Tag Archives: Hemlo

Perenti plants roots in USA on North America contract mining potential

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Perenti Group has targeted the North America market for further contract mining growth, establishing a US office in the first half of its 2021 financial year.

The office, thought to be in Denver, Colorado, will help the company make the most of the substantial pipeline it has identified in North America.

The news came during the company’s first half results to the end of December 2020, which showed off revenue of A$1.01 billion ($799 million) and EBITDA of A$201 million.

Noting strong growth in its underground business and a contraction in its Africa surface business (most of which is tied to its AMS subsidiary), the company said it had won A$1.1 billion of new work and extensions since July 1, 2020, while its orderbook was around A$5.5 billion and its pipeline was circa-A$9.2 billion.

Within this global pipeline, A$2.1 billion was in the North America region, Perenti said. This was made up of 14 projects, three of which were at the tendering stage. Overall, 14% of the pipeline was from the US and 9% was in Canada.

The company, through its Barminco subsidiary, won its first “significant” North America contract last year when it signed on to an underground contract mining agreement at Barrick Gold’s Hemlo mine in Ontario, Canada (pictured).

In other news, the company said increased demand for its MinAnalytical mineral sample processing had been registered in the six months to the end of December, with record PhotonAssay processing recorded in December 2020.

The company also said it was “progressing alternative service offerings” during 2021.

Barrick Hemlo boosts productivity with Orica wireless blast initiation solution

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Orica says testing of its WebGen™ 100 solution at Barrick Gold’s Hemlo mine in Ontario, Canada, has shown wireless blast initiation can improve the economics of its Alimak stoping.

In early 2019, Hemlo’s management team approached Orica and Manroc to explore opportunities for improvement via the application of wireless blast initiation. Through a series of workshops, Orica and Barrick Hemlo worked together to identify opportunities to use WebGen 100 wireless through the earth initiation technology in its Blind Alimak Mining application.

This Blind Alimak Retreat (BAR) concept was aimed at improving both safety and productivity, and included:

  • Reduced exposure time related to Alimak entries;
  • Improved ore recovery from 70% to over 90%;
  • Increased recovery by maximising blast design, sequence, and available void;
  • Increased mucking rates while decreasing cycle time; and
  • Optimised crew logistics by using single pass loading.

To expand operations and aid in the longevity of mine life, both efficiency and recovery were top priorities for the Hemlo team, Orica said.

Alimak Mining is normally done either in small repetitive blasts cycles, from the bottom of the raise up to an upper sill, or, in the case of blind Alimaks, as a mass blast into the void that exists in the raise and undercut below.

Given that access is lost after the mass blast, the size of the blast (Alimak height) and recovery is often restricted by “free face” and available void. At Hemlo, the Blind Alimak blast performance was limited by underbreak in the top third of the Alimak (footwall break) due to the available void becoming choked off during blast progression. Using wireless blasting technology, the team was able to eliminate all void limitation, Orica said.

The solution was to develop a blast design with optimised burden and spacing as well as timing and blast sequencing, allowing well-defined portions of the Alimak stope to be taken at the appropriate time. Single-pass loading was used to achieve the safety and productivity benefits.

Breaking the Alimak stope into five pre-loaded portions (each increasing in size to capitalise on void created during the excavation process) allowed for flexible blast management throughout the mining process, Orica said.

“With the ability to merge and increase blast sizes based on in-field results, the operation had unprecedented control and was able to operate outside of the traditional constraints of mining cycles,” it added.

With three days of continuous loading, Hemlo was able to achieve a month-and-a-half worth of blasting while freeing up the Alimak crews to move on to the next stope, according to Orica. To maximise the blasting sequence, the first blast (wall slash and five rings) was blasted with Orica’s i-kon™ III Electronic Blasting System. The next three blasts (two merged) were fired with WebGen 100 units when ready, with performance verified with bucket counts and CMS.

