All posts by Paul Moore

Gold Fields deploying ABB digital tech to improve mining operations in Western Australia

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

Global mining company Gold Fields has begun using a comprehensive digital platform from ABB to coordinate production scheduling and execution across its Granny Smith Mine in Western Australia.

The mining leader has deployed the ABB Ability™ Operations Management System (OMS) at the mine, 740 km northeast of Perth. The OMS is a contributing factor to Gold Field’s digital transformation of the Granny Smith operation, aiming to improve productivity and streamline data flow to enable timely decision making. Around 1.6 Mt of gold-bearing ore is extracted from the underground mine and treated at the site’s processing plant each year.

ABB’s OMS integrates short-interval control and closed-loop scheduling into the same digital platform, connecting mine planning and operations – including design, maintenance, workforce, equipment and services – in real time. It enables operators to plan production scheduling, automate activities and quickly react to disturbances that may impede production. The project delivery has been achieved with the active support of mining consultancy Enterprise Transformation Partners (ETP) in Australia.

Granny Smith’s workforce, plus all fixed and mobile equipment, will be connected to achieve new levels of production scheduling efficiency, from bench preparation to crusher, optimising resource usage and implementing the production plan more effectively. ‘What-if’ scenario analysis and re-planning will help teams to take informed decisions, maximising efficiency and financial opportunity for the operation.

“Gold Fields has enjoyed a solid, collaborative relationship with ABB globally, and now we are working hard to deliver a modern digitalised mine at Granny Smith, one that is more productive and sustainable,” said Rob Derries, Unit Manager, Innovation and Technology, Gold Fields Australia. “As a mine operator, we face a broad range of planning and operational challenges in hard-to-predict environments. We are committed to building on our people’s capability and experience by working with technology innovators to bring in the tools and systems to better manage this balance. It also allows our people to move into more highly skilled roles and tasks.”

“By providing ABB’s OMS solution, we will support the Gold Fields team with significant improvements to planning and productivity, moving the responsibility and reliance from individuals onto an efficient digitalised system for faster decision-making and higher productivity,” said Alan Teixeira, Product Business Line Manager – Mining & Digital Solutions – Australia, ABB.

ABB also partners with the University of Western Australia’s Energy & Resources Digital Interoperability Industry 4.0 TestLab, run by ETP, to advance Industry 4.0 open process automation standards.

New Hitachi EH4000 trucks for Kansanshi S3 expansion start to arrive

Base metals, Bulk handling, Environmental, Equipment maintenance, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining

FQM Zambia’s Kansanshi Mining operation has begun bolstering its fleet for the S3 expansion with the addition of the first new Hitachi EH4000 (number RD170) dump truck that has just been commissioned on the mine site.

The Hitachi EH4000AC3 dump truck has a payload capacity of 220 t and four more units are already being assembled on site and are part of the total of 36 of these trucks FQM is buying to ramp up production at the Kansanshi mine.

In May last year, FQM announced an investment of US$1.25 billion towards the S3 expansion project at Kansanshi, which includes expansion of the smelter, process plant, and mining fleet, as part of the S3 project.

Kansanshi Mining PLC General Manager, Anthony Mukutuma, says he is excited the mine will in the next few weeks put into operation up to four of the giant dump trucks, signalling a major step on progress at the S3 expansion project. He said construction at the process plant is underway while the purchasing of equipment has been done.

The General Manager, who was accompanied by the Assistant General Manager, Colin Du Plessis, and other senior staff, are happy the investment has come as the mine is targeting to increase copper production by 2025 to between 260,000 and 280,000 t/y.

“One of the other things that we are really proud of about this truck is that it’s a diesel-electric truck, so that means our carbon emissions are going to drop significantly as we invest in technology, particularly the trucks that are using electricity,” Mukutuma stated.

Freeport says Bagdad to have first fully autonomous mining truck fleet in the US

Automation, Base metals, Bulk handling, Environmental, Equipment maintenance, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Sustainable mining

In its just published updated 2022 Climate Report, global copper miner Freeport McMoRan (FCX) reveals that in mid-2023, it approved a new project to convert the fleet of 33 Caterpillar 793 haul trucks at its Bagdad mine in Arizona to become fully autonomous over the next three years. This conversion project will make Bagdad the first US mine with a fully autonomous haulage system.

