At Eldorado Gold’s Kisladag mine and processing facility in Turkey, security officers play a dual role, since both safety and security are equally crucial when the work involves explosives, 1,000-degree temperatures and precious metals.
A gold mine is a heavy industry surrounded by innumerable of regulations and procedures. The ore is blasted off and excavated from the mountain, transported in trucks and then crushed. The gold is heated to 1,000-degrees and poured into molds. In this environment, a lot of effort goes into preventing accidents, and having emergency plans in place in case.
The site is remote and therefore, waiting for emergency transport to arrive is not an option. The closest city hospital is about a 30-40 minute drive away, best case scenario. For that reason, one agreement Kisladag mine made with Securitas is that at least half of the security officers are trained to drive the ambulance that is kept on-site. In the event of an emergency, we can get our people to the hospital quickly and safely.
Safety factor
The Kisladag mine is surrounded by 18 kilometers of fencing. The main purpose of this is also health and safety. The fence is up to keep people and the public away from hazards and there really haven’t been any incidents. Occasionally, there have been shepherds on-site with their sheep, but no trespassers with malicious intents.
Because of the potential workplace hazards, such as the use of explosives and heavy machinery, there are strict workplace rules and procedures in place that are an absolute necessity and non-negotiable. All workers at the site – a total of about 240 – have to wear protective outfits, such as helmets, steel-toed boots, and neon vests. The 32 Securitas officers posted on-site 24/7 keep a vigilant eye and report any deviations from that rule to the Chief Safety Engineer, in addition to their normal security assignment.
Extra precautions are in place outside the explosives storage facility, where security is constantly present. Here, only a handful of authorized personnel are allowed to enter. An officer verifies their identity, and any possessions that could cause an accidental ignition are left with the officer. Communications equipment, such as cell phones, radios and, of course, lighters, are temporarily confiscated. Finally, the person entering the storage needs to put both hands on a copper plate to remove any static.
The most heavily guarded area is the building called Absorption Desorption Recovery (ADR) or “the Gold Room.” This is the final station where the actual gold bars are produced and prepared for shipping. Only a few employees are authorized to enter the room. A temporary visitor can be allowed, if the General Manager and one other senior manager from the company give permission. One sign-off is not enough.
Fully prepared
All individuals – whether employees or visitors – are thoroughly searched and scanned before entering the room as well as upon exiting. A security officer posted in an adjacent entrance room monitors the 20 cameras inside and outside the ADR facility. The building is protected by fencing, as well as additional security posted outside the gate. Once the bars are shipped, similar high-level security procedures are in place.
Though little crime problems in the country, one still have to keep in mind that gold is tempting. Kisladag’s primary security is site control, to limit access to the site. Having uniformed security is probably the single most deterring factor to that. Kisladag contracted Securitas as it started site construction, about two years ago, and from day one, the security officers acted really professionally.