Tag Archives: Fosterville

Clean TeQ DESALX plant up and running at Kirkland Lake’s Fosterville gold mine

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Clean TeQ Holdings Limited has formally handed over a Continuous Ion Exchange Desalination (DESALX®) plant to Kirkland Lake Gold’s Fosterville gold mine in Victoria, Australia.

Clean TeQ says it was engaged to design, supply and commission a two million litre-per-day Clean TeQ DESALX mine water treatment plant, with the plant designed to deliver a sustainable water management solution by treating mine process water.

The plant construction was completed in late 2019, with commissioning and operations commencing in early 2020. Now, Clean TeQ has confirmed the plant has passed the performance tests specified in the engineering, procurement and construction contract and the customer has issued a formal notice of acceptance and completion, it said.

Sam Riggall, Clean TeQ CEO, said: “After successfully demonstrating the world’s first ever commercial scale CIF plant in Oman late last year, this is yet another moment of great significance for Clean TeQ.

“Confirmation of the successful deployment of our innovative DESALX solution for this application, designed and delivered by Clean TeQ, is strong validation of our proprietary continuous ion exchange technology, and provides us with a firm foothold in the mining waste water treatment market from which we can continue to grow the business.”

The DESALX technology consists of two continuous ionic filtration (CIF®) modules in series removing divalent cations and anions present in the water through complementary processes. The modules contain ion exchange resins that are cycled between columns using air lifts, allowing for continuous operation and regeneration of the system. This system increases impurity removal efficiency, reduces chemical use, and provides protection against fouling, according to Clean TeQ.

The DESALX solution is well suited to purification of difficult to treat waste waters with high hardness, sulphate, and heavy metals as well as suspended solids which can foul reverse osmosis membranes. These types of waste waters are common in the mining industry, including acid mine drainage water, the company explained.

At Fosterville, the equipment provided by Clean TeQ includes a precipitation package to remove antimony and arsenic. The effluent from the clarifiers is treated by the DESALX plant to remove sulphate, calcium and magnesium with gypsum as the only by-product. The DESALX effluent is then further treated by reverse osmosis to produce water for re-use.

“The Clean TeQ system is a key enabling component of the customer’s overall water management strategy which includes a medium-term target of creating a true ‘zero liquid discharge’ solution that does not produce any saline brine and includes aquifer reinjection,” Clean TeQ said.

Clean TeQ Water is now focused on completing one additional key project at a copper-cobalt mine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and a number of pilot programs in China.

“This Clean TeQ system, as well as the plants recently completed in Oman and Australia, are the first of their type anywhere in the world and have been deployed as part of three different technical solutions,” the company said. “The successful delivery and commissioning of these plants provides strong demonstration of the efficacy of Clean TeQ’s suite of proprietary ion exchange technologies and their versatility for metal extraction and wastewater treatment. As commercial scale plants, the facilities provide a valuable platform from which to now rapidly grow Clean TeQ Water.”

Chrysos PhotonAssay unit delivered to Kirkland Lake’s Fosterville gold mine

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Kirkland Lake Gold is to install a Chrysos PhotonAssay unit at its Fosterville mine, in Victoria, Australia, as it looks to simplify, speed up and improve its mineral assaying process.

The agreement with Chrysos has seen the unit delivered to Fosterville, with the installation to be fully operational by early October.

Originally developed at Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, PhotonAssay delivers faster, more accurate gold analysis, Chrysos says, being a quantitative, chemistry-free replacement for fire assay on-site and in the laboratory.

“Hitting samples with high-energy X-rays, the technology causes excitation of atomic nuclei allowing enhanced analysis of gold, silver, and complementary elements in as little as two minutes,” the company says. “Importantly, Chrysos PhotonAssay allows large samples of up to 500 g to be measured and provides a true bulk reading independent of the chemical or physical form of the sample. The process is completely non-destructive, and all samples can be retained for further testing or analysis if required.”

Wess Edgar, Chief Geologist for Kirkland Lake Gold in Australia, said: “We believe the PhotonAssay method has potential benefits for our business that include simple sample preparation, fast turnaround times for high-quality results, and improved outcomes related to health, environment, and the community.

“The sample charge used in the PhotonAssay method is approximately 10-20 times larger than existing fire assay, and thus has potential for a more representative assay result of the entire crushed sample, which is considered important for samples containing high gold grades and/or visible gold, as are often found at Fosterville.”

Fosterville is one of the highest grade gold mines operating across the industry, having produced 619,000 oz in 2019 at an average grade of 39.6 g/t.