The mining company continues: “This project is expected to optimise our fleet, improve operating efficiency and contribute to safety by removing our people from this area of the operation. The first two years of the conversion project will be spent retrofitting the existing haul trucks with autonomous technology, installing new supporting equipment and infrastructure, and training our workforce to safely operate and service the new technology. In the third year, the autonomous haul trucks are expected to come online.”

By embracing this technology, Bagdad’s GHG emissions from haul trucks are projected to decline as a result of reductions in idle time and overall efficiency improvements. Manned trucks often have to sit idling for, among other things, operator breaks, shift change, fatigue and coaching. Preliminary estimates indicate that FCX will be able to reduce idle time by more than 10,000 hours per year.

But the automation is also linked to long term electrification plans. “Although full electrification of haul trucks on a large scale is still years in the future, autonomous haul truck technology is an important step toward electrification. Rather than waiting for electrification technology to be developed and attempting to embrace it all at once, by transitioning Bagdad now, we believe we will be able to learn more about autonomous technology and how to leverage that technology before battery-operated haul trucks are introduced.”

“We look forward to partnering with Caterpillar to become the first US copper mine to implement a fully autonomous haulage system and are excited about the numerous benefits it will bring to our Bagdad operation and employees,” said Kathleen Quirk, President, Freeport-McMoRan. “The three-year conversion project is expected to improve safety, optimise our fleet, reduce GHG emissions through reduced idle time and position us to capitalise on future technological advancements in electrification.”

Celebrating the 10th anniversary of Command for hauling, Caterpillar has more than 620 autonomous trucks operating with 15 customers on three continents. While operating autonomously, these trucks have hauled more than 6.3 billion tonnes (6.9 billion tons) of material and travelled more than 230 million km (143 million miles) without causing any reported injuries.

“We are pleased to collaborate with FCX as they transition to fully autonomous haulage at Bagdad,” said Denise Johnson, Group President of Caterpillar Resource Industries. “The Cat 793 haul truck remains Caterpillar’s most popular autonomous truck model and is well proven to enhance safety, increase productivity, and reduce idle time across multiple operations, including copper mines. Additionally, Caterpillar continues to work with Freeport, and other mining companies, to introduce new electrification technologies supporting their sustainability objectives.”

Elsewhere, looking at its wider truck fleet in the Americas, Freeport, traditionally a user of mechanical drive trucks, is evaluating diesel-electric, ultra-class haul trucks to potentially integrate into its decarbonisation roadmap for its open-pit mines. It states: “These high-payload-capacity, diesel-electric haul trucks can add value through reduced fleet sizes which can support improved operating efficiencies and reduced unit costs.”

As part of its evaluation process, FCX has commissioned seven 400-ton class diesel-electric trucks – four from Caterpillar (798 AC) and three from Komatsu (980E) – for use at its Cerro Verde operations in Peru. “As the trucks operate and generate critical data on haulage variables such as fuel efficiency and timing, we are leveraging the learnings for ourselves, and we are sharing the data and learnings with Komatsu and Caterpillar to help inform future models and drive continued innovation.”

It adds: “The diesel-electric trucks can also provide us with a more flexible platform for the future as we evaluate and consider enabling technologies, such as trolley assist systems. When diesel-electric trucks are coupled with these technologies, we estimate fuel consumption could be reduced by 20% to 30% compared to mechanical-drive trucks.”

In 2022, Freeport joined Caterpillar’s Early Learner program and Komatsu’s GHG Alliance, which are focused on the development and advancement of zero- emissions mining trucks and other potential decarbonisation solutions. Each program outlines a potential equipment decarbonisation roadmap for haul trucks, which currently accounts for a significant portion of FCX’s Scope 1 emissions. “The programs are designed to support companies as electrified equipment and supporting electrical infrastructure and technologies are deployed at our sites, while simultaneously accelerating the development of viable solutions with a focus on safety, cost, production and decarbonisation.”

