All posts by Paul Moore

Sandvik rolls out AutoMine Core automation platform for mass mining operations

Automation, Base metals, Bulk handling, Diamond mining, IoT, Mine shafts and equipment, Mining equipment, Mining safety, Mining services, Mining software, Mining techniques, Steel and iron ore, Sustainable mining

Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions is introducing AutoMine® Core, “a comprehensive automation platform for mass mining applications to support customers ramping up from manual operation to fully autonomous production.”

Built on Sandvik’s proven AutoMine Fleet and Manual Production Monitoring (MPM) solutions, AutoMine Core also provides users with multiple levels of interoperability for Sandvik and third-party OEM fleets. It provides access to industry-leading solutions for underground connectivity, data collection and analysis and an advanced fleet of automated equipment options, making underground mining safer, more sustainable and productive.

“AutoMine is used in more than 100 mines globally, including more than 20 mass mining applications,” said Ty Osborne, Acting Director Product Line and Customer Projects Automation at Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions. “AutoMine Core combines advanced planning and scheduling capability with top-tier underground autonomy, integrating seamlessly into a mine’s digital ecosystem. This integration enables our customers to achieve end-to-end optimisation, resulting in increased productivity and added value.”

AutoMine Core also includes solutions for optimising mass mining, which integrate seamlessly with Sandvik and partner products, providing insights to optimise operational safety and productivity. Integrated solutions like Polymathian’s ORB can further improve productivity by 20%, allowing for autonomous dispatching with real-time end-to-end optimisation.

The AutoMine Core platform uses Sandvik’s proven AutoMine Fleet traffic management, from which customers are able to easily control traffic flow of multi-machine operations and handle complex situations such as advanced deadlock control, passing bays, dynamic dispatch and dynamic speed scaling, resulting in greater flexibility and mining output. AutoMine Access Control System also improves safety.

Pairing AutoMine Core with Sandvik’s lifecycle support solutions “helps customers maximise uptime and improve efficiency through an extensive service and support offering. Customers can also gain further benefits by selecting from the wide range of personnel competence development and reliable global network of expertise.”

“We believe this platform will transform mass mining operations, helping maximise safety, productivity and sustainability,” Osborne said. “We want our customers to automate with confidence.”

Tasiast’s take on the future

Bulk handling, Equipment maintenance, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance

The 100% Kinross owned world-class Tasiast gold mine in Mauritania is one of the jewels in the crown of African mining outside of southern Africa. The company has just hosted an analyst tour to the operation which has given some good insights into its status and expansion plans.

Tasiast is located in Inchiri, Mauritania within the Aouéouat greenstone belt. It currently has a 5.7 Moz proven & probable reserve, 1.5 Moz measured & indicated resource, plus 1.4 Moz inferred resource. It uses a conventional truck and shovel open-pit mining method, with carbon-in-leach processing. Commerical production began in 2008 by with mill and heap leach processing and the mine was then acquired by Kinross in September 2010 with its acquisition of Australia’s Red Back Mining.

Looking at the mine, West Branch (WB) is the primary operating pit. Within WB, Tasiast is presently mining the WB4 pit shell, with WB5 and WB6, and Piment still to be mined throughout the remaining life of mine. The current pit dimensions are 355 m deep, 1,500 m wide, and 2,000 m long. Ongoing WB5 stripping is critical to delivering high grade ore and securing production from the 2027 to 2029. WB4 mining will for now continue to deliver high grade ore to the mill until 2025. For the year to date in 2023, daily average total mined tonnes of have ranged from 175,000 to 225,000 t/d with monthly mined ore grade ranging from 2.6 to 3.5 g/t. The strip ratio is about 6:1.

The mining fleet consists of a large fleet of 45 Caterpillar 793 mining trucks, loaded by six mining face shovels – including older O&K RH340 models and their successor Caterpillar 6060 machines, one of which is a new model commissioned in June 2023. The mine also has two Cat 994 wheel loaders, other excavators and a large fleet of 12 blasthole drill rigs. A new Sandvik DI650i crawler drill was also commissioned in June this year.

The mine is also investing in the future, with six new Hitachi EH4000 trucks expected to be commissioned in 2024. Some 20 of the 793 trucks are to undergo planned capital rebuilds in 2023; the most in Tasiast history. Maintenance teams have also been focused on improving the overall performance and reliability of the 793 truck fleet. This fleet upgrading is all aimed at meeting expected mill demand at expanded throughput levels.

