All posts by Paul Moore

Orexplore signs commercial agreement with BHP for deployment at Carrapateena

Automation, Base metals, IoT, Mine surveying, Mineral exploration, Mining services, Mining software, Precious metals

Orexplore Technologies Ltd, the mineral scanning technology company focusing on the global mining and metals sector, has signed a binding agreement with BHP for a field deployment at the Carrapateena mine in South Australia. Under this agreement, valued at approximately A$1.55 million, Orexplore will deliver site-based drill-core and sample digitisation services for BHP.

This work will be focused on value to the operations through multiple OXT solutions unlocking new rock mass characterisation and geometallurgical information to advance the short and medium-term mining and operational planning and decision processes. The company’s ‘Smart Domaining’ (SDM) solution, it says powered through its unique technology, “will additionally enable improved orebody knowledge across the deposit to drive improved modelling, with value drivers for downstream mining, processing, and reconciliation outcomes.”

Orexplore will work with the operations team to embed new information flows into the site processes and systems as part of the installation of three GeoCore X10® units into the core farm. The team will seek to transform traditional core-logging and analysis processes through augmented logging and advanced Machine Learning (ML) based analysis methods.

Think & Act Differently (TAD) powered by BHP is supporting the demonstration of technologies across BHP’s operations including digital core scanning. Orexplore says it is creating a unique set of transformational solutions powered by its Geocore X10® core scanning Technology Platform that can deliver unique, novel information sets and reduce risk for customers.

“These solutions are further enabling customers to achieve productivity, development, safety, and sustainability targets as they operate and grow through the global technology, workforce, and energy transitions and advance the sustainability of the mining industry. The scope of Orexplore’s initial field deployment is scanning and analysis of approximately 15,000 m of drill core and samples at Carrapateena with a view to demonstrating the successful integration of these new solutions into the site operational workflows.”

Orexplore’s Technology Platform comprises its field sensing GeoCore X10® hardware product that rapidly extracts information from drilled core in less than 15 minutes per metre, and its Orexplore Insight® software. The software enables remote geological decision makers anywhere in the world to analyse and interpret results to improve ore body knowledge acquisition. This can potentially accelerate decision making across the mining value chain from exploration to operational improvements.

Orexplore’s Managing Director, Brett Giroud, commented: “We are proud to be deploying our technology into BHP’s Carrapateena mine and excited to continue our work with BHP’s TAD team. Orexplore is working in close collaboration with the BHP TAD team that is leading the way in the successful adoption of transformational technologies such as the Orexplore technology platform. We are advancing our mission to improve the sustainability of the mining industry, through delivering new technology tools to the field in support of geology and mining professionals transforming their processes and ways of working.”

He adds: :We seek to achieve this through automating scanning and analysis tasks and delivering unique new insights from drilled core through machine learning and analysis to improve exploration, operational, planning and development decision quality and speed. This agreement further demonstrates increasing global demand for non-destructive, 3D information sourced rapidly from the field to inform decision processes, drive traditionally siloed collaboration around digital models, and create value within an operating mine.”

He says the in-field deployment of Orexplore’s patented technology platform provides an innovative new data set to BHP through the technology’s ability to ‘see through the core’ in addition to its full surface sensing and advanced modelling and analysis capabilities. This unique combination “powers the company’s broad solution suite that is delivering new value to customers from exploration to ESG solutions.”

He continues: “We are advancing the commercialisation of our technology platform through field deployments and laboratory scanning to unlock new value for our customers. The capability of the technology to power unique value propositions across the mining value chain is being demonstrated further, from our recent success in delivering critical minerals orebody and operational solutions across multiple customers, to the deployment of the technology into the Gold Field’s Salares Norte, Chile mine site. The company’s solution suite also continues to accelerate in its scope and adoption with advancing solutions across assay proxies, grade control and sustainability solutions for our customers.”

Key terms of the agreement include the delivery of site-based drill-core and sample scanning and analysis services of approximately 15,000 m of drill core and samples. The term of the agreement will conclude on the fulfilment of the purchase order expected to occur over a seven-month period. The agreement is exclusive for both parties.

“The signing of this binding agreement with BHP is significant to Orexplore in that it represents a subsequent deployment of Orexplore’s OBK solutions for BHP, in addition to new rock-mass characterisation and geometallurgical solutions – all directly embedded into the core farm of a fully operational mine. This adoption of Orexplore solutions follows on from the successful award to the company in April 2023 of the Gold Field’s Salares Norte, Chile mine site, and further demonstrates traction in the company’s offerings within a fully operational mine site.”