OceanaGold begins development ore mining at Haile’s Horseshoe Underground expansion

Mineral project development, Mining project news, Precious metals

OceanaGold Corporation says that its first development ore has been mined from the Horseshoe Underground mine, an underground expansion of its Haile surface operation, with first stope production expected in October 2023 with ramp-up to occur through the fourth quarter and first half of 2024.

In the wider operation, Haile’s third quarter 2023 gold production has been adversely impacted by lower than estimated ore grades encountered in the now-completed Mill Zone pit. OceanaGold now expects Haile’s third quarter gold production to be around 23,000 ounces, and Haile’s full-year production to be around 25,000 ounces below 2023 guidance ranges which were 170,000-185,000 ounces.

Gerard Bond, President & CEO of OceanaGold, said: “We are pleased to have mined first development ore from the Horseshoe Underground. The team has done a tremendous job in planning and safely executing the work to deliver this important growth project. We remain on track to have first stoping ore in October and will then ramp up to full target mining rates through the first half of 2024. The future of Haile continues to be exciting and with the release of today’s drilling results, including a high grade resource conversion result in the Horseshoe inferred resource, it is clear that there continues to be considerable upside to our current plan.”

David Londono, Chief Operating Officer Americas, said: “Although mining from Mill Zone in 2023 has been disappointing through the second and third quarter, the reconciliation challenges encountered are in a localised area within Mill Zone pit where mining is now complete, and mining has now shifted to Ledbetter Phase II. Previous phases of the Ledbetter pit have reconciled well versus our resource model, and we remain confident in our long-term production profile for the mine, particularly with Horseshoe Underground becoming a meaningful contributor in 2024 and beyond.”

Development of the Horseshoe Underground has progressed with approximately 2,230 m of total development to date. Lateral development is well advanced on the 1025 and 1000 levels, and the decline has progressed down to the 975 level. Development ore equating to ~3,800 t from the 1025 level has been mined and currently stockpiled on surface for processing.

Three stopes are planned to be mined in 2023, commencing in October. Stopes sizes range from 25,000 to 35,000 t and will be initially mined on the 1000 and 975 levels, with total stope ore production expected to contribute approximately 90,000 t to the mine plan in 2023. Underground stoping is expected to ramp-up in the fourth quarter and reach the full target mining rate by mid-2024.

Grade control drilling on a 15m by 20m spacing is progressing from underground in advance of development, with nine holes drilled to date. The holes are reconciling consistently well to the block model and provide confidence in the resource as we approach our first stopes.

Gold Fields says Salares Norte 97% complete with some final delays in mill and filter press commissioning

Bulk handling, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining maintenance, Mining services

Gold Fields Ltd advises that the Salares Norte gold project in Chile, which commenced construction in February 2021, is currently 97% complete, with certain sections of the plant already in pre-commissioning.

Ramp up of the project has been significantly de-risked with mining activities having continued throughout the construction and commissioning phase resulting in 1.6 million ore tonnes and 380,000 ounces of gold stockpiled to date. Operational staff compliments have been filled, with operational staff an integral part of the commissioning process as sections of the project are handed over to operations.

However, it adds that certain components of the plant require commissioning by the OEM vendor to maintain the validity of their warranties. “Challenges in securing the OEM vendor representatives, due to previously announced delays by the main project contractor, have resulted in an approximate two-month delay to commissioning of the mills and filter presses and therefore a delay to the production of first gold.” First gold from the project is still expected in the fourth quarter of 2023 but has moved from the beginning to the latter part of the quarter. Fluor is the processing contractor for the operation, with the mills and filters supplied by Metso.

If first gold is produced on December 1, 2023, production for 2023 is expected to be 1,000 gold equivalent ounces (oz-eq) (previously 15,000-20,000 oz-eq). The production outlook for 2024 has also been impacted and is expected to fall in the range of 400,000 oz-eq (at All-in Costs (AIC) of US$900/oz-eq) to 430 000 oz-eq (at AIC of US$860/oz-eq) from 500,000 oz-eq announced previously. Should the delay be longer, and first gold is only produced at the end of December 2023, production in 2024 is expected to be 350,000 oz-eq at AIC of US$1,050/oz-eq.

