Geoff Knox, who has extensive mining consulting and engineering experience, has been named CEO of GE Mining, which showcases technologies designed to address environmental challenges, bringing efficient, high productivity and low emission equipment to the industry. This move follows the recent and planned acquisitions of Fairchild International and Industrea.

GE Mining will be headquartered in Brisbane, Australia. The announcement was made at MINExpo 2012 by Knox. The company recently acquired Fairchild International, which manufactures underground mining equipment, and is finalising the acquisition of Australian-based Industrea, a provider of safety and productivity-enhancing mining equipment and services, with a great position in China. GE will reach a global customer base with enhanced products based on its clean propulsion systems, energy storage offering and worldclass system integration capabilities. The company says its “portfolio of products and services are uniquely positioned to maximise resources, drive efficiencies and help make the world work better, allowing mines to:

 Generate, distribute and convert power more efficiently and at a lower cost

 Manage water quality, usage and wastewater runoff more effectively

 Improve productivity through more efficient transportation of materials and deployment of advanced software monitoring systems

“The continuing urbanisation and growth in energy demand in the emerging economies bodes well for the long-term future of the global mining industry,” said Knox. “With mine operators rebalancing their investments to get more out of their existing assets, GE’s global mining business is well positioned to add value. We can help them maximise output through more efficient movement of their products, generate and distribute power more efficiently, and address their water management challenges.”

During this week’s MINExpo conference in Las Vegas, GE Mining showed solutions that address critical industry challenges, including:

 Power: Mining companies are increasingly under pressure to find and use electrical power more efficiently, reliably and safely. GE offers a full range of power generation solutions including steam, wind, biogas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) powered turbines, enabling organisations to use power from multiple sources and allowing for the lowest cost fuel option to be used at any given time. From its LM6000PF aeroderivative gas turbines, built from GE’s best-in-class aircraft engine technology, to its Jenbacher combined heat and power (CHP) systems, GE offers flexible solutions to meet a mine’s unique power demands.

 Water: Water management is a key issue that all mining companies must tackle. As the industry looks to reduce its environmental impact, customers are placing a higher emphasis on implementing new equipment and chemical technologies that help maximise resource efficiency. GE’s AquaSelTM system* is a breakthrough non-thermal desalination technology with extremely high water recovery rates. Mine operators that deploy this technology can achieve recovery rates of up to 98% and reduce the volume of liquid brine that is generated seven-fold as compared to conventional reverse osmosis technology. GE is also one of the foremost suppliers of environmentally responsible road dust control programs that are tailored to reduce water and fuel usage, including the DusTreat* and CoalPlus treatment programs.

 Productivity: GE offers a comprehensive portfolio of technologies to help operators protect investments and operate safer and more efficiently for both new and existing mining projects. For example, GE’s Proficy^TM MaxxMine* remote monitoring and diagnostic software solution combines process and asset optimisation in a single offering, enabling mine operators to make timely and accurate decisions that balance process performance with equipment health. The company also provides highly reliable, efficient and adaptable power conversion systems engineered to meet customer needs. In fact, GE engineers are placing robust and dependable technological solutions with very little routine maintenance requirements in some of the world’s most challenging mining environments. Another example is the Quadramatic Drive System* that has the highest efficiency for dual-pinion, fixed speed mill applications in the industry and provides the benefits of a single pinion, airclutch connected, low-speed synchronous motor drive for today’s maximum mill ratings.

See www.ge.com/mining and www.ecomagination.com