The Tasiast CIL plant consists of a SAG in closed circuit with a cyclone cluster. Cyclone overflow is pumped to two, parallel ball mills. The gravity circuit uses Knelson concentrators and Gekko ILRs to recover coarse gold. The leaching circuit comprises of five leach tanks and seven CIL (carbon in leach) tanks where dissolved gold is recovered on activated carbon. Tailings from the CIL plant are treated with a ferrous sulphate solution to detoxify the residual cyanide before being pumped to the TSF5 tailings storage facility. Stripping is performed with the Anglo American Research Laboratories (AARL) strip process. Gold is recovered from solution by electrowinning onto stainless steel wire wool cathodes prior to smelting the final doré bars.

Overall, three mill expansions have been completed to date, most recently the latest expansion is nearly complete to 24,000 t/d of milled tonnes. Phase one from 8,000 to 12,000 t/d was completed in 2018 then phase two part 1 from 12,000 to 21,000 was completed in 2022 followed by the current phase two part 2 from 21,000 to 24,000 t/d well underway and on track for sustained throughput at this level by year end.

Full year 2023 production is on plan, mill ramp up is progressing as planned and production remains on track to achieve full year guidance of 610,000 oz. Mill modifications are complete, with strong progress on throughput ramp up. The plant has already achieved throughput of 24,000 t/d for sustained periods of time, demonstrating the ability to achieve the expansion design levels. An average throughput of 20,000-21,000 t/d is expected through the remainder of 2023. The current focus is on sustaining higher throughput levels, optimising recoveries and building in mill resiliency.

There is also scope to extend the mine underground but the West Branch UG potential not included in current LOM plan. An underground study was completed by an independent consultant in 2021 based on the Inferred Resource. Six scenarios developed – three based on Longhole Open Stoping (LHOS) with unconsolidated rock fill and three based on Sub Level Caving (SLC), all with two ramps. The study envisages about 1 Moz of total production, based on 11-12 Mt of ore at ~2.5 g/t gold. In addition to West Branch, targets have been identified at Piment and Prolongation.

On tailings, there are three storage facilities on site of which two are at capacity, with one in operation. Tasiast is currently constructing the next raise (TSF 4/5 Raise 2) with the existing tailings capacity expected to last until Q1 2025. An additional storage facility is planned to supplement the remainder of LOM tailings. On power, there is currently installed capacity of 60 MW via a large Wartsila genset with construction of a 34 MW solar project on track for completion by year-end. Solar power is expected to reduce GHG emissions by 530 t and lower AISC by $15/oz for LOM.

Liebherr R 9400 mining excavator arrives at Olive Downs; plus Sedgman bags O&M contract

Automation, Bulk handling, Coal technology, Equipment maintenance, Explosives and blasting, Mineral processing, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services

In early August 2023, Liebherr-Australia handed over a new 345.5 t R 9400 backhoe excavator to mining services customer Thiess at the Pembroke Resources Olive Downs Complex in Queensland. Not only was this Thiess’ first R 9400 on site, but the model is also equipped with Liebherr’s own D9812 series engine.

This is the third Liebherr machine delivered to Olive Downs Complex this year, and joins two larger 800 t class R 9800 backhoe machines, each with two Cummins QSK60 engines, that have already begun work at the coking coal mine. A Liebherr R 9100 will also be used at the mine.

On the truck side, Thiess is deploying 6 Caterpillar 793 and 15 Caterpillar 794 autonomous haul trucks equipped with Caterpillar’s Command for hauling system to work with the Liebherr excavators. Additional Cat 793 trucks will run conventionally. The trucks are being assembled in Mackay by Cat dealer Hastings Deering. The operation is also using three Cat MD6310 autonomous drills. All the equipment will run on a private LTE network.

Progress is also being made on the processing side of the operation. On September 22, CIMIC Group’s minerals processing company, Sedgman, a leading provider of integrated minerals processing solutions, said it had secured an operations and maintenance contract at Olive Downs. The five-year contract will generate revenue for Sedgman of A$125 million.