The results of the project stope were extremely positive and proved that wireless blast initiation can improve the economics of the Alimak stoping, according to Orica. Key benefits included significantly reduced personal exposure (reduced by over 50%), increased stope recovery and cycle time. The success of the Alimak has also led to the introduction of wireless blasting into large blind up-hole patterns at Barrick Hemlo, solving similar issues to that of the Alimaks, Orica said.

The outcomes of this project delivered a 40% improvement in productivity through decreased cycle time, faster mucking rates, improved ore recovery from 70% to over 90%, and increased safety by eliminating countless re-entries and hookups, while stripping rail and logistically simplifying the operations process.

Recovery improvement and productivity gains delivered significant value and increased revenue for the customer, Orica added.

“The project has also shown the ability to increase the height of blind Alimak stopes without concern for available void, thereby eliminating the need of top sill development moving forward,” it said.

This successful trial has led to full-time technical collaboration with Barrick Hemlo mine since the end of 2019. Including this evaluation at Hemlo, Orica has successfully fired more than 50 wireless initiating system blasts loaded with over 2,700 WebGen 100 units.

Barrick to bid goodbye to Hemlo open pit as Barminco ramps up UG activities

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Barrick Gold says plans to extend the life of the Hemlo gold mine, in Ontario, Canada, by transitioning it to a modernised Tier Two asset with a purely underground operation are well underway as open-pit mining at the mine starts winding down.

The Hemlo open pit has been mined since 1989 and has produced over 2.8 Moz of gold in the process. It was originally used to produce blasted rock for the backfilling of the mine’s underground stopes but, in 2002, a Cat 777 truck fleet and key personnel were seconded from Barrick’s Nevada mines to establish the pit as a separate division.

In 2013, the David Bell mine closed, leaving the open pit and the Williams underground mine as the chief sources of ore for the mill feed. Over the next six years, the open pit ramped up and became the primary source of ore for Hemlo.

With mining at the open pit scheduled to wind down at the end of this month with less than 200,000 t of ore remaining, a transition plan has been put in place to transfer most of the 70 plus open-pit employees to the current underground contractor, Barminco. The open-pit crew has already worked with the contractor in digging a new portal from within the open pit that will open up new mining fronts in the underground mine, creating more flexibility and allowing the underground to ramp up throughput.

Catherine Raw, Chief Operating Officer for North America, said that by repositioning and expanding Hemlo as an underground operation, it would continue delivering benefits to the community, employees and other stakeholders for years to come.

Barrick Hemlo’s General Manager, Adam Foulstone, thanked the open-pit employees for their years of dedication and hard work.

“It’s been a great run and I am honoured to have worked with such a great team,” he said. “The last years of the mine were very challenging but we completed the work with zero lost time injuries, a testament to the commitment and professionalism of our people.”

The mine held a dedication ceremony on October 5 to unveil the new portal sign honouring long-serving employee, Jim Harasym. Harasym is the Open Pit Manager at the Hemlo mine and was instrumental in the success of the project.

Barminco starts round one of portal development at Barrick Hemlo

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Barminco says it has mobilised to start the development of the new underground portal at Barrick Gold’s Hemlo gold mine in Ontario, Canada.

The installation of the portal ground support has been completed and a new Sandvik DD421 jumbo is being used to drill the first round of what will be the entrance to the new decline ramp, Barminco said.

It added: “Barminco is proud to be introducing high speed development capabilities at Hemlo, adding value to the already well-established mine.”

Earlier this year, Barminco was issued a letter of intent to provide underground contract mining services at Hemlo following Barrick’s decision to phase out open-pit mining and move to an underground contract mining model at the operation.

Perenti, Barminco’s parent company, said back then that its underground contract mining division would “bring industry-leading technology and productivity to Hemlo in support of Barrick’s goal to modernise and improve the performance of the mine and establish it as a Tier Two asset within its group”.

Sandvik gears up for battery-electric drilling revolution in southern Africa

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Southern African mines will soon begin the transition from diesel-driven to battery-powered drill jumbos, with the introduction of the world’s first highly-automated underground electric drill rig by Sandvik Mining & Rock Technology, according to the mining OEM.