Weber Mining & Tunnelling on gallery recovery after rockfall with expansive resin

Explosives and blasting, Mine shafts and equipment, Mining safety, Mining services

Rockfall is one of the leading causes of accidents in underground operations. Occasionally, during the development of a gallery, the terrain presents characteristics that allow us to infer the need for preventive fortification systems, such as resin injection before advancing, to prevent possible rockfalls.

However, when the rockfall couldn’t be prevented, it is necessary to implement safe gallery recovery systems to avoid further dangerous situations. For these scenarios, Weber Mining & Tunnelling says it has developed the latest technologies in expansive resins, allowing cavities to be filled safely and quickly without exposing mining staff.

The company told IM: “After a rockfall, two possible situations arise. The rockfall occurred, and the cavity is stable. In this case, a safe recovery consists of projecting shotcrete onto the cavity walls and placing steel frames onto which the expansive resin will be applied. The resin is injected from outside the collapse zone through an injection lance that reaches the cavity via an opening left when placing the frames. Once the injection begins, the resin expands to 40 times its initial volume in two minutes. Weber Mining & Tunnelling’s injection pump allows up to 80 m3 to be injected per hour, ensuring a quick filling of large cavities.”

It adds: “As the cavity fills, the resin exerts positive pressure against the walls, stabilising the ground. The cavity is considered completely filled once the pressure gauges of the injection pump increase, showing no more empty space. Thanks to this technology, even if the cavity is 20 m high, it can be filled without exposing any worker to risks in just a few hours. As a flexible product, the expansive resin evenly distributes ground movements onto the frames, optimizing the resistance of support systems in the event of further ground movements.”

On other occasions, rockfall might be ongoing, preventing the application of shotcrete or the placement of steel frames. In these cases, the expansive resin can be injected from the gallery floor, keeping personnel out of the risk zone. “Given the expansive capacity of the resin, when injected from the floor, it will fill the cavity up to the gallery ceiling. Once the cavity is filled, the recovery process involves placing frames starting 4 m before the rockfall zone, then gradually excavating inside the expansive resin and fallen rocks. In this way, excavation is safe as progress is made under a ceiling of expansive resin and ground support.”

Weber Mining & Tunnelling says its latest technologies in expansive resins have facilitated the recovery of collapsed galleries without endangering mining staff, optimising rehabilitation processes, and contributing to the safety of their client’s operations.

Liontown to award underground mining contract for Kathleen Valley lithium project to Byrnecut

Bulk handling, Equipment maintenance, High tech minerals, Mine shafts and equipment, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining project news, Mining services

Liontown Resources Ltd has issued a letter of award to Byrnecut Australia Pty Ltd for Underground Mining Services to underpin the development and production of the Kathleen Valley hard rock lithium project. The appointment of Byrnecut is a significant milestone for Kathleen Valley which has a Mineral Resource Estimate of 156 Mt at 1.4% Li2O and 130 ppm Ta2O5. Liontown said Byrnecut’s demonstrable record and capability across the entire underground value chain, from mine start to full and ongoing production and at a size and scale required at Kathleen Valley, was critical to its success in the tender process.

The operations have been optimised for an initial 3 Mt/y, producing approximately 500,000 t/y of spodumene concentrate with a 4 Mt/y expansion planned in Year 6, to deliver approximately 700,000 t/y of spodumene concentrate. Mining will predominately be underground, allowing direct access to higher grade mineralisation while minimising waste and the environmental footprint of the project. Mined ore will be processed through a whole-of-ore flotation circuit which will provide an estimated recovery rate of 78% across the mine life and an estimated site recovery for tantalum concentrate of 42%.

The letter of award it says follows a transparent and competitive tender process that commenced in March 2023 and concluded this month, in line with the project’s schedule. The tender and award covers all aspects of underground construction, including significant early capitalised development (approximately 60 km of a total 90 km during the contract period) and production across the Mt Mann and Northwest Flats orebodies as the operation expands to support the initial plant throughput capacity of 3 Mt/y.

