Tag Archives: Granite

IDS and Veracio partner up to redefine drill hole data use in the mining industry

7th December 2023IoT, Mineral exploration, Mining equipment, Mining servicesdirectional drilling, geolofical data, Granite, IDS, International Directional Services, Jason Smith, JT Clark, TruGyro, TruShot, TruSub, VeracioDaniel Gleeson

International Directional Services (IDS), a Granite Company, and Veracio, a leading mining technology company, have announced a partnership to offer Veracio’s complete suite of driller-operated tooling to IDS clients.

Veracio says it is making significant steps toward leveraging advanced geological technologies to enhance the mining lifecycle. While IDS and Veracio have an existing relationship, the announcement of this partnership acknowledges the vision both companies share for transforming how the drilling workflow can be enhanced with better data, they say. By combining IDS’s expertise in directional drilling and Veracio’s geological data collection, the partnership will empower IDS and Granite clients to reduce unnecessary drilling costs, mitigate operational errors, minimise waste and foster sustainable mining practices.

“Our collaboration further strengthens Veracio’s position in the US market and reinforces our commitment to advancing the mining industry by offering cutting-edge solutions,” Veracio’s Chief Executive Officer, JT Clark, said. “Together with IDS, we are committed to redefining industry standards, empowering precision and integrity with every survey, and delivering unparalleled solutions for the mining industry.”

Jason Smith, IDS General Manager, said: “We are excited to embark on this strategic partnership with Veracio. By combining our data collection expertise with Veracio’s cutting-edge instrument technology, we aim to redefine how drill hole data is utilised in our industry. This collaboration represents a significant step forward for IDS and our commitment to delivering excellence to our clients.”

Key objectives of the partnership include:

Enhanced drill hole data analysis: deploy cutting-edge technology to enhance the accuracy and quality of drill hole data analysis, providing valuable insights for mining projects
Increased productivity: leveraging Veracio’s growing fleet of technologies, including TruGyro and TruSub technology, ensures that drilling is precise and efficient leading to better resource definition, safety and lower risks of operational errors, at lower cost; and
Client support and satisfaction: the partnership aims to elevate the level of support and satisfaction for IDS’s clients by delivering data-driven insights and innovative solutions.

The announcement is headlined by the most compact and integrated continuous north-seeking gyro tool in drilling, Veracio’s TruGyro, a north-seeking gyro tool built to deliver precision data at depth in some of the toughest of environments, Veracio says. IDS also currently serves as the distributor for Veracio’s TruShot, a magnetic survey tool specially designed for driller deployment. Known for its durability, precision and user-friendly features, TruShot enables drillers to confidently capture high-quality 3D hole path data, Veracio says. In addition to TruShot, IDS also distributes core orientation tooling on behalf of Veracio.

As Veracio introduces new products to the market, IDS aims to expand its customer offerings to provide a comprehensive range of cutting-edge solutions.

Zinnwald striving for battery-electric circularity with lithium project development

12th September 2022Energy minerals, Environmental, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining services, Power supply for mines, Sustainable miningAnton Du Plessis, automation, battery-electric, Cemtec, Conveyors, drilling, Epiroc, Germany, Granite, LHDs, lithium hydroxide, Metso Outotec, mineral processing, precipitated calcium carbonate, pyrometallurgy, sand, sulphate of potash, Tin, trolley, Zinnerz Altenberg, Zinnwald LithiumDaniel Gleeson

The development of the integrated Zinnwald lithium project in Germany could see the incorporation of a battery-electric fleet of LHDs and the return of metal production to a region of saxony with mining history dating back to the Middle Ages.

The London-listed owner of the project, Zinnwald Lithium Plc, has just released a preliminary economic study on its namesake project focused on supplying battery-grade lithium hydroxide to the European battery sector.

As with any responsible battery metal project being developed today, the project’s ‘green credentials’ are being considered even at this early stage.

Zinnwald Lithium has been keen to flag these, mentioning the project is located close to the German chemical industry, a fact that should enable it to draw on a well trained and experienced workforce with well-developed infrastructure, plus reduce the ‘carbon footprint’ of the final end-use product.

This focus will see all aspects of the project – from mining through to production of the end product – located near to the deposit itself.

Zinnwald Lithium also said the project has the potential to be a low- or ‘zero-waste’ project, as the vast majority of both its mined product and co-products have their own large-scale end-markets.

This could see it produce not only battery-grade lithium hydroxide monohydrate products, but sulphate of potash (SOP) for the fertiliser market and precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC) – the latter being a key filling material in the paper manufacturing process.

