Tag Archives: Aquila

Anglo American to sell Queensland steelmaking coal assets to Peabody Energy

Coal technology, Mining mergers and acquisitions, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , ,

Anglo American has agreed to sell its portfolio of steelmaking coal mines that it operates in Australia to Peabody Energy for a cash consideration of up to $3.78 billion.

Peabody’s agreed cash consideration comprises an upfront cash consideration of $2.05 billion at completion; deferred cash consideration of $725 million; the potential for up to $550 million in a price-linked earnout; and contingent cash consideration of $450 million linked to the reopening of the Grosvenor mine.

The steelmaking coal portfolio under Anglo American consists primarily of an 88% interest in the Moranbah North joint venture; a 70% interest in the Capcoal joint venture; an 86.36% interest in the Roper Creek joint venture; a 51% interest in the Dawson joint venture, Dawson South joint venture, Dawson South Exploration venture.

The acquisition includes four metallurgical coal mines – Moranbah North, Grosvenor, Aquila and Capcoal – in Australia’s Bowen Basin, which is widely recognised for the world’s highest-quality steelmaking coal. Approximately 80% of the mines’ output is hard coking coal. The mines are complementary to Peabody’s existing Australian platform, the company says, including Centurion mine, and are expected to produce approximately 11.3 Mt of primarily hard coking coal in 2026. The acquired mines have an average mine life greater than 20 years with 306 Mt of marketable reserves and an additional 1,700 Mt of coal resources.

The acquisition is expected to transform Peabody’s metallurgical coal segment, increasing metallurgical coal production from an estimated 7.4 million tons in 2024 to an expected 21-22 Mt in 2026.

At the same time as Peabody and Anglo American announced this transaction, PT Delta Dunia Makmur Tbk, through its indirect subsidiary, PT Bukit Makmur Internasional (BUMA International), announced that it had entered into a binding agreement with Peabody subsidiary, Peabody SMC Pty. Ltd., to acquire that 51% interest in the Dawson Complex for $455 million, granting BUMA International a controlling interest in this mine.

Duncan Wanblad, Chief Executive of Anglo American, said: “The sale of our steelmaking coal business is another important step towards delivering the strategy that we set out in May to create a world-class copper, premium iron ore and crop nutrients business. Through focus, asset quality and outstanding growth options, Anglo American will offer a highly differentiated investment proposition supported by strong cash generation and the capabilities and longstanding relationship networks that can deliver our full potential. We are absolutely focused on delivering that strategy and unlocking the associated value as we streamline our cost structures and create a much simpler, more resilient and more agile business that will enable full market value recognition.

“All the transactions to deliver our portfolio transformation are well in train – the demerger of Anglo American Platinum is expected by mid-2025 and we have seen strong interest in our nickel business with the sale process well progressed. We expect De Beers to follow, recognising its unmatched industry and brand position and good progress in working with stakeholders to position the business for long term success as we work toward separation for value. We are well progressed with the delivery of $1 billion of cost savings and have detailed plans in place to deliver at least an additional $800 million in pre-tax recurring cost benefits on a run-rate basis from the end of 2025 as we progress the portfolio transformation.

“In steelmaking coal, through a combination of today’s announced transaction and our previously announced agreement to sell our interest in Jellinbah, we stand to unlock up to $4.9 billion of value, reflecting the high quality of the assets and adding to our balance sheet resilience. Peabody is a long-established and respected operator and we will work together and with our workforce, local communities, government, customers and partners to ensure a successful transition.”

Jim Grech, President and Chief Executive Officer of Peabody, added: “We’re pleased to acquire these world-class assets from Anglo American, a company that shares our strong values of safety, sustainability and social licence to operate. We look forward to integrating these assets, teaming up with their highly skilled workforce, and aligning with our new mine joint venture partners to create long-term value.”

The transaction is subject to a number of conditions, including customary competition and regulatory clearances, and pre-emption arrangements. The upfront cash consideration is subject to normal completion adjustments and completion is expected by the September quarter of 2025. Peabody has agreed to pay a $75 million deposit on signing which Anglo American is entitled to retain if the sale is terminated in certain limited circumstances.