Saltiel Pule, Sandvik Mining & Rock Technology’s Business Line Manager for Underground drilling in southern Africa, says the Sandvik DD422iE rig has already seen enthusiastic take-up in mining countries with strict anti-pollution regulations such as Canada, with the innovation having been in development for the past three years.

“The key benefits of the battery concept in underground drill rigs are zero emissions and much less heat, making for safer and healthier working conditions,” Pule said. “There are many other advantages to this technology, however, including increased drilling productivity, reduced operating costs and better energy efficiency.”

One of the first mines to have received the DD422iE was the all-electric Borden mine in Ontario, Canada. Since then, Barrick has trialled a unit at its Hemlo underground mine, also in Ontario.

The Sandvik DD422iE’s electric driveline, with an electric motor mechanically connected to axles for high torque and high efficiency, allows the rig to tram independently between working areas. The unit’s high-precision inverter delivers exact control of the tramming speed, according to Sandvik.

“The rig only needs to be connected to mains power during the actual drilling, at which point the electric motor is connected onto hydraulic pumps,” Pule says.

Improved drilling power of up to 20% is achieved by an active power compensation system which draws reserve power from batteries during peak loads, according to Sandvik. Battery charging is carried out during those phases of the drilling cycle when power intake is low, such as during boom movements. There is, therefore, no waiting time to charge up batteries.

In pursuit of zero-harm safety standards, the unit uses sodium nickel chloride technology – regarded as one of the safest battery systems for underground conditions.

Sandvik also offers a battery rental option to customers, taking responsibility for battery inspection and maintenance, as well as responsible disposal at the end of battery’s life, the company says.

“The battery therefore becomes an operational cost for the mine, rather than a capital expense,” Pule says. “This option also gives the customer the certainty of predictable operating costs while adopting a new technology.”

In addition to zero emissions and less heat generation, the electric drill rig produces less noise, making communication easier and working conditions less stressful, Sandvik added. There is a reduced risk of fire, as there are no fuels exposed to hot surfaces – as can happen with diesel engines.

“The range of indirect savings that customers achieve when they move from diesel to electric includes lower ventilation costs underground, no need for diesel storage and diesel pipelines, and more control over operating costs,” Pule says.

Sandvik TH545i haul trucks, DL432i autonomous drill to join Barrick Hemlo fleet

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Barrick’s Hemlo gold mine in Ontario, Canada, is lining up the arrival of a new Sandvik autonomous drill and eight Sandvik haul trucks as its underground-only contract miner strategy takes hold.

The company said it is expecting eight new Sandvik TH545i 45 t haul trucks to arrive on site in the near term.

These trucks moves more rock and material than its current fleet and are equipped with an ejector box, which means operators do not need to lift the box to dump material – it pushes it out the back – making it easier to work with in smaller areas, the company said.

“Let’s not forget to mention the reduction in emissions from this Tier 4 engine, improving worker safety and lessening the environmental impact,” the company added.

Earlier this week, a Sandvik DL432i fully autonomous drill arrived at Hemlo too. Its fully integrated software allows this machine to drill holes on its own, even between shift changes, according to Barrick.

“Engineers are now able to upload plans and designs for day-to-day operations,” the company said, adding that the cab is enclosed and comes with climate control to cool operators in warmer climates underground.

Late last year, Barrick said it would phase out the open-pit operation at Hemlo and move to an underground contract mining model as it looked to upgrade the mine to a Barrick Tier 2 asset. This saw Barminco appointed as the contract miner earlier this year.

Barrick continues to leverage automation and battery-electric technology

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Barrick Gold, despite numerous COVID-19-related hurdles, made progress on the innovation front in the March quarter, with a haul truck automation trial and battery-electric underground equipment developments continuing to take place.

In its 2019 annual report, Barrick said the first stage of a project designed to retrofit an autonomous system at its Carlin gold mine, in Nevada, had been successfully completed.