Despite the downgrade in production for 2023 and 2024, steady state production will be reached by the beginning of 2025 and therefore planned production volumes for 2025 and 2026 remain unchanged at 600,000 oz-eq. Average production for the first six years of the mine life (2024 – 2029) remain unchanged at 500,000 oz-eq per annum (as previously guided in February 2023). Over the total life of mine (2024 – 2033) average annual production remains at 355,000 oz-eq.

Adjusting for inflation to 2024 money, the Project’s AIC is expected to average US$700/oz-eq for the first six years of the mine life (2024 – 2029) and US$780/oz-eq over the total life of mine (2024 – 2033).

The total project capital estimate has increased by US$20 million to US$1,040 million due to the capitalisation of costs following the later commencement date for first gold. The miner concludes: “Salares Norte remains a world-class project with a payback period of less than three years at spot prices. Gold Fields will provide regular updates on the project until first gold is produced and during the ramp-up phase.”

XCMG reports successful testing of remote control XKY270E blast hole rig

Automation, Bulk handling, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services

China’s XCMG says it has successfully tested its XKY270E rotary blasthole rig, which it says is the first remote control capable and ‘intelligent’ surface mining drill rig developed in China.

The company states: “The research and development of the XKY270E represents a breakthrough for XCMG after several years of technology accumulation and refinement. Drilling as the start of the process that continues to blasting, digging and loading, transportation and crushing​​​ is a key part of the mining process, so the quality of the machinery itself directly affects operational efficiency and the quality of the subsequent links, so there are extremely high requirements for the blast hole drilling process.”

​​​​​​​​​​The drill hole diameter of the rig can reach 251-270 mm, with a drilling angle of 60-90° and a maximum drilling depth of 53 m. A double output motor is used to improve heat dissipation effect, and XCMG says it has all the functions of competitor rigs including automatic levelling, automatic drilling, fault diagnosis assistance, remote driving, hole guidance, plus simulation and analysis capabilities, to ensure the safety and high efficiency of the mining area operation. ​​At the same time, it is equipped with XCMG’s 70-ton mining excavator chassis, “which has been verified by the market for decades and has both strength and a reputation for being robust, stable and reliable.” It adds: “In addition, multiple intelligent capabilities can meet customer needs such as fault monitoring and diagnosis, including recording anomalies in real time, helping to extend the service life of the equipment.​”

XCMG says that the XKY270E drill has accumulated more than 7,000 m of drilling metres so far, with stable operation throughout and gaining the approval of the mining customer. A drill operator at the mine stated: ​​​​”We were working in the field, with a lot of dust and noise, and a high risk factor. Now in the control room we can remotely operate this drill, greatly improving our working environment, but also giving us a lot of real time intelligence on the machine.”

Together with a 5G low latency network, XCMG adds that the XKY270E can makes full use of information and digital sharing to achieve near real time remote interaction between high resolution field images from cameras and operations and operator instructions, including remote control driving. “The response time from instruction to equipment action is less than 50 milliseconds, providing an accurate and fast remote control system, and helping to create an unmanned mining environment.”

Byrnecut deploys Minnovare’s Development Optimiser in WA’s Goldfields region

Automation, Equipment maintenance, Mine shafts and equipment, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Mining software

Minnovare says that global underground mining contractor Byrnecut has implemented its Development Optimiser system at a project in the Goldfields region of Western Australia. Minnovare stated: “This significant milestone for the two companies, builds on the success of the Production Optimiser which Byrnecut has implemented at 10 of their projects, with 18 systems currently active globally.”

It adds that Byrnecut had confidence to implement the Development Optimiser based on successful field trials, where the system delivered positive results, yielding a reduction in their overbreak and underbreak over the course of the trial period.

