Tag Archives: Downer EDI

Downer receives five-year extension at Commodore open-pit coal mine

Coal technology, Energy minerals, Mine operation news, Mining services, , , ,

Downer EDI Limited and Millmerran Power Partners are to continue their partnership at the Commodore open-pit coal operation in southeast Queensland, Australia, after agreeing a five-year extension of contract mining services.

The contract extension is valued at A$286 million ($204 million), according to Downer, and will see the company carry out operations at Commodore until the end of August 2024. Downer has been providing a “total mining service” at Commodore since 2001 to deliver coal to the adjacent power station.

The scope of works includes operating and managing the mine and associated activities, including mine planning and design, drill and blast, overburden removal, coal mining and rehabilitation. Downer also holds statutory responsibility for the mine site.

Downer CEO Grant Fenn said the contract extension was a clear demonstration of Downer’s ability to deliver value for its customers.

“Downer has a strong record of providing mining services to Millmerran Power Partners and helping it to drive efficiencies across its operations. We look forward to extending our working relationship and continuing to deliver efficient solutions for the Commodore mine,” he said.

The contract builds on Downer’s recent successes in the mining, energy and resources and industrial sectors with the award of a A$120 million mining services contract at the CSA mine in New South Wales, a five-year maintenance and support services contract at the Chevron-operated Gorgon and Wheatstone facilities in Western Australia, and a A$660 million underground mining services contract at the Carrapateena copper-gold mine in South Australia.

Downer to carry out engineering work on Queensland vanadium project

Energy minerals, Mineral exploration, Mineral project development, Mining project news, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , ,

Downer has signed an agreement to provide mine engineering and technical services to Multicom Resources as the Queensland-based company looks to move forward its Saint Elmo vanadium project in the Australian state.

Downer’s mine planning, scheduling and fleet management divisions will provide key services to Multicom, with the agreement outlining the intention of progressing to a mining services agreement at Saint Elmo as well as the provision of design and engineering services. The company has also asked Downer to progress a concept study for the development of vanadium flow batteries.

“These services will support Multicom’s focus on the exploration and development of high-quality vanadium assets to satisfy the growing demand for V205 in steel manufacturing and the emerging energy storage market,” Downer said.

Once the Saint Elmo project is fully developed, Multicom has an initial target production of 10,000 t/y of V205, with the possibility of scaling up to 20,000 t/y or greater, subject to market conditions.

The company currently has a measured, indicated and inferred resource base of 493.5 Mt grading 0.28% V2O5. It is targeting first production in early 2021.

Since acquiring the tenement in early 2017, Multicom has lodged the mining lease application and is well-advanced on environmental and prefeasibility studies, Downer said.

Oz’s Carapateena underground copper-gold project on schedule

Base metals, Bulk handling, Comminution of minerals, Mine shafts and equipment, Mine ventilation, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining project news, Mining services, Mining techniques, Precious metals, , ,

Oz Minerals’ Carapateena underground copper-gold project in South Australia remains on track, with total development at 6,285m as of the end of June, the company said.

Contractor Pybar Mining Services achieved record monthly development of 505m during May and, in accordance with Oz’s plan, transitioned over to Downer EDI for underground mining services in June with limited impact.

Carapateena is envisaged as a 4.25 million tonne per annum underground operation costing some A$916 million to build and producing 65,000 tonnes of copper and 67,000 ounces of gold per year over a 20-year mine life.

The deposit, which is shaped like a near vertical pipe and sits under some 500 m of unmineralised rock cover, will be mined using sub-level caving. The deposit will be blasted in 25-m sections with ore collected by loaders before being crushed and loaded onto a conveyer belt to surface.

Oz is now in phase two of construction with commissioning expected by the end of 2019.

In the company’s quarterly production results, it said underground development works, which were at 435m vertical depth at the end of June, would be expanded to include access development for future underground crusher installations in the current three-month period.

The first raisebore hole commenced in the June quarter (see photo) in preparation for installing and commissioning the first ventilation raise in the September quarter.

Site earthworks for the processing plant are now underway, with engineering progress exceeding 70%.