PhotonAssay’s latest market success has drawn a positive response from CSIRO’s Chief Executive, Dr Larry Marshall, according to Chrysos.

“It’s very rewarding to have a global leader like Kirkland Lake embrace this new Aussie technology, which sees our research continuing to improve the efficiency and environmental sustainability of the industry around the world,” Dr Marshall said.

Highlighting the benefits of PhotonAssay for miners, Chrysos CEO, Dirk Treasure, stated: “Our PhotonAssay installations provide single-touch operation and improved safety outcomes, whilst also reducing labour requirements and the potential for human error. The technology’s fast turnaround on high sample volumes provides customers with time-critical operational data and drives optimisation through their entire value chain.

“We are seeing increasing interest in Chrysos PhotonAssay from both laboratories and miners. Recent developments across the sector are driving a desire for technological solutions that deliver measurable productivity gains and true competitive advantage. This is an exciting time, not just for us, but for the entire industry.”

On Site Laboratory Services, a company based in Bendigo, will staff and operate the unit at Fosterville on behalf of Kirkland Lake Gold, Chrysos said.

Detour Lake acquisition to make Kirkland Lake Gold plus-1.5 Moz/y producer

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Kirkland Lake Gold and Detour Gold Corp have entered into a definitive agreement will see the ASX- and TSX-listed miner become a plus-1.5 Moz/y gold producer through the all-share acquisition of Detour and its Detour Lake gold mine, in Ontario, Canada.

Under the terms of the transaction, which values Detour at C$4.9 billion ($3.3 billion), all the issued and outstanding common shares of Detour Gold will be exchanged at a ratio of 0.4343 of a Kirkland Lake Gold common share for each Detour Gold common share. Upon completion of the transaction, existing Kirkland Lake Gold and Detour Gold shareholders will own around 73% and 27% of the pro forma company, respectively.

Kirkland Lake says Detour Lake is a uniquely large-scale, long-life Canadian mine, with current production of around 600,000 oz/y and substantial growth potential.

The deal also solidifies Kirkland Lake’s position as a senior gold producer with pro-forma 2019 output targeted at more than 1.5 Moz and analyst consensus 2019 free cash flow of almost $700 million, Kirkland said.

The deal also increases Kirkland Lake’s mineral reserve base, adding 15.41 Moz to Kirkland Lake Gold’s mineral reserve base and extending its reserve life index by eight years.

The financial strength and technical expertise of the combined company is expected to support the continued optimisation and potential expansion of Detour Lake, Kirkland Lake said, explaining that opportunities exist to significantly increase production at improved unit costs and to expand current mineral reserves and mineral resources.

It also provides exploration upside, with Detour Gold’s land position covering 1,040 km2 along the northernmost sections of the prolific Abitibi Greenstone Belt (including 646 km² on existing Detour Lake property).

Tony Makuch, President and Chief Executive Officer of Kirkland Lake Gold, said: “The acquisition of Detour Gold is an excellent fit for Kirkland Lake Gold. We have already taken two mining operations, Macassa and Fosterville, and transformed them into high-quality assets that generate industry-leading earnings and free cash flow. The addition of Detour Lake provides an opportunity to add a third cornerstone asset that is located in our back yard in northern Ontario.

“Detour Lake will provide the pro forma company with a 20-plus year mine life which provides unparalleled optionality and excellent growth potential for the benefit of all shareholders. The management team at Detour Gold has done an exceptional job in making improvements and building momentum at the mine.

“Once the transaction is completed, we will continue efforts to optimise current operations and commence engineering work to evaluate expansion opportunities at Detour Lake, which we anticipate could lead to significant production growth, improved unit costs and higher levels of mineral reserves and mineral resources.”

Safescape, 3ME and Agrale’s Bortana electric vehicle ready for mine site trial

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Safescape, 3ME Technology and Agrale are celebrating the launch of the new Bortana electric vehicle (EV), with the partners now preparing to dispatch a prototype for a three-month trial at a gold mine.

The launch, taking place at Mt Cotton Training Centre on May 24, followed a successful exhibition at the Austmine conference, in Brisbane, Australia, Safescape said.

The project, partly funded by Australia’s METS Ignited industry growth centre, has seen the three companies design a purpose-built battery electric utility vehicle for the mining industry that, METS Ignited says, offers a significant increase in sustainability and durability compared with the existing options.

The Bortana EV uses the chassis of a diesel-powered Agrale Marruá, electric technology from 3ME and Safescape’s design and engineering expertise.

3ME Technology CEO, Justin Bain, said a vehicle of this nature is needed in the Australian mining landscape.

“Vehicles used in underground Australian mining operations have faced issues of corrosion, durability and emissions for a long time – there is a sore need for a better solution.