Minnovare, part of Hexagon, says that Development Optimiser substantially improves drilling accuracy – leading to optimal blasts, reduced over-break/under-break and increased advance. Once the rail is aligned to the designed trajectory, the driller sets the ‘TARGET’ on the touch screen interface mounted inside the rig cabin – locking in the trajectory for every hole and removing all guess-work.

It also delivers superior setup accuracy – the primary cause of blast-hole deviation; maintains rail trajectory to designed target and parallelity between rails; and works independently of laserline, levelling and other on-board rig alignment systems. Minnovare says it also integrates seamlessly with rig and mine planning/drill and blast software – for direct import and export of drilling data.

Dry mobile mining innovation in Senegal from ADP

Bulk handling, Industrial minerals, Mineral commodities, Mineral processing, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Sustainable mining

ADP, a Lycopodium business, commenced operations with the design and supply of modular diamond plants in 1997. Over the ensuing years it has expanded its capabilities to deliver all traditional and specialised project services for the mining industry across a range of commodities, including diamonds, fluorspar, gold, graphite, iron ore, lithium, mineral sands, platinum, rare earth minerals, rubies, tin, uranium, copper and zinc.

Modular plant designs have been developed for crushing, milling, gravity separation, dense medium separation, ore sorting and final product recovery circuits of various capacities. Whilst maintaining a suite of tested modular plant designs, each plant remains unique due to differences in ore mineralogy, resource grades and client preferences.

A recent innovative project saw delivery of a 1,500 t/h track-mounted mineral sands Dry Mining Unit. The customer is the French group Eramet and its Grande Côte mineral sands operation (GCO) in Senegal, which is the largest single dredge mineral sands operation in the world. Over an expected mine life of at least 25-years, GCO will primarily produce high-quality zircon and ilmenite as well as small amounts of rutile and leucoxene.

ADP was awarded the contract to design and supply the unit in April 2021. The machine was fabricated, trial assembled and pre-commissioned and was delivered to Senegal in May 2022. Thereafter, it was transported to site, re-assembled and commissioned. ADP told IM that key success factors include its mobility, with a robust twin track design making it easily manoeuvrable in the mining environment. It is also much safer for personnel than conventional skid mounted plant and is remotely operated via a pendant control removing the physical human machine interface.

The Dry Mining Unit allows for precise feed control with a feedback loop for slurry density control and flow control. All components of the machine are tried and tested in the mining environment and are robust and reliable enabling impressive operational availability. The unit is fed by Komatsu WA900 front end loaders.

The unit is all electric with 33 kV primary power supply. Onboard transformers bringing the installed 1.4 MW of power to the onboard users at the required voltages. The unit is equipped with onboard hydraulic power generation and an onboard diesel generator. The generator is available for instances when shore power is not available and for power when tracking the Dry Mining Unit on long relocation moves.

Fabrication of the unit was done in Cape Town, South Africa with the machine being sea freighted to Dakar, Senegal on time and within budget. The Dry Mining Unit was commissioned two weeks after mechanical completion and achieved nameplate throughput during commissioning, entering continuous operation immediately thereafter.

Normet – a Platinum Sponsor at The Electric Mine 2024 in Perth

Environmental, Equipment maintenance, Mine shafts and equipment, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining

We recently confirmed global mining and tunnelling equipment and solutions company Normet as a top sponsor for The Electric Mine 2024, with the Finland-headquartered company having booked Platinum sponsorship for the event. The event, being held May 21-24 at the Crown Perth in Western Australia, will see Normet participate in a keynote panel in the conference line-up as well as showcasing a Normet electric machine via one of the larger ‘Gigawatt’ booths in the exhibition. This lead sponsorship is very apt given the rapid rise of Normet’s SmartDrive® battery electric utility equipment platform in recent years. 

SmartDrive is a modular battery electric vehicle (BEV) architecture designed to optimise energy consumption and performance. It includes the latest Li-ion battery technology with a fast-charging capability. High-torque electric motors supply instant torque and efficient operation without any local emissions. The fully reversible 4WD ensures safe and sure movement in difficult underground conditions. Built-in energy recuperation technology maximises the storing of regenerative braking energy during downhill driving and deacceleration.