Given the services will cover both production and capitalised long-term development, the full contract value of approximately A$1 billion over four years comprises operating costs, sustaining capital, and early enabling works for the planned 4 Mt/y expansion as part of the longer-term operation of the underground mine.

The evaluation process also included Health, Safety, Environment and Quality (HSEQ), innovation, community engagement and performance history. Importantly Byrnecut is committed to working in collaboration with the Tjiwarl Traditional Owners to increase Indigenous participation in mining.

Byrnecut was ultimately selected in recognition of its extensive expertise in large-scale underground mining, including state-of-the-art and technologically advanced mining equipment and processes, robust safety and training systems and logistical support. Byrnecut will invest more than A$125 million in new equipment highlighting their commitment to the successful delivery of underground mining services.

They will begin mobilising to site throughout the September quarter, aligned with the on-schedule conclusion of open pit mining activities at Mt Mann. Mt Mann will be the central location for the future portals – six in total – into the underground operations, with development to commence in the December quarter.

The award of the Underground Mining Services to Byrnecut is subject to finalisation of a binding full-form contract. Now that the commercial terms have been agreed, this information will allow the company to finalise its operating costs review for Kathleen Valley Project which will be the subject of a future update.

Liontown’s Managing Director and CEO, Tony Ottaviano, said: “Today marks a significant milestone for Kathleen Valley as we have issued a letter of award for the Underground Mining Services contract to Byrnecut. Byrnecut is a Tier-1 underground mining services contractor with a global footprint. Its underground expertise is highly respected and well recognised throughout the mining industry and investment community, underpinned by the people they attract and retain. As part of the tender process, I was pleased to learn that around 400 people have worked for Byrnecut for 10 years or more. I believe this is evidence of a highly engaged and motivated team, which is vital to operating safely in an underground mining environment.”

He added: “Our collaboration with Byrnecut has already delivered value in the form of the updated ‘one mine, two orebodies’ mine plan, which was optimised as an outcome of the tender evaluation process. Byrnecut will invest more than A$125 million in new equipment, highlighting their commitment to the successful delivery of underground mining services at Kathleen Valley. At around A$1 billion this is the largest contract to be awarded by Liontown and is reflective of operational requirements, external factors and the four-year duration. We remain on track for first production from Kathleen Valley by mid-2024 and I look forward to partnering with Byrnecut for the next stage of our project development.”

Minhub appoints IHC Mining to undertake engineering work on rare earths & zircon project

High tech minerals, Industrial minerals, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining services

Emerging critical mineral producer FYI Resources has announced that Minhub Operations Pty Ltd (MOPL) has appointed international engineering group, IHC Mining (IHCM) to undertake initial test work and engineering studies on a proposed Mineral Processing Plant (MSP) at the Minhub rare earths/zircon project in Darwin, Northern Territory.

MOPL was established to develop an independent collaborative mineral separation plant capable of processing emerging deposits with high rare earth content, with the aim of reducing the significant barriers to entry for these projects imposed by opaque markets, dominant industry players and hurdles to approvals. Darwin was selected due to its strategic location, experience in handling naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) and the proximity to Arafura’s Nolans Project which will offer a downstream processing site for the rare earth minerals.

These preliminary studies will advance the project development towards the full feasibility study. IHCM will apply its world-class minerals processing skills and experience to the project. FYI has a binding heads of agreement to acquire MOPL subject to the satisfaction or waiver of conditions set out in an announcement from May 9, 2023.

FYI Managing Director Roland Hill commented: “Having a high calibre international engineering firm such as IHCM commence the initial Minhub project studies on behalf of FYI/MOPL and project partner Arafura Rare Earths Ltd provides the project with significant development benefits resulting from IHCM’s extensive operational experience, metallurgical and engineering capabilities and track record of successful projects. We look forward to working closely with IHCM on our unique downstream rare earths production project.”

MOPL is co-developing and managing the Minhub rare earths downstream processing facility with ASX-listed Arafura Rare Earths Ltd. ARU has the option to acquire up to 50% of the Minhub project by contributing 50% of the project costs. MOPL is a privately owned company established specifically to develop, construct, and operate a mineral processing plant, where third-party mineral sands concentrate will be processed to separate rare earth-rich monazite and xenotime from other valuable mineral sands products such as zircon and ilmenite.