Anglo American Australia workers herald new frontline safety program

Mining safety, Mining services, , , , , , , , , ,

Anglo American has leveraged the experience of its coal mine workers to devise its new frontline safety program, the Fatal Risk Management (FRM) program.

Through a bottom-up approach, frontline workers have been empowered to shape FRM, a program that, the company says, is easy to use and doesn’t add another layer of red tape.

Anglo American Australia CEO, Dan van der Westhuizen, said embedding frontline workers in the project team was crucial in designing the simplified and standardised tools as they understood the risks better than anyone else. He said the team included a mix of operators, coordinators, supervisors, superintendents and contractors across its Bowen Basin operations.

“Fatal Risk is not a new concept for the mining industry and learnings from our people, peers and industry experts have informed our approach,” he said. “Our point of difference has been cultivating FRM from the operator level to leverage the insights and experiences of our frontline workers to ensure we have the best chance of getting it right.”

The FRM program comprises 14 Fatal Risks and 50 crucial Fatal Controls that sit underneath risks and these must be in place to help prevent a fatality from occurring at the frontline. Every job. Every time.

“These 14 Fatal Risks are sobering because they represent circumstances where a teammate in our business or industry has lost their life or been seriously injured on the job,” van der Westhuizen said. “It’s not often you get a chance to stop, take a step back and create a new way of working but we knew we had to make a change. Everyone deserves to go home to their families, friends and loved ones at the end of every shift.

“We know change is not easy and a culture doesn’t change overnight, but we know we are moving in the right direction.”

Anglo American was a finalist in the 2024 Prospect Awards for the rollout of its FRM project – created by the frontline, for the frontline.

Capcoal Exploration Supervisor, Will Parfitt, who has been in the mining industry for more than 17 years, said he had been proud to represent his colleagues as a member of the Fatal Risk frontline team.

“There is nothing more important than the safety of my colleagues across Anglo American and this is one of the most important things I’ve done,” he said. “I’m really proud to be involved. We now have one universal Take 5 book and Job Risk Assessment template across all operating divisions – among the last lines of defence when it comes to identifying and managing risk at the frontline.

“Five different variations existed before which was extremely confusing and painful for our workers and contractors who work across multiple sites. It wasn’t an easy process – we each brought our own views, perspectives and things we thought our individual sites wanted and needed. We recognised early on that we wouldn’t be able to please everyone or achieve perfection. We wanted to design the best tool that met the needs of the majority.

“When coupled with the other tools in our FRM system, our Take 5 provides the prompts to change our frontline’s perception and tolerance to risk.”

Moranbah North Mine Underground Coal Mine Worker, Lil Shanley, who has just returned from the International Mines Rescue Competition in Colombia, was also a key member of the FRM development team.

“When someone doesn’t return home, the impact is significant on the families, friends, colleagues, community and the industry. The ripple effect is devastating,” she said. “Ultimately, we’re all here for the same reason – nothing is more important than safety. I’ve worked across almost the whole Bowen Basin and the simple tools are the ones that work best.

“If it’s too complex, people don’t understand it and they won’t complete it properly for fear of getting it wrong. There is nothing confusing about these new tools and the people using them are the ones who have come up with them. I am proud of being able to make the decisions that are going to become a legacy.”

Capcoal Dozer Operator, Emily Page, also involved in the FRM team, said she loved mining and could never go back to a normal nine-to-five job but being on site for a fatality was “the worst thing in the world”.

“If we can make sure everyone goes home every day, that’s the most important thing,” she said. “The most important thing to come out of the mine is the miner. I just don’t want anyone to lose their life, not just in Anglo American but in the industry; it’s got to stop.”

Anglo American defines Fatal Risk as something that has the potential to immediately kill a worker on the frontline during a task. Sadly, these Fatal Risks represent a circumstance where someone in the business or in our industry has tragically lost their life in the past. Under each Fatal Risk are 3-5 Fatal Controls which are the crucial few controls that need to be in place to help prevent a fatality on the frontline. Importantly to meet the criteria of being a ‘Fatal Control’, any worker must have the ability to implement and check that the control is operating as intended– with the power truly being in a frontline worker’s hands.