Sedgman and CPB Contractors, also a CIMIC Group company, have been working together to deliver an end-to-end solution for the Olive Downs Complex processing plant since mid-2022. These additional works will extend the scope of work for Sedgman to include optimising operations, enhancing efficiency, and elevating productivity at the facility.

EACON signs up two more big Chinese open pit coal mines for its AHS

Automation, Coal technology, Equipment maintenance, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining safety, Mining services, Mining software

Since August 2023 EACON Mining Technology says it has begun autonomous haulage system (AHS) cooperation with two new projects, the Gobi Desert No. 2 Coal Mine, a subsidiary of the TBEA Group, and Huolinhe South Coal Mine, a subsidiary of State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC). The company said: “This represents a new stage in EACON’s development, one that will see large-scale and rapid deployment of a mature autonomous driving solution.”

It adds that the new projects also “demonstrate EACON’s market dominance in China’s Northwest region which accounts for 85% of the country’s total open-pit coal mines.” EACON argues that it was the first in the industry to achieve normal operation in the region, starting autonomous driving stripping and haulage operations at the South pit of TBEA and National Energy Group’s Zhundong Mine in July and November 2020, respectively.

“The South Pit of TBEA is a benchmark project run by EACON in the region. In the years past, the number of autonomous driving vehicles increased from 39 at the end of 2022 to 203 in October 2023. This demonstrates a safe, efficient, and reliable product offering that has won the confidence of the TBEA mining group.”

The Gobi Desert No. 2 Coal Mine is located in northwestern China, with an area of 87.23 km² and 4.573 billion tons of resource reserves. The mine has a production capacity of 30 Mt/y, and is ranked among the top ten open-pit mines in China in terms of coal production. On August 25, EACON successfully deployed the initial batch of trucks at the mine site to validate and acclimatise to the mining environment. Just 17 days later, on September 12, EACON reached the significant feat of conducting operations entirely without the need for safety drivers. Looking ahead to October, EACON plans to deploy 33 hybrid trucks, all operating autonomously and without any safety drivers onboard.

The Huolinhe South Coal Mine, located in Inner Mongolia Province, was built in June 1981 and covers an area of approximately 30 km². EACON will deploy the first 10 extended-range hybrid trucks with a payload of 90 t to enable autonomous driving operation in the short term.

EACON adds that its implementation time is significantly shorter than other players in the industry, “maintaining the lead position in terms of deployment efficiency. This demonstrates that EACON’s autonomous driving solution in coal mining stripping operations has reached maturity. With high flexibility, adaptability, and technical stability, EACON’s AHS solution can be replicated in a short period of time.”

At present, EACON says it has already signed four of the top ten open-pit coal mines in China, and has cooperated with top mining companies such as National Energy Group, TBEA Group, Zijin Mining Group, State Power Investment Corporation, and mining contractors. In the future, it says it will continue to expand its commercialisation territory, “and provide safe, efficient, and green autonomous haulage solutions for mines in China and around the world.”

2MT to manufacture Columbia Steel dragline chain in Australia

Bulk handling, Coal technology, Equipment maintenance, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services

Columbia Steel and its Australian distributor, 2MT, have announced that an agreement has been reached to manufacture dragline chain in Australia. This agreement comprises the sharing of intellectual property required to replicate the manufacture of Columbia Steel dragline chain to Columbia’s exacting standards.

A statement from 2MT said: “As a result, we proudly introduce Australian-made 2MT Columbia Chain, a game-changer for our customers and the entire industry. By combining the expertise and resources of 2MT Mining Products and the renowned reputation of Columbia Steel products, we have elevated the standard of mining products manufactured locally on our shores.”

The key product is Columbia Steel XtraLife® dragline chain which 2MT describes as the industry standard. It says XtraLife is the preferred dragline chain for mining companies relying on consistent performance and a long product life cycle and argues that you cannot get the same consistency and endurance from any other dragline chain.

Features of the XtraLife dragline chain are an integrally cast steel chain, giving superior link integrity due to an exclusive moulding process especially developed for the manufacture of dragline chain. It also utilises proven Columbia steel proprietary H Alloys which consistently provide resilence, toughness and longer wear life. The chain has a greater contact area for better distribution of stress and crutch wear plus has high strength and abrasion resistance.