Nevada Gold Mines begins rolling out new Komatsu 930E mining truck fleet

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

Operating muscle at Nevada Gold Mines has been beefed up with the ahead-of-schedule commissioning of the first seven of a new 22-unit Komatsu 930E fleet due this year. With the completion of major maintenance shutdowns at NGM, and a significantly improved performance from Carlin, the focus on driving flexibility and reducing production risk has intensified.

NGM Chairman Mark Bristow says while the superb quality of the complex’s assets and its enormous untapped potential make Nevada the value foundation on which operator and majority shareholder Barrick is growing its business, it has processing constraints which need to be overcome by boosting operational flexibility.

“We see at each of the three Tier One assets (Carlin, Cortez and Turquoise Ridge) multiple opportunities to strengthen the life of mine with near-mine growth using the current infrastructure in the midterm (Leeville, Ren), new projects that can extend the use of the processing facilities (Robertson), and a long-term portfolio targeting significant brownfields and greenfields (Fourmile, Turquoise Ridge Underground) to sustain current production past the 15-year window.”

“We’re planning to achieve this by increasing processing and mining run times, stepping up development at all the underground mines, improving and standardising maintenance management, identifying and implementing efficiency initiatives, and tightening control of compliance with mine plans,” he says.

“Barrick’s mantra is that the best assets need to be managed by the best people so there’s been an equally strong focus on building a management team and a workforce with the skills and orientation required to make the most of the world’s largest gold mining complex. In this regard, it’s worth noting that the training centre we established at NGM has already produced more than 170 frontline and support staff graduates.”

During the past quarter, NGM’s operating muscle was beefed up with the ahead-of-schedule commissioning of the first seven of a new 22-unit Komatsu 930E fleet due this year. The rest of a total of 62 are due to be commissioned over the next three years.

Sandvik invests in increased rock drill production in Tampere

Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining services

To strengthen its position as a leading mining rock drill manufacturer, Sandvik is investing SEK260 million to increase its rock drill production capacity in Tampere, Finland. The phased expansion will initially increase production capacity by 25%, with the potential to increase by a further 20%.

“We see continuously increasing demand for our rock drills for surface and underground mining and civil engineering applications, driven both by aftermarket growth and drilling equipment sales,” said Petri Virrankoski, President of Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions’ Surface Drilling Division. “This investment will strengthen our position as the leader in rock drill development and manufacturing.”

The first phase of the project will be complete by the end of 2024 and includes the design and construction of a 1,600-square-meter extension to the existing production facility. New machine tools will also be integrated into the site’s flexible manufacturing system, featuring automation and autonomous mobile robots.

Depending on demand development, the 1,600-square-meter extension would then also be able to accommodate installation of additional new machine tools during 2025, delivering even more production capacity by 2027.

“For more than 50 years, Sandvik rock drills have been renowned for their high quality, endurance and reliability,” said Timo Laitinen, Vice President Business Unit Rock Drills at Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions. “Our facility expansion will accommodate state-of-the art production equipment that will help us uphold that reputation as we meet increasing demand for our rock drills.”

ABD Solutions launches new Mobile Supervisory System for Indigo Drive automation

Automation, Mining equipment, Mining safety, Mining services, Mining software

Leading vehicle automation provider, ABD Solutions, has developed a new Mobile Supervisory System for its vehicle automation solution, Indigo Drive. It allows mining vehicles to be automated anywhere in the world without the need for existing infrastructure.

“Indigo Drive automates existing vehicle fleets, accelerating autonomy at a fraction of the cost of replacing the fleet with autonomous equivalents,” said Matthew Price, Managing Director of ABD Solutions. “Autonomous vehicles are revolutionising the mining industry by increasing efficiency, improving safety and reducing costs. Our new mobile solution is enabling these benefits to be extended across the entire mining operation, wherever it is in the world.”

The compact Mobile Supervisory System consists of the servers and operator stations that enable a site to manage its fleet of automated vehicles. It can be fitted into various configurations including a vehicle, such as a van, or a mobile container and can be placed in the most remote and hostile environments.

It acts as the operations centre for Indigo Drive, a technology ecosystem that enables a limitless number of mining vehicles to be quickly and cost-effectively automated. The secure system is IEC61508: 2010 and ISO17757: 2019 certified and includes a user-friendly software interface for route-planning, the hardware to move the vehicles (such as drive-by-wire and driving robots), communication (radio, V2X, GPS/GNSS), obstacle detection (LiDAR, camera, radar) and vehicle health and diagnostics (OBD2, telemetry, sensors). The system is completely modular and can be tailored around the specific vehicles and environments.