Shaun Dando, Safety Leadership Practices Coach at Grosvenor, says: “If you asked me until recent times, I would have struggled to identify the Fatal Controls most relevant to me – we have over 1,000 critical controls on file. With FRM, we have narrowed that down and now the controls relate specifically to the Fatal 14, which is so practical and user-friendly.

“I look at that list of 14 and can put faces and names to those risks. I have lost workmates to a number of them, so there is a real reason to have them; it is so we all go home safely – every day,” he said.

Anglo American’s longwall automation milestone recognised in awards ceremony

Automation, Coal technology, IoT, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Mining industry recognition, Mining safety, Mining services, Mining software, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Anglo American’s innovation-led approach to sustainable mining, FutureSmart Mining™, and a willingness to collaborate with industry parties, has enabled it to achieve a major milestone in longwall operation: 100% machine automation.

This work was recently recognised at the Queensland Mining Awards where team members received the METS Ignited Collaboration Award.

Billed as delivering a significant step change in the safety and efficiency of underground mining, the ability to remove people from hazardous situations at the face and, instead, relocate them to a purpose-built Remote Operations Centre (ROC), has enabled the company to deliver a breakthrough in performance being recognised across the underground coal mining industry.

Anglo American says the development of industry-first systems and technology for this project were completed through working collaboratively with partners including Restech, Aurecon, Komatsu, Eickhoff, Marco and GTick systems.

The miner achieved its first longwall shear fully controlled from surface in late 2018 at its Grosvenor mine in Queensland, Australia, with this milestone achieved on its Komatsu Mining longwall equipment.

Yet, it was the Moranbah North mine that became the first of the company’s three operating longwalls to achieve the 100% automation mark (pictured above).

This mine uses SL 900 shearers from Eickhoff, with a team of operational and engineering experts monitoring the longwall mining process from start to finish. These operators, located in the ROC above-ground, are able to analyse the data and drive safer operations, better decisions and achieve mining excellence, the company says.

Head of Transformation for Anglo American’s Steelmaking Coal business in Australia, Dan Reynolds, said Moranbah North has now become Australia’s most capable remotely-operated underground steelmaking coal mine, with the company’s other mines – Grosvenor and the recently-commissioned Aquila – following close behind.

“All three underground mines are now fully remote-capable, allowing operators to work from state-of-the-art ROCs on the surface of the mine,” he said.

Aquila, Anglo American’s most recently commissioned mine, is also remote-capable, allowing workers to work from a Remote Operations Centre above ground

Step change

The key drivers behind automating longwall operations were to improve safety by reducing personnel exposure to underground hazards; reduce operational variability, to deliver more stable operations and improve efficiency; and improve sustainability of operations, through ensuring automation resilience in various operating conditions.

Much of the technology required to achieve these improvements did not yet exist when Anglo American was considering such a move, and previous industry attempts at achieving sustainable autonomous and remote operations had fallen down, Anglo American said, due to:

  • Enablers not being defined to the level required;
  • Key operational systems being unavailable;
  • OEM operating logic not providing the required operational solutions;
  • The technology enablers not being available; and/or
  • The workforce not being suitably prepared.

Anglo American saw collaboration as a key tool able to overcome these issues, recognising that significant leaps forward in technology were required, including the development of various automation-enabling applications.

“Working with operational teams, the Underground Technology and Automation team developed a leading practice target operating model for integrated remote operations and automation and technology enablers after extensive workforce collaboration,” Reynolds said.

Anglo American says its Steelmaking Coal business has delivered a breakthrough performance in the development and implementation of autonomous longwall technology and remote operations for the underground coal mining industry

“It was identified early in the project that a step change in the supply of systems and technology would be required to achieve project goals. This was reached through working with the OEM and third-party technology providers, which ensured the technology and the software systems provided the solutions that met our mining requirements.”

This work required the team to work collaboratively across its underground operations and corporate partners to develop a series of industry-first safety and production systems that were required to “unlock” autonomous longwall operations, the company said.