In addition, efficient hydraulic dual-circuit oil immersed brakes supply additional braking power when it is needed. Normet SmartDrive equipment’s batteries can be charged at any time from typical underground AC-sockets. For demanding operations, optional fast-chargers can charge batteries quickly during operation or a break – there is no need for costly battery swapping. Normet equipment are fully compatible with the universal CCS fast charging standard.

The range of machines today includes BEV Spraymec concrete sprayers; Utilift scissor lifts; Charmec multipurpose chargers; Utimec transmixers; and Multimec multifunctional carriers. These machines have had success worldwide and in a number of cases have been the first BEVs to deploy at major mines such as at Oyu Tolgoi, Sindesar Khurd and Efemçukuru.

Normet has been operating in and supporting the Australian market for many years, with offices and workshops throughout the country. Notable SmartDrive successes include Australia’s first battery-powered vehicle for underground explosive charging, a Charmec, that arrived at OZ Minerals’ Carrapateena in 2020 for work with Enaex Australia; then a trial with contract miner Barminco at IGO’s Nova operation in 2021 and a third Charmec trial with contract miner Byrnecut at Gold Fields’ Invincible operation in 2021/2022.

Allison says its Wide Body Dump transmissions going far with Chinese mining truck OEMs

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

Allison Transmission says that several Chinese mining equipment manufacturers have expanded their global presence with the export of trucks equipped with Allison WBD (Wide Body Dump) Series™ transmissions to the Americas, Asia and the Middle East. The WBD Series™ it says provides increased productivity, enhanced manoeuvrability and decreased costs for off-highway mining trucks.

Designed for wide body mining dump (WBMD) trucks operating in more severe duty-cycles and harsher conditions, Allison 4800 WBD transmissions it says provide an extended torque range and a higher gross vehicle weight (GVW) capacity. “They are highly regarded in the mining industry worldwide for their unrivalled performance, quality, durability and reliability.”

Major Chinese mining equipment manufacturers, including SANY, LiuGong, XCMG, PengXiang and Tonly, outfitted their WBMD trucks with Allison 4800 WBD transmissions in the first half of 2023. These trucks were exported in large quantities to Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Colombia, Brazil, South Africa, the Philippines, Ghana and Eritrea for strip mining and ore transportation.

The Allison 4800 WBD transmission “can perform full-throttle high-torque starts and easy ramp starts, eliminating manual transmission issues such as difficult starts, easy-to-burn clutches, and failures to shift gears on a slope, which could cause the vehicle to skid. In addition, the transmission can automatically and intelligently shift gears in response to changes in road conditions and slope gradient, keeping the engine running efficiently without power interruptions and enhancing the vehicle’s uphill dynamics and safety.” The integral hydraulic retarder in the transmission assists braking without thermal decay, and when used in conjunction with the constant speed downhill function, prevents over-speeding downhill.

WBMD trucks operating in harsh environments need to carry heavy loads, and those equipped with the Allison 4800 WBD transmission are powerful enough to handle frequent starts and stops and to avoid potential failures from working around the clock. Allison’s patented torque converter avoids clutch wear common in manual transmissions and requires only periodic filter and fluid changes to maintain peak performance. Meanwhile, the hydraulic drive of the torque converter reduces mechanical shocks and improves engine and axle life. The Allison 4800 WBD transmission is also equipped with prognostics that provide feedback on the transmission’s health and maintenance needs in advance, and error codes are displayed on shift selectors for easy identification.

For the day-to-day operation of a vehicle, the Allison 4800 WBD transmission “offers the advantages of easy operation, high reliability and low maintenance costs. These benefits allow drivers to better focus on vehicle control in harsh working environments, effectively reducing operational errors and easing the driver’s workload.”

“Allison Transmission is pleased to have maintained a long-term relationship with major mining equipment manufacturers in China. Allison is capable of fulfilling specific requirements from our customers,” said David Wu, Managing Director, China Sales at Allison Transmission. “In line with Allison’s brand promise, we will continue to provide reliable and valuable propulsion solutions that deliver industry-leading productivity and total cost of ownership.”