As a fully redundant high-availability system, the new Mobile Supervisory System ensures there is no single point of failure, providing a high level of reliability and continuous operation. The level of redundancy is scalable to meet the desired application.

Designed to operate in the most hostile of environments the mobile system is powered by hot-swappable lithium-ion battery packs providing 24 hours of operating life, or they can be recharged using solar power or hydrogen generators. The components are IP67 rated to prevent the ingress of dust and moisture making them highly ruggedised and spray washable.

ABD Solutions has developed a Mobile Supervisory System demonstrator van that contains everything needed for operators to supervise a fleet of Indigo Drive automated vehicles. It will be used to demonstrate the technology to prospective customers at their sites around Europe or at ABD Solutions’ test track in the UK.

Sandvik delivers TH663i mining truck to Barminco at Zone 5 copper-silver mine in Botswana

Base metals, Bulk handling, Equipment maintenance, Mine shafts and equipment, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Precious metals

Sandvik Mining has successfully delivered a cutting-edge 63 t class TH663i truck to the Zone 5 copper-silver mine, owned by Khoemacau Copper Mining in Botswana, in partnership with mining contractor Barminco. The operation is in the heart of the Kalahari Copper Belt.

The Khoemacau operations are comprised of the Zone 5 underground mine and associated infrastructure, and the upgraded and expanded Boseto processing plant. The current operations can deliver 60,000 t/y copper and 2 Moz/y of silver in concentrate at full run rate. A planned Phase 2 expansion will more than double production to 130,000 t/y of copper and 5 Moz/y of silver in concentrate

Sandvik says Zone 5 is set to experience a game-changing transformation with the arrival of the TH633i truck. “Sandvik Mining’s commitment to innovation and excellence is evident in this delivery, as the TH633i boasts state-of-the-art features designed to tackle the unique challenges of mining operations.”

The TH663i is engineered to deliver exceptional hauling capacity, optimised fuel efficiency, and reliable performance even in the most demanding conditions. Equipped with state-of-the-art safety features and advanced automation capabilities, it enhances the well-being of miners and the overall operation.

It also incorporates cutting-edge technology that enables real-time monitoring, remote operation, and data-driven insights. This translates to better decision-making and improved operational efficiency. With reduced emissions, efficient energy consumption, and environmentally conscious design, it also aligns with the industry’s evolving sustainability goals.

Novel Metso SmartCone control system at Freeport McMoRan Morenci

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mineral commodities, Mining consumables, Mining services

The operating logic and control for the vast majority of cone crushers has largely remained basic over the decades. Despite theoretical proof from simulation or from pilot-to-small scale trials on more advanced cone control logic, the control adopted on most modern projects continues to factor in minimal inputs and have only basic control of feed rate to the crusher. Much of this can be attributed to the difficulties in accurately predicting/projecting the many factors that affect the production of a cone crusher over time.

At the Freeport-McMoRan Morenci Canyon Plant, a novel and robust cone crusher operation model was trialed with high-production crushers (Nordberg MP1250) and compared directly against the operation with typical control system logic. This new model – named SmartCone as supplied by Metso – uses four measured inputs instead of the traditional single input (power/amps) and dynamically adjusts not only feeder speed, but also crusher speed along with closed side setting as required.

The target of the system is to maintain optimal production while achieving better mechanical stability and reliability. The testing program consisted of on/off operation of the SmartCone system in order to have direct comparison of the system at the same feed and circuit conditions.

The results of the testing have shown an increase of 8% throughput and 11% specific energy through the crusher, with a reduction in crusher discharge P80 of 4 mm and accompanying higher production of fine particles with SmartCone enabled. Mechanically, the operating conditions also improved with balanced bearing alignment and stable loading as witnessed by oil and RTD measurements.

The promising results have proven the ability of the system to maximise production of cone crushers with consistent product size. Further applications include consistent transfer size to SAG/AG/ball mills or to leach, as well as reducing risk of oversize feed to HPGR with cone crushers operating in open circuit prior to the HPGR.