The list of innovative, industry-leading processes and systems that the partners have developed, include:

  • A longwall remote operations framework
  • Autonomous shearer:
    • Auto duck – system solution
    • Auto gate road entry – system solution
    • Anglo Seam Steering – system/technology solution
  • Integrated remote powered roof support (PRS) control:
    • Integrated face controller – system/technology solution
    • Remote strata control – system solution
    • Enhanced logic solutions – system solutions
  • A Remote Operating Centre longwall system manager:
    • Integrated central interface solution for longwall remote management comprising:
      • Auto gate road entry
      • Anglo Seam Steering
      • Auto alerts
      • ROC reporting
      • Auto blockage detection
      • Longwall positional control
      • Creep management.

The high levels of collaboration between internal teams and third-party providers enabled these systems to be developed, according to Anglo American.

“The outcomes of this work are significant,” Reynolds said. “It is delivering a significant step change in the safety, stability and sustainability of underground mining.”

The company shed a bit more light on these innovations – many of which have been spoken of by suppliers and mining companies as the missing pieces of the fully-autonomous longwall mining puzzle – in its Queensland Mining Awards application.

“Auto duck”, for instance, allows the shearer to automatically cut under roof supports in challenging strata conditions.

“Auto gate road entry” involves the longwall shearer becoming more “intelligent”, using existing data from scanned files, PRS height data or manual measurements to determine the next cut height for the gate road.

“Seam steering” identifies whether the longwall is in or out of the coal seam by automatically detecting the tonstein band position. This, Anglo American says, is a valuable stratigraphic measure.

“Blockage detection” is conducted using eight cameras across the longwall face, which automatically detect if a face blockage is seen, alerting a ROC operator as necessary.

Similarly, “longwall alerting” sees a ROC operator alerted of potential events or issues. “Tailgate lag control” automatically identifies if the tailgate drive is lagging the face line, while “strata management logic” enables automation of shields.

The company says its Steelmaking Coal business has delivered a breakthrough performance in the development and implementation of autonomous longwall technology and remote operations for the underground coal mining industry.

Anglo American, QMRS commission industry-first Shaft Rescue System at Aquila

Coal technology, Mine operation news, Mine shafts and equipment, Mining equipment, Mining industry recognition, Mining safety, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Queensland Mines Rescue Service (QMRS), in partnership with Anglo American, has commissioned a critical new piece of mine rescue equipment for use across underground mines in the Queensland mining industry.

A funding commitment, in excess of A$2.3 million ($1.6 million) from Anglo American, enabled QMRS to purchase the Queensland mining industry-first Shaft Rescue System (SRS), a mobile truck-mounted emergency system to assist in underground rescues.

The commissioning at the Aquila mine followed a 2019 commitment from Anglo American Australia then-CEO, Tyler Mitchelson, to wholly fund the equipment for the QMRS.

Chief Executive Officer of QMRS, David Carey, acknowledged Anglo American for funding the equipment and supporting QMRS in its design and engineering.

“While we hope we never need to use it, the SRS will form part of the emergency response plan for every underground mine site in Queensland and we’re grateful for Anglo American’s support in delivering it,” Carey said. “The SRS lowers interchangeable cages into mine shafts to rescue trapped miners and is equipped with a world-first intrinsically safe directional Wi-Fi communications system that can be used safely underground.”

The Wi-Fi enables radio communications from the rescue cage to the surface, captures and shares real-time video and sends data from a gas monitoring system, according to Carey.

QMRS says the SRS has interchangeable cage options and over 1,200 m of rope on the drum for use in deep shafts. It is engineered with multiple fail-safe braking systems, hydraulically powered from the Volvo FMX 10*4 truck engine, which also has a back-up power system.

Carey added: “This equipment will make a meaningful difference to our emergency response capabilities in Queensland and will be housed at our Dysart headquarters in the heart of the Bowen Basin, so it’s close by if ever required.”

Head of Safety and Health at Anglo American’s Steelmaking Coal Business, Marc Kirsten, said the company was pleased to support QMRS in delivering the SRS for all those who work underground in the mining industry in Queensland.

“QMRS supports our industry with leading edge emergency response capability and support, and we are pleased to have been able to support them in turn, by providing this vital and potentially life-saving equipment,” Kirsten said.

“The SRS will improve emergency response capabilities across all underground mines in the Queensland mining industry, and it was important to us to make this investment in industry safety.”