In January 2023, Columbia Steel sold its key technical and commercial assets to UK-based wear parts major CMS Cepcor Group. CMS Cepcor Group incorporated the new company Columbia Steel Cast Products LLC in Portland, Oregon, which trades independently as Columbia Steel and retained many key Columbia Steel engineering, sales, and commercial staff.

New generation of Epiroc’s SmartROC C50 released for high efficiency and low fuel consumption

Automation, Environmental, Equipment maintenance, Explosives and blasting, Mining consumables, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Sustainable mining

Epiroc has released a new generation of the class-leading SmartROC C50, one of its rigs that uses its innovative COPROD rock drilling technology. “We have fine-tuned and improved an already existing top class surface drill rig. The new generation of the SmartROC C50 will be beneficial to mining and quarrying operations all around the globe,” says Ulf Gyllander, Global Product Manager, Epiroc Surface division.

Gyllander told IM: “We have two rigs that you can use with COPROD – the SmartROC C50 and the SmartROC CL. The SmartROC C50 can drill 90-152 mm holes, while the SmartROC CL can drill up to 216 mm. So generally the CL is used by big mines, and the C50 larger quarries as well as small and mid-sized mines. It is popular in limestone mines where you want to have the penetration rate and fuel consumption of top hammer along with the hole straightness of DTH. In Australia, the C50 is seeming strong demand as well in hard rock lithium operations.” Gyllander also said that the model handles fractured rock well. He says it is a favoured choice for contractors and mining customers who require both raw power and precision.

The SmartROC C50 MKI has been around for some time – over seven years – with a sizeable population in Europe, Australasia and the Americas. So why the need for a MKII model? “We wanted to upgrade the model with touch screen technology and rear camera. We have also updated the software on the machine to help it work even better with the COPROD system. We have also worked hard on the engine RPM using our control system to reduce the fuel consumption and therefore emissions, which is very important today for many of our customers. But of course less fuel means cost savings as well.”

Specifically, the new generation of SmartROC C50 is also now fitted with an updated Rig Control System (RCS), which improves fuel efficiency up to 5%. The smart RCS system constantly monitors compressor load and keep tracks on of engine RPM to ensure no fuel is wasted and that environmental impact is kept to a minimum. “Using less fuel has a big impact on cost savings – and the SmartROC C50 offer the lowest fuel consumption on the market.”

The new touch screen provides valuable information – and presents data such as Measure While Drilling to the operator. The updated system will optimise workflow and make it even more easy to navigate. Additionally, the enhanced automation reduces the demands placed on the operator. The new display also assists with troubleshooting, by showing exactly where a problem is located so that downtime is kept to a minimum. The smart technology also boosts productivity thanks to more precise drilling and consistency in operations.

COPROD combines a threaded drill tube with an unthreaded drill rod. The drill tube transmits rotation, while the impact rod, fit in floating suspension inside the tube, transmits impact energy and feed force. The flushing air passes between the tube and the rod, through the bit rod, to the front of the drill bit. When the COPROD sections are joined, the impact rods stand on top of each other inside the drill tube. This means that the impact energy is directly transmitted to the rock mass without passing a single thread. The result is superior energy transmission, reduced fuel consumption and minimised wear on the drill string.

COPROD mainly competes in the market with big top hammer rigs, as well as some DTH models. It performs well where you have a complicated geology with a lot of variation in material. The SmartROC C50 MKII rig is now commercially available, with a number of pre-orders. The MKI will be discontinued, with any new C50 models ordered being delivered as the new version. It has already been trialled in the test area at Epiroc’s Orebro factory.

China’s AHS pioneer Tage Idriver to tackle global market plus launches hybrid autonomous truck

Automation, Base metals, Bulk handling, Coal technology, Diamond mining, Energy minerals, Equipment maintenance, High tech minerals, Industrial minerals, Mineral commodities, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining safety, Mining services, Mining software, Precious metals, Steel and iron ore, Sustainable mining

Established in 2016, Tage Idriver (踏歌智行) is without question one of the original pioneers in the development of autonomous haulage in open-pit mines in China. It modified the first domestic large mining truck for autonomous operation at the Bayan Obo iron ore and rare earths mine, plus it designed China’s first autonomous haulage solution for open-pit mining with the architecture of ‘vehicle – road – cloud,’ and it says it was the first to continuously operate 24/7 autonomous haulage without a safety monitor (driver) at China Energy’s Shengli No.1 coal mine, which it says was the first L4 autonomous driving in Chinese mining. Safety drivers had previously been present in all Chinese “autonomous” mining trucks.