“The BORTANA EV was developed for the harsh environments of Australian mine sites and we’re really excited to see this vehicle in action. We have focused on achieving the highest levels of safety and compliance whilst delivering superior performance and efficiency.”

The application of battery-electric vehicles in underground mining provides several key benefits over traditional diesel-powered engines, with the new vehicle producing minimal heat, minimal noise and, most importantly, no diesel particulate matter exposure for workers within confined spaces. “This also means reduced costs in ventilation and maintenance for mine operators,” METS Ignited said.

Supporting the Bortana EV during the launch was the Agrale Marruá with both a single- and dual-cab vehicle on display. This vehicle is traditionally used in the Brazil army and mining industry, with Safescape selecting the chassis due to its corrosion-resistant body and ability to withstand the harshest of conditions.

The vehicles are future-proofed; equipped for integration with current autonomous and future artificial intelligence developments, according to METS Ignited, which provided A$500,000 ($343,700) for the project under its Collaborative Project Funds, in 2018.

Following the three-month trial at the gold mine – which Bain previously confirmed to IM was Kirkland Lake Gold’s Fosterville operation in Victoria, Australia – the prototype will have further exposure to other mining companies and contractors, METS Ignited said.

“The trial will test the battery-electric vehicle’s ability to achieve mining duty cycles and provide superior drivability, safety, corrosion protection, reliability and maintainability in comparison with the current underground diesel light vehicle fleet,” Bain said back in January. “The EV will initially be integrated into the Fosterville fleet as a supervisor vehicle and undertake all tasks required by the diesel light utility vehicles. An operational risk assessment of the BORTANA EV has been conducted with Fosterville to ensure the vehicle will meet its mine site compliance requirements.”

METS Ignited General Manager Industry Engagement, Peter Clarke, said: “We are pleased to support 3ME Technology and Safescape in developing a great solution for Australian mining operations. The safety benefits and cost savings achieved by implementing these vehicles onsite will make a significant difference for miners.

“This is a great example of how funding and support for collaboration pays off for the sector.”

Safescape Managing Director, Steve Durkin, thinks the Bortana EV will offer the right mix of capability and longevity in the mining environment.

The lack of tail-pipe emissions, plus reduced heat generation are just some of the benefits underground mines are likely to realise with the use of the Bortana EV, he said.

“We believe that the Bortana EV will have a lower total cost of ownership than any other comparable production vehicle in the mining environment,” Durkin concluded.

CSIRO’s Swirl Flow in the mix at Kirkland Lake Gold’s Fosterville mine

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Kirkland Lake Gold’s Fosterville gold mine, in Victoria, Australia, has employed one of CSIRO’s innovative gold processing solutions to improve safety for workers maintaining the slurry mixing tanks at the operation.

CSIRO’s Swirl Flow offered Fosterville workers superior mixing and suspension, while minimising problems associated with dead zones and sedimentation, according to Australia’s national science agency.

Slurry mixing is an integral part of the Fosterville operation, CSIRO said. “Due to their configuration, conventional agitators tend to create dead zones in which there is little movement in the mixture, resulting in the precipitation and build-up of unwanted scale.

“Fosterville Gold Mine was managing scale build-up through frequent tank wall cleaning and ‘dropping’ (ie draining) tanks,” CSIRO said.

However, the possibility of pieces of scale breaking off and falling when the tank is drained, or when the agitator is removed for maintenance, creates a health and safety risk for employees cleaning and maintaining the tanks.

A meeting between technical teams from CSIRO and Fosterville identified Swirl Flow as a possible option to reduce the amount of maintenance required, according to CSIRO.

“Swirl Flow offered Fosterville Gold Mine superior mixing and suspension, while minimising problems associated with dead zones and sedimentation, and has since been installed at their operation,” CSIRO said.

With an innovative, yet simple, impeller design, Swirl Flow creates a vortex, or tornado-like motion, in the tank, which prevents stagnant flow, while creating higher wall velocities to help cleanse the walls to reduce scale and build up in the tank,” CSIRO said.

Fosterville Gold Mine’s Technical Process Superintendent, Susan Mills, said: “For us, the driving benefit of Swirl Flow was the health and safety aspect. The safety of our people is paramount and the benefit of reducing the hazards of falling scale during maintenance made the decision simple.”

Mills said there other benefits.

“The actual conversion process is very straightforward and not costly to retrofit from a maintenance perspective, plus the reduction in scale build-up is anticipated to reduce operational costs incurred for cleaning,” she said.