Anglo American operates five steelmaking coal mines in Queensland’s Bowen Basin, three of which are underground.

Anglo American commences first longwall shear at Aquila met coal mine

Automation, Coal technology, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , ,

Anglo American’s new Aquila mine has achieved its first longwall shear of steelmaking metallurgical coal on schedule and on budget, marking the project’s final stages of construction and commissioning, it says.

The Aquila mine, located near Middlemount in Central Queensland in Australia, extends the life of Anglo American’s existing Capcoal underground operations by seven years, after the company’s nearby Grasstree mine reached its end of life in recent weeks.

Themba Mkhwanazi, CEO of Bulk Commodities, said: “We have delivered the Aquila project on time and within our budgeted attributable cost of $226 million. This new mine will have a total average annual saleable production of around five million tonnes of premium quality hard coking coal and benefits from low capital intensity as we are using the existing infrastructure and systems from our adjacent operations. Aquila offers us highly attractive returns and margins at conservative long term consensus prices.”

Tyler Mitchelson, CEO of Anglo American’s Metallurgical Coal business, said: “Safely starting up longwall mining at Aquila Mine on our original schedule, despite the effects of the pandemic, is an important milestone for our Metallurgical Coal business and will support our ongoing contribution to both the Middlemount community, and Queensland’s economy. The mine uses our existing infrastructure at our Capcoal complex and supports around 600 ongoing operational roles for our Queensland-based workforce, including providing continuity of employment for our Grasstree mining team.”

The Aquila Mine has been developed as one of Australia’s most technologically advanced underground mines, leveraging Anglo American’s advancements in underground automation technology, remote operations and data analytics, the company says. The mine features two longwalls, allowing operations to continue without the downtime usually required for longwall moves. Both longwalls are fully remote-capable and will be sequentially operated from a site-based remote operations centre on the surface of the mine.

Anglo American’s Capcoal complex comprises Capcoal Open Cut Mine, Grasstree Mine, Aquila Mine, the Coal Handling and Preparation Plant and associated infrastructure. Aquila is owned 70% by Anglo American and 30% by Mitsui & Co. Ltd.

Mastermyne’s Aquila coking coal contract extended by Anglo

Coal technology, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , , ,

Anglo American has extended the stay of Mastermyne Group at its Aquila coking coal project in Queensland, Australia, with the ASX-listed contractor set to continue development of the underground mine for at least the next 12 months.

Mastermyne has been engaged since August 2019 to undertake roadway development in the mains and gate roads, and all outbye related services for the establishment of the new longwall operation at Aquila.

The contract variation will extend the current contract to March 2022 and includes the operation of an additional roadway development unit.

Mastermyne currently employs 178 full-time personnel under the contract, with a further increase of around 60 full-time personnel required for the operation of the additional roadway development unit. Up to half of the personnel for this third development unit at Aquila mine will be relocated from Anglo’s Moranbah North coal mine (currently suspended), following the completion of planned activities. Mobilisation of the additional workforce at Aquila will be completed by March 2021.

The contractor says it continues to supply development equipment from its fleet, including a continuous miner and ancillary development equipment for the project.

Total revenue generated from the variation and extension to the mining contract is expected to be approximately A$60 million ($47 million).

Mastermyne CEO, Tony Caruso, said “We have been working to deliver major underground infrastructure and roadways safely and efficiently, and we look forward to continuing our work with Anglo American to deliver their new longwall project, producing premium high-quality hard coking coal.”

Anglo’s 70%-owned Aquila project will extend the life of its existing Capcoal underground operations by six years and continue to use the associated infrastructure at the Capcoal complex as its nearby Grasstree mine approaches end of life, Anglo says. The project is scheduled for first longwall production of coking coal in early 2022.

Water treatment plant starts up at Anglo American’s Aquila met coal project

Coal technology, Environmental, Mineral project development, Steel and iron ore, Water management, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Anglo American’s Metallurgical Coal business says it is now operating the first of two state-of-the art reverse osmosis (RO) water treatment plants at its Aquila project in the Bowen Basin, Queensland.

The aim of the RO plants is to reduce the use of fresh water in its mining operations.