This is an abstract of a paper being presented at the forthcoming SAG 2023 Conference in Vancouver on September 27 by Dusty Jacobson, Metso USA Director – Process Engineering

TOMRA Mining XRT technology exceeds expectations at QMAG’s Kunwarara

Automation, Bulk handling, Comminution of minerals, Industrial minerals, Mineral commodities, Mineral processing, Mining services

QMAG Pty Limited, part of the Refratechnik group, owns the Kunwarara deposit of cryptocrystalline magnesite – one of the world’s largest – located in Central Queensland, Australia. It mines the ore using the open-pit method and processes it into high quality fused (FM), dead burnt (DBM) and caustic calcined (CCM) magnesia products at the nearby Parkhurst facility. It supplies the refractory, chemical, agricultural, environmental and hydrometallurgical sectors with its high-quality magnesia products.

QMAG was an early adopter of sensor-based ore sorting, and is in fact the longest continuous user of this technology in Australia, having installed its first Ultrasort laser machine in 1994 and a second one a few years later. The ore was fed through either a Dense Media Separation (DMS) system, using drum and cyclone separators, then the Ultrasort sorters removed the sandstone, gravel and dark coloured dolomite from the product.

After over 22 years in operation, the Ultrasort sorters were becoming antiquated and could no longer be supported. “It came to a point where the Ultrasort sorter was removing the dolomite, but the background lime was still quite high, and this was not giving us the best opportunity to create the product that was required by the Parkhurst processing plant,” explains Josh Dawson, Production Superintendent at the QMAG mine. A new solution was needed, and TOMRA suggested its X-Ray Transmission technology.

In 2016, a TOMRA XRT sorter was installed as a stand-alone plant on site. “It was a trial that management at the time got very excited about: they could see that this could be the future moving forward,” says Dawson. “It was a success story: we could now process very high calcium content material that we couldn’t do as effectively with the DMS or laser sorting equipment. This gave the ability to produce much lower calcium content magnesite grades suitable for our customers,” adds Alex Padya, Process Engineer.

In view of these results, in 2018 the XRT machine was moved into the sorting plant, where it replaced the remaining Ultrasort that had reached the end of its life, and the DMS drum was decommissioned: “With this decision, we halved our heavy media usage in that part of the circuit and went to a standalone XRT circuit,” says Dawson. As a result, the XRT circuit has delivered significant savings in energy and water usage, and increased the plant’s efficiency.

The TOMRA XRT sorter has exceeded expectations, as Josh Dawson explains: “When we originally made the business case, we thought that it would be used to upgrade the lower quality magnesite ores to produce grades suitable for agricultural purposes, while the heavy media cyclones would make our lower silica materials for other applications. However, by collaborating with TOMRA to optimize the performance of the XRT unit, we can now turn agricultural products into much higher grades required by the Parkhurst processing plant.”

TOMRA’s XRT sorter has also extended the life of QMAG’s deposit: “We were at the point where we thought that a lot of our orebody wasn’t going to achieve the grade for some of our lower end products. The TOMRA XRT machine proved that we could now mine those deposits and turn them into useful product for the higher end applications.”

“It’s a very easy machine to operate,” explains Padya. “We have three specific sorting programmes depending on the feed material to get a very intensive, mild or slight rejection rate. Once set up, you virtually leave the sorter to do its job. Dawson adds: “Having programmes pre-set in the machine instead of using the slidescale takes out human error and makes it all very seamless for us.”

Switching programmes is very simple and quick, which makes the TOMRA XRT sorter exceptionally agile in responding to the frequent variations in the material that comes from the ore body at QMAG’s deposit. If the material coming from a particular part of the deposit doesn’t yield the desired results, TOMRA’s team is always ready and quick to make the necessary adjustments to the programmes.

The results were so positive that QMAG updated its plant replacing the six-year-old unit with a new TOMRA XRT sorter. In addition, a second unit has now been added to further increase production capacity through this process route. QMAG is currently considering the possibilities that ores sorting technology can open up for the future.

“We see that the technology is improving to the point where we’re starting to consider that XRT can potentially do what the heavy media can do, and in some respects better.” Padya agrees: “Over the last few years we have done a lot of runs without going through the cyclone, going straight to the XRT sorter, and ending up with the final product.”

Dawson concludes: “We are looking as a business for our next stages, potentially moving away from the traditional heavy media, and I see a future of a lot more ore sorting technology at QMAG. The technology is moving fast and TOMRA is a leader in this technology. We are excited to see what technology TOMRA develops next.”