A comparison suggests that, for a greenfields installation in the gold industry, Swirl Flow has the potential to be more cost effective than traditional systems, according to CSIRO. “It is cheaper due to its simple, light engineering design, and because steel baffle structures are not required. This lightweight design also means that retrofit costs are low to replace failed conventional agitators,” the agency said.

CSIRO Lead Scientist, Jie Wu, said: “Currently, companies tend to buy a complete processing system and not look at the individual components within that system to see if there are better alternatives.

“Processes and mixing applications vary from industry to industry, so we design a Swirl Flow system for the process or requirements of a producer’s particular processing, mixing or tank requirements.

“We look at the process, we model it and then we work with the manufacturer and the client company to optimise the performance of the Swirl Flow installation.”

CSIRO is looking to expand the applications of Swirl Flow and is interested in working with both producers and mining equipment technology and services supplier companies to help resolve operational mixing problems.

“We started in the alumina industry and are now making inroads with applications and plant trials in gold processing, uranium leaching and other minerals sectors,” Dr Wu said.

“We hope that Swirl Flow will become a mainstream alternative mixing technology for a number of applications in the minerals sector.”

Swirl Flow technology was developed with CSIRO partners at Queensland Alumina. The technology enhances the agitation process by mixing liquids and suspended solids to create a tornado-like vortex in a tank. It uses a motor, gearbox and a specially-designed radial impeller with a short shaft near the top of the tank. The system improves agitator reliability, resulting in reduced maintenance and shutdowns. Due to higher and more uniform wall veolcities, the scale formation rate is also reduced, according to CSIRO.

Kirkland Lake Gold cements approvals at Fosterville gold mine

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Kirkland Lake Gold has received regulatory and planning approval for an on-site cement plant at its rapidly-expanding Fosterville gold mine in Victoria, Australia.

Victoria’s Minister for Resources, Jaclyn Symes, confirmed the approvals on site at Fosterville last week.

The new cement infrastructure plant will enable by-product rock to be re-inserted underground, reducing tailings and extending the life of the mine, according to the government. It will also lead to production increasing at the underground mine, it added.

Estimated gold reserves at Fosterville were recently upgraded 60% to 2.7 Moz, with production in 2019 set to come in at 550,000-610,000 oz, up from 350,000 oz in 2018.

In August, Kirkland Lake Gold secured GR Engineering’s EPC services for a paste backfill plant at Fosterville which, when in production, could produce 65 m³/h of paste to fill the stopes in the gold mine.

Swick Mining boosts profits as it looks to drill deeper at Kirkland Lake Gold’s Fosterville mine

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Swick Mining’s strategies of shifting drill rigs on to better performing contracts or new projects and reducing costs has continued to pay off with the underground and surface mineral drilling business posting a more than 100% year-on-year increase in EBITDA in the December quarter.

The company delivered “strong unaudited results” for the three-month period, it said, with the drilling business’ earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) up 109% to A$9.5 million ($6.8 million). This coincided with the company completing 263,690 m of drilling and the average fleet use coming in at 75% across the quarter.

Drilling business revenue of A$37.7 million was up 8% compared with the same quarter of 2017. Overall group revenue and EBITDA was marginally up on the drilling business numbers as the company’s mineral technology business, Orexplore, registered several commercial scans during the period.

In addition to shifting drill rigs and cutting costs, Swick benefitted from improved short-term rates at two existing underground drilling services contracts in the quarter – for Newmont and its Tanami and Mt Charlotte assets, where 11 rigs are deployed. Swick said: “These rates will run through to March 2019, to allow for a competitive tender process for the long-term contracts to be completed (in which Swick is participating).”

Swick Managing Director, Kent Swick (pictured), said: “The earnings rebound of our drilling business has continued and shows how we can unlock Swick’s potential when we target the right projects for the right clients and ensure we deliver value for money for our clients.

“The improved margins are a mixture of adjusted rates where needed and also from a 6% year-on-year reduction in our operating costs per shift in the underground division by focusing on manning levels, consumables usage, procurement processes and inventory management.”

The Swick MD added that its recently established deep exploration division, DeepEx, continued to move forward during the quarter with preparations underway to deploy two high-torque mobile drills this month at Kirkland Lake Gold’s Fosterville mine. This will further assist the deep underground exploration drilling it is already carrying out at the mine.

This came on top of an update on Orexplore, which in the eight months since launch has secured seven customers and numerous trial programmes with a range of miners, explorers and consultants, Kent Swick said.

He also said the gold spectrometer was undergoing testing at Orexplore’s R&D headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, and that the company expects to have initial feedback on the in-machine prototypes performance during this quarter.