Tag Archives: ALE

Arca’s carbon sequestration tech gaining traction with mining company engagements

Base metals, Energy minerals, Environmental, Mineral processing, Mining services, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , , ,

Arca has announced that it is working with producers of nickel to advance carbon dioxide removal at mine sites on three continents, having engaged with Vale, Talon Metals, Poseidon Nickel, NickelSearch and Blackstone Minerals.

The company, which calls itself a leader in carbon mineralisation, works globally with nickel mine developers and operators to capture and permanently store CO2 in mine tailings using its technology.

Arca is developing and commercialising a portfolio of technologies that help mining companies measure, maximise and monetise the carbon sequestration potential of their mining by-products. Arca’s patent-pending mineral activation technology uses high-intensity bursts of energy to transform and disrupt the mineral lattice structure of magnesium-rich minerals, increasing both the rate and capacity for CO2 capture and permanent storage.

With material from its mining company partners, Arca says it has achieved never-before-seen rates of air capture and capacity for CO2 storage, operating at atmospheric air temperature and pressure.

Arca can work with legacy (closed) mines, junior (under-development) mining companies, as well as existing mine operations of any size, and says it is currently working with mining companies in key mining jurisdictions such as Canada, Australia, the US and Southeast Asia.

Today, Arca announced it is working with the global mining major Vale, the Australia-based juniors Poseidon Nickel and NickelSearch, and Blackstone Minerals.

Arca is also working with Talon Metals which, in a joint venture with Rio Tinto, is developing the US’ only high-grade nickel resource for the domestic battery supply chain.

“Talon and Arca are working on transformational change in mining and mineral processing,” Todd M Malan, Head of Climate Strategy, Talon Metals, said. “Our partnership is focused on showing how ‘waste’ from conventional nickel processing can be harnessed to store carbon that has been removed from the atmosphere or captured in industrial processes. This ‘waste-as-carbon-sink’ approach has further potential for reuse in building materials, thus significantly reducing the amount of waste that needs to be stored as compared to present day legacy nickel processing.”

Professor Greg Dipple, co-Founder and Head of Science at Arca, said: “Arca is helping mining companies understand the potential for mineralisation of their resources, design how that potential should be realised, and then advance to actual project development. Our mineral activation technology significantly accelerates the natural process of carbon mineralisation using mine tailings from ultramafic rocks. This helps these companies transform their tailings into industrial-scale direct air capture and storage facilities, transforming mine waste into a valuable new resource and climate solution.”

Arca has been recognized with a $1 million XPRIZE Milestone Award for Carbon Removal, a Foresight50 Award as one of Canada’s most investable cleantech ventures, and an SDTC Seed Fund grant.

Dr Dipple will be speaking in Perth, Australia, about Arca’s technology at the CSIRO symposium on locking carbon in minerals on June 20.

Mammoet completes ALE acquisition

Bulk handling, Mining mergers and acquisitions, Mining services, , , ,

Mammoet has completed the acquisition of ALE, just over four months since the two heavy logistics companies agreed on the deal.

The businesses will now operate as one company under the Mammoet brand and, over the coming months, a fully developed integration plan will be rolled out that will focus on bringing the two organisations together, while maintaining safe and world-class service levels to our customers, Mammoet says.

According to Mammoet, the global coverage of the combined business covers over 140 offices and branches worldwide. Both companies specialise in engineered heavy lifting and transport for sectors such as the petrochemical industry, renewable energy, power generation, civil construction and the offshore industry.

Paul van Gelder, Mammoet CEO, said: “We are looking forward to working together with our new colleagues all over the world and establishing long-term relationships with our customers, existing and new. We will put all our efforts into supporting them with their activities aimed at enhancing cities, businesses and communities that are all part of the transition to a more sustainable future. As their goals increase in size and complexity, we must reshape ourselves to support them while keeping our primary focus on safety.”

Mammoet’s combined team of professionals, as well as its fleet of heavy equipment, are now the world’s largest, according to the company. “This significantly enhances scalability, innovation capabilities and efficient mobilisation, like no one else in the industry.”