On September 30 this year, Tage Idriver also took another major step when it launched a new hybrid autonomous rigid wide-body mining truck model, the TG136HA. There are generally two kinds of mining trucks in China, one of which is the traditional rigid truck with payload capacities of 100 -400 tons, while the other is the articulated wide-body truck with payload capacities of less than 100 tons. The new TG136HA, as a rigid wide-body mining truck, can handle over 100 ton payloads, run without a driver or monitor on board and consume 30% less fuel. Tage Driver told IM that it does this thanks to its leading autonomous driving system, highly-integrated EIC system, and efficient energy recovery system. In the near future, Tage says the model will also have options to be powered by battery, methanol or hydrogen fuel cells.

Trucks running at Shengli No.1 mine in China using Tage Driver AHS with no safety driver

Tage Idriver currently has over 400 autonomous mining trucks running in China including both factory-installed and retrofitted trucks, across coal mines, quarry & aggregate operations and metal mines, representing orders of over RMB 1 billion. The company also commented on the challenges of deploying autonomy in China. For example, at Zijin Mining Group’s Julong copper mine at an altitude of over 5,300 m in Tibet, the autonomous trucks and haulage system have to conquer extreme cold, snow and wind.

Another example is the deployment of Tage Idriver’s system at the Dexing copper mine, where high rainfall and humidity plus regular poor visibility bring great challenges for the AHS vehicle control, sensors and algorithms. Tage Idriver says its autonomous haulage solution has also been proven not only in extreme weathers, but also complex road conditions such as large-curvature bends and steep gradients, but also a wide range of operational tasks including loading and unloading at waste dumps or crushing stations.

Apart from autonomous trucks and haulage, Tage Idriver also provides autonomous haulage operation services. At China Resources Cement’s mine near Guangzhou, it operates the autonomous haulage system which covers the whole mine, covering 38 battery electric and autonomous wide-body dump trucks running 24/7. The statistics show that this operation saves 60% in labour costs, 91% in energy/fuel consumption costs, and has had an improvement of 26% in overall mining efficiency.

The aforementioned three services (truck, solution and operation) are also supported by a cutting-edge technical team. It consists of academics from the China Engineering Academy, professors from technical schools, talented postdoctoral students and experienced experts in vehicles and mining. Tage Idriver and its Founder Yu Guizhen have no less than 340 invention patents for autonomous driving pending or granted as of today.

Data from CCID Consulting, China’s largest research, consulting and IT outsourcing service company, cites Tage Idriver as ranking first in its sector with a 45.1% market share of autonomous driving for mining in China.

Tage Idriver is now taking the next step and is currently engaging with partners outside of China, such as truck manufacturers, conveyor system providers as well as mining groups, to expand its business into the global market, including but not limited to Australia, Brazil, Peru and Mongolia. With its experience in meeting diverse and challenging mining requirements, Tage Idriver says it is confident of delivering safe, low-carbon, efficient and economic autonomous haulage services to global customers.

Caterpillar validates Rajant wireless solution with Cat® MineStar™ Command for hauling

Automation, Bulk handling, Communications in mining, Mining equipment, Mining services

After extensive testing, Caterpillar Inc says it has completed the in-house validation of Rajant BreadCrumbs®, LX5 CA radios, which will enable field trials with this Rajant product and Cat® MineStar™ Command for hauling.

“This validation is a key step to provide additional options for our mining customers when deploying Command for hauling in their operation,” said Sean McGinnis, Vice President and General Manager of Technology and Global Sales Support at Caterpillar. ”We greatly appreciate the support from the Rajant team throughout the validation process.”

Rajant Corporation is the leading provider of Kinetic Mesh® networking systems, a class of networking utilising fully autonomous nodes to achieve high performance even under ever-changing conditions. Using its patented InstaMesh® routing technology, Rajant networks provide dynamic network connections in a mobile environment, routing traffic through the best available route as network topology is constantly changing.

Rajant’s wireless nodes have multiple radios operating at different frequencies and route traffic through mobile nodes to improve connectivity and throughput in dynamic environments. This approach creates more available radio paths, delivering uninterrupted communications where other solutions have failed. The next step is to validate the solution with Command for hauling in production at a mine site to confirm performance and scalability.