Chief Executive Officer of Anglo American’s Metallurgical Coal business, Tyler Mitchelson, said the A$5 million ($3.9 million) water treatment system was currently treating two megalitres of mine affected water (MAW) a day and supporting construction of the Aquila Mine, near Middlemount in central Queensland.

“A key target in Anglo American’s global Sustainable Mining Plan is to reduce our reliance on fresh water by 50% by 2030 across our mine sites, and I’m pleased to say Aquila is currently sourcing recycled water during construction of the mine,” Mitchelson said.

“A planned second RO plant will to be used to recycle a further 2.4 megalitres of MAW – once Aquila becomes operational in early 2022, more than doubling capacity and helping to reduce the reliance on water from local sources during times of drought.

“Aquila will be one of the world’s most technologically advanced underground mines and will showcase our innovation-led approach to sustainable mining. The project is currently supporting 500 jobs.”

Aquila, owned 70% by Anglo and 30% by Mitsui & Co Ltd, will extend the life of Anglo’s existing Capcoal underground operations by six years and continue to use the associated infrastructure at the Capcoal complex as its nearby Grasstree Mine approaches end of life, Anglo says. The mine will also continue to adopt Anglo American’s FutureSmart Mining™ program, which applies innovative thinking and technological advances to address mining’s major operational and sustainability challenges, the company said. One of the initiatives the company is working on as part of this is remote operation of the longwall; a process the company has trialled at some of its other Bowen Basin coal mines.

Aquila’s Project Director, Tony Willmott, said the A$240 million Aquila Mine was committed to awarding contracts locally.

“Our Aquila project is progressing well, with support from its Queensland-based workforce and contracting partners. More than 90% of our Aquila contracts have been awarded to Queensland-based suppliers,” Willmott said. “Aquila’s integrated network of pipes and pumps is securing the distribution of high-quality water which is necessary in metallurgical coal mining for equipment cooling and coal cutting operations.”

Anglo American commits to Aquila coal development with >A$240 million of contracts

Automation, Coal technology, Communications in mining, IoT, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, Sustainable mining, Water management, , , , , , , , ,

Anglo American has invested more than A$240 million ($175 million) with suppliers for its 70%-owned Aquila metallurgical coal project in Central Queensland, Australia, which, the company says, will be one the world’s most technologically advanced underground mines.

Aquila will extend the life of Anglo American’s existing Capcoal underground operations near Middlemount by six years and continue to use the associated infrastructure at the Capcoal complex as its nearby Grasstree Mine approaches end of life, Anglo says.

Anglo American has awarded nearly A$200 million to six longwall equipment suppliers to deliver a “walk-on, walk-off system” using two complete longwalls, a A$20 million overland conveyor system and more than A$20 million in civil works, it said.

The project, which is scheduled for first longwall production of premium quality hard coking coal in early 2022, includes a A$5 million reverse osmosis water treatment system to increase the use of recycled water and reduce the reliance on fresh water at the mine – a key target in Anglo American’s Sustainable Mining Plan.

Chief Executive Officer of Anglo American’s Metallurgical Coal business, Tyler Mitchelson, said: “Our Aquila project is progressing well, with support from its Queensland-based workforce and contracting partners. More than 90% of our Aquila contracts have been awarded to Queensland-based suppliers, and we currently have around 500 people working on the project in engineering, surface construction and underground development.

“Aquila will be a breakthrough project, designed to set a new standard of safety and performance by leveraging technology and focusing on operational improvements. The mine will showcase our innovation-led approach to sustainable mining, with a remote operating centre on the surface of the mine, proximity detection systems underground to alert machine operators to pedestrians, and the continued digitisation of our operations, using new technologies such as our Australian-first intrinsically safe underground electronic tablets.”

In addition to the aforementioned construction contacts, Anglo American awarded a A$95 million mining development contract to Mackay-based mining company, Mastermyne in 2019.

Fenner Dunlop ACE wins overland conveyor contract from Anglo American

Bulk handling, Coal technology, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , , , ,

Fenner Dunlop ACE has been contracted to deliver an overland conveyor system for Anglo American’s Aquila coal project in Queensland, Australia.

