Impumelelo PROJECT

The world's longest single-flight conventional belt conveyor, with Lorbrand the sole idler and pulley supplier.

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PROJECT REFERENCE

Impumelelo Overland Conveyor

The Impumelelo overland conveyor delivers up to 2,400 t/h of coal from Sasol's Impumelelo mine to the Secunda synfuels complex. Designed by Conveyor Dynamics Inc. (CDI) with ELB Engineering Services as principal contractor, at its October 2015 commissioning it was the longest single-flight conventional belt conveyor in the world, a position it has held for more than a decade. Lorbrand was selected as the sole idler supplier and, later, the pulley supplier.
Location Secunda, South Africa
Operator Sasol Mining
Lorbrand supply 2015
Industry Coal mining
Carry idlers installed on the Impumelelo overland conveyor
Impumelelo conveyor shown with cover
PROJECT DATA

Scale of the operation.

26.8 km
Single-Flight Length
2,400 t/h
Capacity
6.54 m/s
Belt Speed
1,200 mm
Belt Width
Impumelelo feeds thermal coal into Sasol's Secunda complex, the coal-to-synfuels and coal-to-liquids operation at the heart of Sasol's fuels business. The conveyor runs from the Impumelelo coal mine, about 50 km from Secunda in Mpumalanga, carrying up to 2,400 t/h on a 1,200 mm belt at 6.54 m/s. At 26.8 km in a single flight, a tape length of roughly 54 km, it was at its October 2015 commissioning the longest single-flight conventional belt conveyor in the world, and it still holds that record.
What made the idler selection unusually rigorous was the dual specification: CDI's very low drag target and Sasol's strict noise limits had to be met together. Lorbrand was chosen as the sole idler supplier only after independent verification by TUNRA Bulk Solids in Australia, and the rollers, a steel inner shell with HDPE outer covers, were developed specifically for low noise and a very low total indicator runout at high belt speed. ELB later appointed Lorbrand as the pulley manufacturer as well, on CDI's recommendation after a survey of rival pulley fabricators. The low-friction idlers were paired with a low-rolling-resistance belt to hold down the lifetime energy cost of moving coal 26.8 km continuously.
LORBRAND SCOPE

Engineered for Impumelelo.

Lorbrand was selected by CDI as the sole idler supplier after independent testing by TUNRA Bulk Solids in Australia confirmed the rollers met both CDI's very low drag specification and Sasol's strict noise limits. The idlers use a steel inner shell with HDPE outer covers to cut noise and hold a very low total indicator runout (TIR), which is critical for a belt running at 6.54 m/s over 26.8 km. ELB subsequently selected Lorbrand as the pulley manufacturer on CDI's recommendation.
Impumelelo Idlers with HDPE machined sleeves on conventional steel roller bodies were used for noise abatement
PROJECT OUTCOME

At its October 2015 commissioning the line was the world's longest single-flight conventional belt conveyor, and it still holds that record more than a decade on. An August 2026 audit of a section of the conveyor found 85% of the original idler rollers still in service. Read the audit.

— Impumelelo · 2015
Impumelelo Idlers with HDPE machined sleeves on conventional steel roller bodies were used for noise abatement
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