Phalaborwa

Phalaborwa, also spelled Ba-Phalaborwa, Palabora, mining town, Limpopo province, South Africa, located east of the Drakensberg mountains and north of the Olifants River near Kruger National Park. It is built on top of an old black African mining centre of iron and copper ore; traces of their workings and clay smelting ovens have been found in the nearby granite hills. A name of tribal origin, Phalaborwa (“Better than the South”) means the area was healthier than fever-ridden areas to the south. Copper mining by Europeans was first undertaken there in 1904 but was soon suspended because of the high cost of transport. The discovery of phosphates there led to the formation of the Phosphate Development Corporation (Foskor) in 1951 and the establishment of the town of Phalaborwa in 1957. Phosphate deposits now mined there supply South Africa’s requirements. Copper and iron ore are extracted once again, and uranium is recovered as a by-product. Pop. (2001) city, 72,892; municipality, 131,093.