Inmet Mining subsidiary and the owner of the Cobre Panama project, Minera Panama SA (MPSA) has selected Joint Venture Panama (JVP), a joint venture led by the mining and metallurgy division of SNC-Lavalin Inc with partners Grana y Montero Group and Techint International Construction, to proceed with a detailed engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the processing plant. The contract will be delivered in two phases. Under the first phase, JVP has been instructed to proceed with detailed engineering and procurement services.
Upon satisfactory advancement of detailed engineering, JVP will be instructed to proceed with the second phase which will involve the construction of the facility starting in Q4 2013. MPSA has already ordered SAG/ball mills and motors, which are in manufacturing and scheduled to be delivered on site starting in Q4 2013. The award to JVP recognises the expertise of each party to the joint venture led by SNC-Lavalin. This award is the outcome of an 8-month competitive process involving several international consortia of engineering and construction firms.
The process plant is designed to treat a nominal throughput of 160,000 t/d, using two grinding lines, each having capacity of 80,000 t/d. It is planned that the ore feed rate will increase to 240,000 t/d after year nine of operations to maintain concentrate production levels despite a falling head grade. The scope of the mineral processing plant includes:
- primary crushing, coarse ore conveying with mill feed stockpile with reclaim apron feeders
- two parallel SAG mill lines with two ball mills per line
- bulk rougher flotation and cleaners
- molybdenum circuit
- copper concentrate thickener
- copper concentrate pumping to a filtration plant and concentrate storage (both to be constructed by another contractor) at the port facility
- mechanical/electrical maintenance facilities
- assay laboratory and other infrastructure to support the process plant
The process plant is designed to process ore at a nominal head grade of 0.5% Cu and 0.01% Mo with a design maximum head grade of 0.9% Cu and 0.015% Mo. Commitments for Cobre Panama are currently in excess of $2.5 billion.