About ShaftCon
Shaft sinkers, engineers and manufacturers since 2008 — headquartered in Beestekraal, North West.
ShaftCon Holdings
A shaft-sinking company, built by a shaft sinker
Founded in 2008 by fourth-generation shaft sinker and entrepreneur Wynand Lourens, ShaftCon has been a pioneering force in shaft sinking, infrastructure development, engineering and manufacturing. From Beestekraal in the North West Province we serve mining houses, infrastructure developers and investors.
Our journey began with a passion for the art and science of shaft sinking. Driven by a desire to innovate, we have since expanded into a comprehensive range of services — from box cuts, declines and tunnels to rehabilitation, raise boring, mining-steel manufacture and construction — so a client can give one contractor single-point responsibility for a multidisciplinary project.
ShaftCon specialises in the gold, diamond, coal and platinum mining industries, with entities in South Africa, the USA, Namibia, Tanzania and Mali.
What drives us
Vision, mission and values
Our vision
ShaftCon strives to be a leader in the industry, prioritising quality, safety, health, environmental sustainability and skills transfer, while recognising our people and clients as our most valuable assets.
Our mission
ShaftCon is dedicated to fostering innovation through intelligent shaft-sinking methodologies, from concept design to the final product, while aspiring to inspire, encourage and educate stakeholders within our industry.
Our values
- Accountability: we take responsibility for our actions and decisions.
- Quality and safety are paramount, for our employees and the communities we serve.
- Care and respect in every relationship, building trust and collaboration.
- Honesty in our interactions, and loyalty to our clients and stakeholders.
- Transparency, through open communication and integrity.
- Healthy competition as a means of continuous improvement — always within the rule of law.
Safety
Safety is a lifestyle, on and off site
The very nature of mining and construction carries risk. Our responsibility as an employer is to provide a safe working environment, the training to identify hazards and work safely around them, and — when a risk presents itself — the authority to eliminate or minimise it to the greatest degree possible.
That commitment has been recognised with an Occupational Health & Safety award at Cullinan Diamond Mine and Contractor of the Month at Xstrata Horizon Mine.
0
Lost-time injuries
389,724
LTI-free hours, Loulo (Mali)
61,212
LTI-free hours, North Mara (Tanzania)
Source: ShaftCon safety statistics, to October 2026. No reportable injuries or fatalities on either project in that period.
Beyond the project
Corporate social responsibility and the environment
Skills for young people
Our initiative tackles the industry’s critical skills shortage through on-the-job training and learning programmes, helping young adults enter the industry, build their skills and raise their standard of living.
Going green
Recycling is mandatory on all our sites, and we promote solar power stations to reduce our carbon footprint. We upcycle, and we rehabilitate old works when a project is complete.
Where we are
Head office, plant yard and workshop
Our head office and plant yard are in Beestekraal, North West, South Africa. Our engineering workshop — where we build drill rigs, sinking stages, winches and shaft steel — is in Roodepoort, Gauteng.
Company structure
- ShaftCon Holdings (Pty) Ltd (South Africa) — Wynand Lourens
- Innovated Investor Development LLC — investment partner (Sonya Williams)
- EDC Mining & Engineers — mine, construction and structural design and feasibility studies partner (Deon Dempers)
- ShaftCon Investment CC (Namibia) — Wynand Lourens
- QE Construction — construction partner (Quintus Erasmus)
- Techno Fab SA (Pty) Ltd — design and manufacture partner (Floris Snyman)
- ShaftCon Engineering Limited (Tanzania) — Gift Mollel
- ShaftCon Mali — Bouba Traoré
From the company structure in the ShaftCon company profile (Rev 2).
Planning a shaft, decline or tunnel?
Tell us about the project. We reply from our Beestekraal head office, and we can put you in touch with our teams in Namibia, Tanzania, Mali and the USA.