The mine can no longer keep up with the discharge standards as per their water use licence; and this is attributed to financial problems that have overwhelmed the mine. The mine claimed it had not received the Department of Mineral Resource's (DMR) subsidy of R5 million since October 2009; and as a result, the mine covers pumping costs out of working costs. It was brought to the attention of the committee that the mine would lose the shaft within 5 days if they stopped pumping. Furthermore, treatment has been non-continuous, for example they would treat for few days and stopped the treatment. To date, the mine has incurred over R100 million worth of water pumping costs, which could have been used for other operations.