Media releases

Fatality at Blyvooruitzicht Gold Mine

Details

Published: Thursday, 09 October 2008 02:00

Johannesburg, South Africa, 9 October 2008. DRDGOLD Limited (JSE: DRD; NASDAQ: DROO) confirms with regret that an employee has been found dead underground at the No 6 Shaft of DRDGOLD South African Operations (Pty) Limited’s Blyvooruitzicht gold mine near Carletonville.

The employee, who worked as an operator on the shaft’s underground ore loading station some 1 900 metres below surface, was reported missing mid-afternoon yesterday and his body was recovered from the loading station’s loading flask at approximately 23:00 last night.

Initial indications are that the employee was not wearing a full-body safety harness, which is part of the standard safety equipment required to be worn by employees working in such situations.

The employee’s safety helmet, cap lamp and lamp belt were found at the loading station. It is mandatory that all of these items are worn at all times while employees are underground.

Investigations into the incident are under way.

Five employees, including the most recently deceased, have died in work-related incidents at DRDGOLD SA mines since the beginning of this year. Two employees died in seismicity-related rockfalls underground at Blyvooruitzicht and last month two employees died from asphyxiation at the ERPM mine at Boksburg, while conducting routine water level measurements underground.

The name of the deceased will be withheld until next of kin have been informed.

Queries:

South Africa

James Duncan, Russell & Associates
+27 11 880 3924 (office)
+27 82 892 8052 (mobile)

North America

Investor and Media Relations

Barbara Cano, Breakstone Group International
+1 646 452 2334 (office)

United Kingdom/Europe

Investor and Media Relations

Phil Dexter, St James's Corporate Services
+44 20 7499 3916 (office)
+44 779 863 4398 (mobile)

Disclaimer:

Many factors could cause the actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including, among others, adverse changes or uncertainties in general economic conditions in the markets we serve, a drop in the gold price, a continuing strengthening of the rand against the dollar, regulatory developments adverse to DRDGOLD or difficulties in maintaining necessary licences or other governmental approvals, changes in DRDGOLD’s competitive position, changes in business strategy, any major disruption in production at key facilities or adverse changes in foreign exchange rates and various other factors.

These risks include, without limitation, those described in the section entitled "Risk Factors" included in our annual report for the fiscal year ended 30 June 2007, which we filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on 14 December 2007 on Form 20-F. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date thereof. We do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances.