Tag Archives: Collahuasi

BHP, Anglo American, Antofagasta, Codelco, Collahuasi team up to tackle cybersecurity

IoT, Mining safety, , , , , , , , , ,

BHP, together with the mining companies Anglo American, Antofagasta Minerals, Codelco and Collahuasi, have launched the Mining Cybersecurity Corporation in an effort to tackle rising cybersecurity risks in Chile.

More than 4 billion cyber-attacks took place in Chile during the first half of 2023, positioning it as the fifth country in Latin America with the most incidents, according to BHP. The unprecedented technological progress in recent years brings important benefits, but also involves several cybersecurity risks.

Studies indicates that, by 2025, cyber attacks will cost companies approximately $10.5 billion.

Aware of the risks to the industry, these companies have come together in what BHP says is an unprecedented initiative led by Corporación Alta Ley and supported by the Chilean Ministry of Mining. The aim of the partnership is to generate and share cyber-intelligence information for early warning and response, and to promote a culture of cybersecurity in mining operations.

Ezequiel Fagetti, Cybersecurity Manager BHP Minerals Americas, said: “As BHP we are enthusiastic about this initiative and, therefore, we want to contribute with our experience in the protection of assets and systems. Cybersecurity is vital for the proper functioning of the different production systems and, ultimately, for us to continue contributing to the country. If we strengthen this aspect, we strengthen the mining industry as a whole, its value chain, and safeguard the benefits for everyone.”

ACCIONA to build seawater desalination plant for Collahuasi in Chile

Environmental, Mine operation news, Mining services, Water management, , , , ,

The mining company Compañía Minera Doña Inés de Collahuasi (CMDIC) has awarded ACCIONA the design and construction of a seawater desalination plant at Collahuasi’s Patache Port, 70 km south of the city of Iquique, in the Tarapacá region of Chile, ACCIONA says.

The project, which is part of the “Infrastructure Development and Productive Capacity Improvement Plan” for CMDIC’s operations in the Tarapacá region, also includes ACCIONA’s operation and maintenance of the plant for two years, with an option to extend for another three years.

The desalination plant at the Patache Port will have an initial capacity of 1,050 liters per second. The project includes the execution of maritime works and a pre-treatment system, as well as the development of reverse osmosis and post-treatment technology to guarantee the availability of water resources, the quality of which must be adjusted to the different operating conditions of the mining company.

CMDIC is one of the major Chilean mining companies engaged in the extraction and production of copper concentrate, as well as one of the largest in the world.

The construction of this new seawater desalination plant consolidates ACCIONA’s position as one of the leading companies in the water treatment business for mining operations in Chile, it says.

Monadelphous banks work with South32, Newcrest, Codelco and Collahuasi

Base metals, Mine operation news, Mining services, , , , ,

Engineering company Monadelphous Group says its businesses have secured some A$400 million ($284 million) of new contracts and extensions in the resources and energy sectors, including an extension at South32’s Worsley Alumina Refinery in Western Australia, a contract with Newcrest at Lihir in PNG, two contracts with Codelco in Chile and its first contract with Collahuasi Mining Company, also in Chile.

In Papua New Guinea, Monadelphous has been awarded a contract with Newcrest to provide structural, mechanical, piping and electrical and instrumentation works on the Lihir Front End Recovery Project, with work expected to be completed in the first half of 2022.

In Chile, Monadelphous’ maintenance and construction services business, Buildtek, has secured the following contracts at Codelco’s operations in Calama:

  • A three-year contract to provide mine infrastructure maintenance and repairs at the Chuqicamata underground copper mine;
  • A five-year contract to provide comprehensive maintenance of the heap leaching process and electrowinning copper extraction plant at the Radomiro Tomic copper mine. Buildtek has been providing services at Radomiro Tomic since 2012; and
  • Buildtek’s first contract with Collahuasi Mining Company, a company owned by Anglo American, Glencore and Japan Collahuasi Resources, to provide modifications to the concentrate distribution system at its Collahuasi Maritime Terminal in Punta Patache, south of Iquique in Chile. Work is expected to be completed in the first half of this year.

Monadelphous Managing Director, Rob Velletri, said the award of these contracts was a testament to the company’s proven track record of delivering value for its customers.

“We are pleased to continue our long-standing relationships with these valued customers and are committed to continuing the provision of high quality, innovative and safe solutions,” he said.

Pleuger pumped up with Collahuasi copper mine contract win

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Water management, , , , ,

Germany’s Pleuger Industries has installed six robust high-performance pumps at the Anglo American- and Glencore-owned Collahuasi copper mine in Chile, helping the operation continue to produce more than 5,000 tonnes of fine copper every year.

At Collahuasi, two open-pit mines, Rosario and Ujina, provide the necessary copper ores, which are smelted on site into copper concentrate and cathodes. Pleuger’s 10 in pumps come in during the flotation process at Collahuasi, where they help dewater the copper sludge for copper concentrate extraction.

The acceptance of the six pumps, for which the technical management of the mine together with the pump distributor Wellford had travelled from Chile to Hamburg, took a week. “This is not unusual when one considers the significance of the new submersible motor pumps for the processing of copper sulphide,” Pleuger said. “If the pumps fail, the production process comes to a standstill until the pumps are repaired. Reliability, therefore, has top priority.

“The decision in favour of a pump manufacturer is, therefore, less a question of one-time costs than of confidence in the technical know-how of the engineers.”

Wellford, from Chile, Collahuasi’s pump supplier, brought Pleuger into play because the German pump manufacturer has decades of experience in designing pump units for the special requirements of the mining sector, the Germany-based company said. “Pleuger’s engineers have acquired their expertise in various customising projects around the globe, which the Hamburg-based company continuously uses in the construction of its engines.”

Process pumps like the ones used at Collahuasi are placed under extreme operating conditions, Pleuger said.

“Copper… quickly oxidises the materials from which pumps are usually made. In order to counteract this process, the engineers at Pleuger Industries rely on a corrosion protection concept specially adapted to the customer when designing the pumps,” the company said.

“In addition, the new pump systems must be energy-efficient, because Collahuasi’s copper production follows an energy management system based on international standards.”