Aquila is an underground hard coking coal mine near Middlemount, which will extend the life of Anglo American’s existing Capcoal underground operations by six years. It comes with an expected capital cost of $226 million (Anglo American share), with first longwall production of premium quality hard coking coal expected in early 2022, according to Anglo.

Tyler Mitchelson, CEO of Anglo American’s Metallurgical Coal business, has previously said Aquila will become one of the most “technologically advanced underground mines in the world”.

Under the new contract award, Fenner Dunlop ACE will undertake the complete design, supply and installation of the ACV002 Overland Conveyor. Works will include the overland structure, belting, electrics and an elevated stacker to load coal onto the site stockpile. Several conveyor components, including mechanical supply, electrical supply and belting, will be manufactured in Australia.

Brendon Harms, Regional Manager ACE QLD, said: “After delivery of the initial underground development works, we are very excited to be working on this project. We believe we have created a culture of delivering on our promises. Completing the design, supply and installation give us a great opportunity to ensure effective conveyor operation for our client.”

Fenner Dunlop ACE will also be responsible for the complete install and commissioning of the overland conveyor, providing even further responsibility and ownership for the project. The overland conveyor project is expected to be commissioned in the second half of 2021.

Anglo American takes to tablets at Australia UG coal mines

Automation, Coal technology, Communications in mining, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Mining safety, Mining services, Mining software, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , , ,

Anglo American says it has launched Australia’s first electronic tablet device certified for use in underground coal mines at its Moranbah North mine, in the Bowen Basin of Queensland.

The introduction of these tables represents a major step forward in the company’s aims to digitise its operations, according to Tyler Mitchelson, CEO of Anglo American’s Australian business.

He added that digitisation was a key part of the company’s FutureSmart Mining™ approach, which applies innovative thinking and technological advances to address mining’s major challenges.

While standard tablets have been used underground at many mines around the world for at least a few years, it is the presence of potential explosive gas mixtures in some underground operational environments – coal, in particular – that inhibits any device being taken below ground that does not meeting ‘intrinsically safe’ regulatory approval. This is due to the potential risk of ignition from energy sources within such devices (eg standard tablets and smart phones).

Mitchelson said: “Following the successful launch at Moranbah North mine, we are now moving towards rapid deployment across all our underground sites including our newly-approved Aquila mine, which will be developed as one of the most technologically advanced underground mines in the world.

“The tablets capture and share real time production, safety and environmental monitoring information with operators, ensuring critical information is readily available to key personnel and removing the need for paper records.”

They also provide direct access to the company’s Safety Health Management System and can be used as a portable video communication device (via Skype) to instantly access personnel working at the surface level, according to Mitchelson. “This will accelerate trouble-shooting and can also be used as a live video link in case of emergencies.”

He added: “Any delays or challenges can be reported and addressed on-the-spot to reduce lost production time, instead of relying on traditional communication methods such as phone calls, underground travel or hard copy reports being submitted and reviewed at the end of a 12-hour shift.”

The tablets are already enabling improved communication and information sharing underground, Mitchelson said. This should ultimately lead to safer, more productive mining, he added.

The introduction of underground tablets followed significant work towards automating longwall operations and digitising the company’s mines, according to Mitchelson, with Anglo American recently completing its first pilot longwall shear from an above-ground remote operating centre at the Grosvenor mine.

The device was developed in collaboration with product manufacturer, Bartec, and tested to achieve certification with the Queensland Government’s Safety in Mines Testing and Research Station, the company said.

Executive Head of Underground Operations in Australia, Glen Britton, said implementation of the tablets followed a successful pilot earlier this year at Moranbah North mine, which was already receiving positive feedback from operators.

“Each week at Moranbah North mine, around 400 statutory reports and 2,500 maintenance work orders are generated. The team there aims to be paperless within two years, and the introduction of these tablets will enable us to remove underground paperwork and transition to electronic storage of statutory and production reports,” Britton said.

“Over the last five years, we have invested considerable resources in the development of this technology, to ensure the product was fit-for-purpose. We sought out a manufacturing partner to help create a new technical solution for managing our data, undertook an extensive certification process and improved underground Wi-Fi capabilities at the mine.”