Metso is supplying a primary crusher and additional grinding equipment to the Otjikoto gold mining project, located approximately 300 km north of Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, and is owned 92% by B2Gold and 8% by EVI Gold, a Namibian black empowerment group. The Otjikoto deposit has probable open pit mineral reserves of 29.4 Mt at a grade of 1.42 g/t Au. Construction of the Otjikoto mine commenced in January and is scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter of 2014 when mill production is expected to begin and the first gold production is scheduled. The first full year of gold production is scheduled for 2015. The life of the mine, based on the probable reserves, is estimated to be 12 years, with annual forecast gold production of approximately 141,000 oz/y gold for the first five years at an average operating cash cost of $524/oz and for the life of mine about 112,000 oz/y of gold at an average operating cash cost of $689/oz. The complete value of the order exceeds €8 million. Metso’s delivery consists of a primary gyratory crusher for processing ROM gold ore, plus a SAG mill for primary grinding and a ball mill for secondary grinding. The crusher will be delivered in January 2014 and the grinding mills in April 2014.

“Besides providing a competitive bid, Metso has an excellent reputation for supplying robust crushing and grinding equipment,” said John Rakala, Manager of Metallurgy of B2Gold on the decision to choose Metso for the Namibian gold project. The new Otjikoto gold project is located 300 km north of Windoek. The open pit has reserves of 29.4 Mt with an average gold grade of 1.42 g/t and an estimated gold reserve of over 1.34 Moz. The mine will use leaching and carbon-in-pulp gold processing methods.

The Metso SUPERIOR 42-65 MK-II primary gyratory crusher to be delivered can process gold ore blocks of over a metre in size. The nominal capacity of the gyratory crusher is 2,010-2,780 t/h, depending on the settings used while its operational weight is over 119 t and  the primary grinding circuit will use a 24 ft x 15.75 ft sized SAG mill, followed by a 16.5 ft x 28.5 ft secondary ball mill. Both mills will have a 4 MW drive motor, and feature Eaton air clutches, a shared inching drive and a trunnion supported design.