The project now includes an underground mine with a nominal output of approximately 880,000 t/y of ore at an estimated 3,004 ppm Li and 75,000 t/y of barren rock. Processing, including mechanical separation, lithium activation and lithium fabrication, will be carried out at an industrial facility near the village of Bärenstein, near the existing underground mine access and an existing site for tailings deposition with significant remaining capacity.

With a 7-km partly-existing network of underground drives and adits from the ‘Zinnerz Altenberg’ tin mine, which closed in 1991, already mapped out, the bulk of ore haulage is expected to be via either conveyor or rail

The nominal output capacity of the project is targeted at circa-12,000 t/y LiOH with circa-56,900 t/y of SOP, 16,000 t/y of PCC, circa-75,000 t/y of granite and 100,000 t/y of sand as by-products.

The company is looking to complete the ‘circularity’ dynamic in its fleet and equipment selection, according to CEO, Anton Du Plessis, who mentioned that electric LHDs could be used to load and haul ore to an ore pass in the envisaged operation.

He said the cost estimates to use such equipment – which are factored into the project’s $336.5 million initial construction capital expenditure bill – have come from Epiroc, which has a variety of battery-operated mobile equipment.

“The base case is battery-operated loaders,” he told IM. “The final selection will be based on an optimisation study where, in particular, partly trolley-fed haulage systems will be investigated.”

Forms of automation are also being studied, Du Plessis said, with the caveat that “only select technologies we consider proven” will be evaluated.

Zinnwald Lithium is also looking at electric options for long-hole drilling underground, with both battery-based units and cabled versions under consideration and requiring firming up in the optimisation study.

With a 7-km partly-existing network of underground drives and adits from the ‘Zinnerz Altenberg’ tin mine, which closed in 1991, already mapped out, the bulk of ore haulage is expected to be via either conveyor or rail. The former, of course, will be powered by electricity, but the company is also considering potential battery-electric options for the latter, according to Du Plessis.

The company is blessed with existing infrastructure at the mine, which should help it in advancing the project at the pace its potential end-use manufacturing suppliers would like. It is already evaluating options for the construction stage – with an engineering, procurement and construction management contract the most likely option – and it has plans to conclude a feasibility study by the end of next year.

Du Plessis said while most of the fixed assets have been removed or were deemed outdated a long time ago from the former operating underground mine, other infrastructure was in good shape.

“The excavations, main level, underground workshop, ventilation shafts and, particularly, 2020 refurbished access tunnel provide a very good starting point for our project,” he said. “The access tunnel was originally constructed for dewatering the old mine and, therefore, the mine and the tunnel have been maintained very well.”

The company is now shifting to the bankable feasibility study and currently selecting partners for the project.

With what it calls a “simple, five-stage processing” route confirmed by test work for the extracted material at Zinnwald, the company is looking to select OEMs with the optimal concept for the project, Du Plessis said.

“In the PEA, mineral processing equipment cost is based on Metso Outotec estimates, pyrometallurgy is based on Cemtec technology, and hydrometallurgy is based on various providers’ technology,” he clarified.

IDS goes down hole with Stockholm Precision Tools agreement

2nd December 2019Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mineral exploration, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining servicesDownhole Gyro Survey Tools, Granite, GyroMaster, International Directional Services, Orlando Ramirez, Stockholm Precision ToolsDaniel Gleeson

Granite’s International Directional Services (IDS) subsidiary has become the exclusive distributor of Stockholm Precision Tools AB’s Downhole Gyro Survey Tools within the US minerals and civil construction markets, it says.

The SPT line of downhole gyro survey tools is now available for rent, providing IDS customers a greater selection of tools and brands from a single source.

Among these tools is SPT’s GyroMaster™, which uses the company’s proprietary Navibore Technology to register data points every cm for improved accuracy. This enables customers to automatically create highly accurate independent surveys.

The companies share a 15-year history that spans IDS’ operations in the US, Mexico, and Canada; with SPT focused on market-leading research, development and manufacturing and IDS providing customers with “exceptional services and rental support”, Granite said.

“With IDS becoming the exclusive US distributor for SPT, both companies are well positioned to grow market share in the United States’ minerals and civil construction markets,” the company added.

SPT CEO, Orlando Ramirez, said: “Today’s agreement between SPT and IDS strengthens and advances our positions in the USA market enabling us to compete with our full range of market-leading downhole survey tools creating a valuable proposition to customers that will be difficult to ignore.

“The technology expertise and leading position of SPT, combined with the US market presence and expertise of IDS, will allow customers to improve their drilling process, reduce costs, and improve results.”