“Achieving Caterpillar validation has always been a critical requirement for Rajant, since our dealer/integrator network frequently gets asked about supporting autonomy,” said Geoff Smith, Rajant Executive Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing. “We are very thankful to the entire Caterpillar team for all of their support during this process and look forward to driving new business worldwide for all of our global customers.”

Nevada Gold Mines places order for 62 Komatsu 930E-5 mining trucks

Bulk handling, Equipment maintenance, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Precious metals

Building on the proven success of Komatsu trucks at Barrick’s Lumwana copper mining operation in Zambia, Nevada Gold Mines (NGM), has signed a multi-year agreement with Komatsu to deliver 62 Komatsu 290 t class 930E-5 haul trucks between 2023 and 2025. NGM is the single largest gold-producing complex in the world, formed as a joint venture between Barrick and Newmont.

The new Komatsu haul trucks will be in operation at two Nevada mines: 40 will be deployed to the Carlin Complex and 22 will be at the Cortez site. In addition to the haul trucks, NGM has also purchased multiple pieces of support equipment from Komatsu.

“Based on the successful implementation at Lumwana, we chose to upgrade our fleet with 62 new Komatsu trucks,” said Peter Richardson, Executive Managing Director, Nevada Gold Mines. “Komatsu has provided us with tremendous regional support and their team in Elko has been instrumental in helping us maintain our fleet with parts and component rebuilds for our trucks; a wheel motor upgrade program; and maintenance and support for the P&H shovels that are part of our operations.”

This new fleet acquisition in Nevada is a result of the strong performance demonstrated by a recently installed fleet of Komatsu trucks and auxiliary equipment at Barrick’s Lumwana mine in Zambia. Late last year, the two companies met at Komatsu’s surface mining headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to lay the groundwork for a collaborative global partnership. Komatsu is committed to building its partnership with the Barrick Group based on its success at Lumwana and NGM and is pleased at being considered for the company’s Reko Diq project in Pakistan.

“We are excited to build on the success we’ve achieved so far with Barrick through this new collaboration with Nevada Gold Mines,” said Josh Wagner, VP and GM for Komatsu’s North America Mining Division. “We will be ready to support the fleet ramp up with our state-of-the-art and growing Elko service capabilities.”

Komatsu is building a nearly 50,000 square-foot warehouse adjacent to its Elko service centre to expand local parts support for mining and construction customers in region. The facility is planned for completion in early 2024. The company’s 189,000-square-foot Elko service center supports mining and construction equipment including haul trucks, hydraulic shovels, electric rope shovels and support equipment.

Marathon Gold selects ABB as integrated process & power automation supplier for Valentine Gold

Automation, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Precious metals

Marathon Gold has agreed to a contract with ABB to design and commission the process and power control system for its Valentine Gold Project in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, moving the project another significant step closer to a timely startup. The order was booked in the third quarter of 2023.

Currently under construction, the open-pit mining and conventional milling operation will become a flagship project for Marathon Gold as its Valentine Gold Project represents the largest undeveloped gold resource in the Atlantic Canada region. The company projects an average production of 195,000 oz of gold per year for the first 12 years of the expected 14-year mine life. The project remains on schedule to achieve mill commissioning in Q4 2024 and first gold production in Q1 2025.

“We’re very happy that ABB was selected for this project and we’re looking forward to working with the Marathon Gold team to keep it on track,” said Sachin Jari, Head of Mining, North America for ABB Process Industries. “It is set to become a very important gold mining operation in Canada and one that our experienced project team will make a positive impact on. They have decades of experience working with mining projects of similar stature in Canada and globally.”

ABB’s scope of delivery includes the design, supply and commissioning of the mine’s process and power control systems, both integrated under the company’s flagship ABB Ability™ System 800xA® distributed control system (DCS).

Additionally, by unifying these historically disparate systems under one common framework, mine operators can gain greater visibility across the operation, helping them find more ways to enhance safety, plant efficiency, staff responsiveness and profitability across the mining value chain. This integrated automation system will also be based on ABB’s Select I/O and Industrial Ethernet networks, which will help the project team mitigate any late changes or schedule delays to this project and simplify evolution of the mine’s automation systems through its various, planned production phases.