project, particularly given the availability of water at Masembura Dam while Bindura continued to experience supply challenges.
“It is a good gesture, especially considering the water available at Masembura Dam. This is the kind of intervention we wanted to see from the corporate sector, and we appreciate Mutapa Gold Resources for coming in to help the community,” Tumozo said.
He said the project had also given residents confidence that the town’s water challenges could be addressed through cooperation between the municipality and the private sector.
Lazarus Marunga of the Combined Bindura Residents Association said residents had long been waiting for the project.
“We are happy with the commissioning of this project. This is something that should have happened a long time ago, and we want to congratulate the residents of Bindura. We also want to thank the town clerk, the mayor and Mutapa Gold Resources for making the project a reality,” he said.
Bindura Residents Association chairman Moses Nyazema said residents were hopeful that the project would improve water availability across the town.
“We are hopeful that this project will improve water availability in Bindura. We welcome the involvement of Mutapa Gold Resources and believe this is a positive development for the town,” he said.
The residents’ response comes as the project takes on importance beyond municipal water supply, with reliable water also critical to gold processing operations at Freda Rebecca.
The pipeline was conceived after Mwenje Dam levels fell to 36% in April 2025, raising concerns over water availability for both human consumption in Bindura and processing operations at the gold mine.
At the time, Masembura Dam was around 90% full, prompting Mutapa Gold Resources and Bindura Municipality to advance a project that had been discussed for decades.
Mutapa Gold Resources CEO Patrick Maseva-Shayawabaya said the situation at Mwenje Dam had raised the possibility of water shortages affecting the mine and the town.
“That was a clear red light to us that we potentially faced not having processing water at Freda Rebecca in the latter part of the season, and that Mwenje would also not have water for human consumption,” he said.
ZINWA was subsequently engaged as the contractor, with the design completed by July 2025 and construction beginning in August.
The project employed 125 people during construction, including 110 workers from surrounding communities.
The first phase, comprising a balancing tank and an 18km pipeline to Freda Rebecca, was substantially completed by the end of October 2025. The mine began receiving water from Masembura Dam on 10 November 2025.
Despite a 24-day shutdown during the festive season, the remaining section to Bindura Waterworks was completed by the end of February 2026.
The overall project includes a 22.1km transmission line, a 500m³ tank and 500mm glass-reinforced plastic piping.
Maseva-Shayawabaya said the US$3 million project was delivered through a partnership between Mutapa Gold Resources and Bindura Municipality, with the mining company providing upfront funding and project management.
Bindura Municipality contributed US$1.2 million in cash and residential land, while Flowtite provided a 50% discount worth nearly US$91,000 on piping supplied for the 4km stretch to the waterworks.
For Freda Rebecca, the additional water source provides greater security for an input essential to gold processing, while Bindura gains an additional raw-water source for municipal supplies.
Maseva-Shayawabaya said the project formed part of Mutapa Gold Resources’ approach to supporting communities around its mining operations.
“As Mutapa Gold Resources, our approach to corporate social responsibility is guided by a simple but powerful vision – to leave the local communities in which we operate better than we found them,” he said.
Mutapa Gold Resources board chairman Charles Chikaura said the project demonstrated how mining operations and local authorities could work together on infrastructure that benefits both the mine and the surrounding community.
“On behalf of the board, I wish to recognise and applaud management for a job well done – for initiating, mobilising resources, and executing this project in a very short period of time,” he said.
Bindura Town Clerk Evelyn Madzivire said the project had been under consideration for decades, having first been conceptualised in 1992.
“It took all these years to become a reality. It took a great deal of effort and commitment on the part of the funding and implementing partners to turn plans into reality,” she said.
Madzivire said Mutapa Gold Resources contributed 60% of the funding, with the municipality providing the remaining 40%.
She said the new water source had already reduced treatment costs because Masembura raw water has very low turbidity, cutting alum sulphate consumption from around 25 bags a day to one.
The project has also improved reservoir filling rates, water pressure and supply hours, according to the town clerk.
However, Bindura’s water challenges are not entirely resolved.
Madzivire said the town’s water treatment plant, built in 1969, requires upgrading if the municipality is to fully benefit from the additional raw-water supply.
Council is exploring the development of a solar power plant for the treatment works and the use of Akedia Dam as another water source.
For the mining sector, the Masembura project highlights the link between water security, mining operations and the communities surrounding mineral-producing areas.
For Bindura residents, the commissioning marks the delivery of infrastructure that had remained on the drawing board for more than three decades, while for Freda Rebecca it provides an additional layer of security for a key input into its gold processing operations.
