In its just released 2019 Sustainability Report, Eurasian Resources Group (ERG) outlined progress at its key mining and processing projects focussed on expansion, efficiency and market development. ERG represents one third of the metals and mining industry in Kazakhstan, and is the world leader in high-carbon ferrochrome production by chrome content. The group is also a substantial supplier of iron ore, aluminium and alumina in Eurasia, as well as a provider of energy and railway services.In Africa, ERG is a large producer of cobalt and copper, and has recently launched a major tailings reprocessing operation (Metalkol Roan Tailings Reclamation or Metalkol RTR) in the DRC. The Group has further operations and development projects in Zambia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Mali. In Brazil, ERG is pioneering an integrated iron ore mining and logistics project (BAMIN) in the State of Bahia.

Metalkol RTR reprocesses historical cobalt-copper tailings near Kolwezi. These accumulated over decades of mining at the site by previous operators, including at the existing Kingamyambo tailings deposit and in the Musonoi River. Once it reaches full production, this strategically important operation will make ERG a major player in the global cobalt market. Furthermore, by reprocessing and responsibly storing these tailings in a safe, modern facility, ERG says it will:

• Support the development of affordable battery technology and, by extension, the electric vehicle revolution
• Deliver responsible value chain assurance through its Clean Cobalt Framework
• Reduce local pollution risks by reclaiming poorly stored and managed legacy tailings, and relocating them to a modern, responsibly managed facility

In 2019, ERG continued to ramp up production at Metalkol RTR, achieving 100% of the Phase 1 design tailings feed rate. However, volumes were affected by lower than expected grades from the Kingamyambo tailings deposit, initial water supply challenges and the illegal invasion of artisanal miners. ERGalso initiated Phase 2 development and is implementing a number of initiatives to help Metalkol RTR achieve its designed capacity, including the overhaul of its belt filters and the upgrading of its production infrastructure.

ERG says it is exceptionally well placed to support the development of affordable, responsibly produced battery technology – and, by extension, the EV revolution – through its operations in the DRC. Much of Metalkol RTR’s output will be processed in China and used by customers across the world – supporting battery manufacturing and the gradual global substitution of internal combustion technology. ERG says it is considering the possible construction of a lithium-ion battery precursor plant, to be supplied with cobalt hydroxide from Metalkol RTR. “This would support the vertical integration of ERG’s cobalt business and enhance our ability to deliver responsible value chain assurance to the EV industry.” ERG CEO Benedikt Sobotka is also Co-Chair of the Global Battery Alliance, which is hosted by the World Economic Forum.

In 2019, ERG also continued to develop its Frontier copper mine in DRC situated near the DRC-Zambia border, 30 km north of Ndola. Frontier Mine comprises an open-cast copper mine and processing facilities to produce copper sulphide concentrate. The open pit mine’s processing facilities is capable of treating over 10 Mt of copper sulphide ore annually, producing circa 350,000 t of concentrate. In 2019, it produced 84, 254 t copper contained in concentrate.

Development is currently through the expansion of its open pit – referred to as Cut 3. It assumes the stripping of up to 29 million cubic metres of overburden to push back the pit boundaries and expose over 45 Mt of economically recoverable ore to extend the mine life by another four years. The majority of waste stripping was undertaken in 2019 to support the target 350,000 t/y production rate of copper contained in concentrate over the life of the project. In combination with the processing of ore stockpiles, Cut 3 is expected to extend the life of mine to 2024. “We also conducted an additional geotechnical drilling campaign and a slope stability assessment. These will support a further pit expansion (‘Cut 4’, which has the potential to extend the life of mine by approximately 10 years) and will inform a pre-feasibility study that is to be completed in 2020.”

Over to Kazakhstan, and development of Kazchrome’s 10th Anniversary mine. In 2019, ERG advanced this project, which is aimed at increasing production at this world-class chrome ore body. “This will help address projected production reductions at other mines supplying our ferroalloys plants – and help increase Kazchrome’s overall production volumes. Work included the continued development of a pre-feasibility study, including the gathering of additional geo-technical data. The study is focused on a potential transition to higher productivity mining methods (including mechanised block-cave mining, amongst others). Once the study is complete, we aim to select the most effective development method in 2021 and move into the design phase.”

Finally, across all its mining operations, ERG is conducting an Efficient Mine Project as part of which in 2019 it continued to ramp up Group-level project due diligence and mine planning, overseen by its Chief Technical Officer. The team (and its third-party experts) are updating its geological models and enhancing mining plans. “In 2019, work included extensive exploration and a transition towards international-standard 3D geomodelling at our Kacharsky (SSGPO) and 10th Anniversary (Kazchrome) mines. A less extensive programme is taking place at Aluminium of Kazakhstan and Shubarkol Komir. We also completed an extensive exploration programme at Metalkol RTR, supporting a JORC 2012 compliant Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves estimate. At Frontier, we optimised the life of mine schedule, aimed at minimising waste stripping and improving overall project economics.”

Individual operational efficiency projects are also going on across the ERG portfolio. There are numerous examples, such as an ongoing assessment of the potential conversion of SSGPO’s diesel truck fleet to an LNG system – with the aim of reducing both costs and emissions. This project is now ready for piloting, with work expected to start in 2021. Elsewhere, the Donskoy GOK Slimes 2 project involves the development and testing of flotation technology to significantly improve the enrichment of chrome oxide-bearing tailings. This will supplement chrome concentrate output, whilst helping reduce the site’s tailings footprint.

Finally on energy, ERG is planning to establish renewable energy capacity of 150-180 MW using wind turbines. In 2019, wind monitoring at two potential sites for wind farms in the Aktobe and Pavlodar regions – one near Kazchrome’s Donskoy GOK operation and one near EEC’s Vostochny coal pit – demonstrated strong potential. ERG is now examining the possible transition of these projects to a feasibility stage. In the interim, it carried out a pilot project at Shubarkol Komir that saw the installation of a mini solar- and wind-powered lighting system. In addition, ERG has implemented, alongside the Coalition for Green Economy and Development (‘G-Global’), a Green Office project at its corporate office in Nur-Sultan. This includes the installation of solar panels and LED lights, amongst other environmentally friendly measures. In DRC, Metalkol RTR is investigating the potential integration of photovoltaic solar panels into its (diesel) emergency power arrangements, to both reduce costs and emissions to air (including GHGs). The fact that its other operations in the region largely rely on hydropower significantly reduces their carbon footprint.