Mammoet says it is the only global heavy lifting and transport business with a large R&D facility run independently from its operational activities, allowing it to innovate for the long term in close collaboration with customers.

ALE does the heavy lifting at South Africa coal operation

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

ALE recently helped a South Africa coal operation relocate an excavator from one cut to the next as part of the mine plan.

The face shovel excavator required transportation from Kromdraai Colliery in Mpumalanga Province to a new cut in nearby Emalahleni. ALE was able to mobilise at short notice and provide equipment well-suited to a fragile road surface and critical bridge structures, it said.

ALE received the 552 t Terex O&K RH340 face shovel machine from the client at a designated spot on site. A tracked vehicle, it is capable of crawling between different cuts on site by itself. It is, however, not capable of crawling any great distances between sites or on public roads.

The transportation involved splitting the machine into two primary pieces for transportation: the 291.5 t main machine and the 207.9 t undercarriage. ALE used a four-point lifting system methodology for the splitting procedure, which offered “increased stability over crane-based approaches and was less susceptible to sourcing issues”, it said.

“It was the first time the client had attempted to split any of their machines with this methodology,” ALE said.

The main machine and undercarriage were first decoupled before the former was attached to the four-point lifting system, which was raised to a total height of 8.1 m. “This provided the necessary clearance for the tracks, which were self-propulsive, to be driven out from underneath the suspended main machine,” the company said.

With its ability to strategically deploy equipment around the world, ALE deployed a Goldhofer THP/SL 22-axle trailer for this project. “At 37.8 m length and 4.3 m width, with 1.8 m axle spacing, it was sizeable, however, smaller trailers would not have been able to cross over the critical bridge structures on the route,” ALE said.

The trailer – attached to two prime movers at the front of the trailer and one to the rear each with 28 t ballast – set off along its 25.4 km route. Besides ground pressure, the route had been analysed in advance to make sure its vertical radii didn’t exceed the navigable parameters of the 77.1 m long convoy, the company said.

Arrangements had also been made in advance with a local steel smelting plant, such that high-voltage power lines could be switched off for a small window of time, allowing the machine to pass.

Upon reaching the Emalahleni site, the main machine was staged off onto four stools lined by two 7 m header beams at a height of 1.6 m. The team then returned for the 207.9 t undercarriage, which was lifted by the same four-point lifting system to a clearance of 1.63 m, then transported using the same equipment configuration.

The face shovel was then reattached by the client after its undercarriage was manoeuvred underneath the waiting main machine. It is now at work on site.

Mammoet and ALE to combine heavy logistics expertise

Equipment maintenance, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining mergers and acquisitions, Mining services, , , , ,

Mammoet says it has signed an agreement to acquire ALE in a deal that will see two big players in the heavy logistics for mines market combine.

Both companies specialise in engineered heavy lifting and transport for sectors such as the petrochemical industry, renewable energy, power generation, civil construction and the offshore industry.

Paul van Gelder, CEO of Mammoet said: “We are very happy with this agreement. Mammoet and ALE complement each other in geographical presence on all continents. Together, we have a well-balanced portfolio of activities worldwide. This enables us to improve our service proposition and create synergies, as we are able to mobilise equipment and personnel swiftly anywhere. Last but not least, Mammoet and ALE both have a strong legacy in innovations which, once combined, will enable us to grow as a technologically leading player.”

One such innovation is the Mammoet Trailer Power Assist, a new engineered heavy transport solution designed to improve transport efficiency and significantly lower the carbon footprint of major projects around the world, which the company and Scheuerle, a member of the TII Group, unveiled in 2018.

Mark Harries, Group Managing Director of ALE added: “Mammoet and ALE share a strong ambition to be leading in the engineered heavy lifting and transport sector. Both companies have a strong track record and are renowned for their craftsmanship, innovations and fleet of equipment. We both have shaped the profession of heavy lifting and transport through numerous innovations in the past decades. The prospect of the two companies joining forces is very exciting.”

The closing of the transaction is subject to approval of the relevant competition authorities. Until that time, Mammoet and ALE will continue to operate strictly independently.