ABB, the power and automation technology group, is providing variable-speed drive systems to the Toquepala copper mine as part of Southern Peru Copper Corporation’s (SPCC) brownfield optimisation and expansion projects. The order was booked in Q4, 2015. For the expansion project, which aims to double the mine’s concentrator milling capacity from 60,000 to 120,000 t/d, ABB is supplying two 25 ft gearless mill drive systems (GMD) of 15 MW and two complete high pressure grinding rolls (HPGR) drive systems of 2 x 2,650 kW.

The GMD systems, by removing critical mechanical components like ring-gear, pinion and gearbox, are about 4% more energy efficient than traditional fixed-speed mill drives. “Moreover, they provide unmatched high availability thanks to ABB’s application-specific design for reliable operations and faster maintenance.” The HPGR drive systems feature the RollXtend technology, aimed to extend the rollers’ overall life time and ease maintenance actions by application-specific control features. For the optimisation project, ABB is supplying an additional complete HPGR drive system with the same ratings and characteristics as for the expansion.

This is the first time Grupo Mexico, the holding company for SPCC, will have used GMDs. ABB says it was chosen “not only for its state-of-the-art, application-specific drive solutions with market unique features, but also for its expertise in grinding applications, with 125 GMDs and 63 HPGR references worldwide, and a large number of installed or ordered units in Peru.” This includes 23 GMDs and 17 HPGRs, including Toquepala. Another key factor cited was the strong service team based within the country providing support to customers.

“With a long track record of working with SPCC, ABB is very pleased to be continuing its successful partnership in helping the customer improve mining efficiency and productivity,” said Roger Bailey, Managing Director of ABB’s Process Industries business. “The robust solution being supplied combined with our best-in-class service offering, will provide the highest throughput, reliability and availability for the copper mine.”