In the March quarter results presentation last week, Mark Bristow, Barrick President and CEO, updated investors on this project, saying a proof of concept allowing manned and unmanned operations in the same zone had been completed at one of its mines. On top of this, the company said it was working on autonomous drilling projects.

It is underground where the biggest revelation came, with Barrick confirming trials of a 50 t battery-electric haul truck it mentioned in its 2019 annual report had commenced at its Turquoise Ridge gold operation, in Nevada. This trial involved an Artisan Z50 (graphic, pictured), the largest battery-powered underground haul truck currently on the market.

A Barrick spokesperson said the trial of the 50 t payload truck was expected to be finalised in the June quarter of this year, “with the option to extend, should the KPIs not be met”.

Barrick previously reported the introduction of a battery-powered development drill at its Hemlo underground gold mine, in Ontario, Canada, “as a first step towards establishing the potential of this new technology” in 2019. Having carried out a trial of this Sandvik DD422iE battery-powered development drill, the Barrick spokesperson confirmed the company has now acquired the unit.

Designed to use electric energy from an onboard battery during tramming and plug into a mine’s existing energy infrastructure while drilling, the Sandvik DD422iE has been used at Newmont’s Borden mine, in Ontario, among other places.

Bristow said on the call that the company believes battery-powered electric underground equipment “has the potential to lower operating costs and increase efficiencies”.

In addition to these automation and battery-electric vehicle developments, Barrick said in the results that a new global SAP Enterprise Resource Planning system was on track for its first implementation at the Nevada Gold Mines JV operations in the September quarter. This is a “more agile, less overly-customised tool, focused on getting the right information”, according to Barrick.

“This more streamlined and standardised global design will further improve our ability to report real-time cost and efficiency data and, more importantly, manage our real-time information,” Bristow said on the call.

The NGM JV implementation could lay the groundwork for a solution to be rolled out to other regions in 2021, according to Barrick.

Barrick’s underground digital innovation plan has seen the company recently adopt technologies that allow it to remotely monitor, in real time, a machine’s location, productivity and health, as well as that of operators’, Bristow said. This tool could increase its efficiencies and predictive maintenance capabilities, he added.

Barrick’s team at Loulo Underground, meanwhile, has helped develop a system that automatically turns secondary fans on and off using personal RFID tracking systems, Bristow noted on the call. This could help reduce power consumption at the mine, in Mali, and the project is now being implemented across its Africa underground mines, he said.

Barrick trialling autonomous and battery-electric tech at North America mines

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Barrick Gold’s automation and electrification efforts look to be gaining pace, with the leading gold miner revealing it has been testing out new technology at some of its operations in the US and Canada.

In its recently released annual report, Barrick said the first stage of a project designed to retrofit an autonomous system at its Carlin gold mine, in Nevada, had been completed successfully.

Matthew Majors, Open Pit Operations Superintendent at Carlin Surface, said in a presentation last month that multiple underground evaluation deployments, surface drilling OEM evaluation, and non-OEM surface production haulage options had been evaluated across the Barrick and Newmont jointly-owned Nevada Gold Mines business.

While the company didn’t provide any more details on the project, Barrick has previously leveraged ASI Mining’s OEM-agnostic autonomous solution at its jointly-owned South Arturo gold operation, also in Nevada. This saw the completion of a proof of concept (POC) using five haulage units “that have delivered over 5.5 Mt faster than any other similar POC in the industry”, Barrick said last year.

At Kibali, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which remains a world leader in underground automation with multiple autonomous machines operating on the same haulage level, the company recently completed a trial to use this technology on the mine’s production levels. This means a single operator can now control up to three machines acting semi-autonomously in different zones, Barrick said.

It added: “An additional system, which will provide real-time visibility of the underground operations, including personnel and equipment tracking, is currently being commissioned.”

And, lastly, on the electric vehicle front, the company said its Hemlo gold mine, in Ontario, Canada, has introduced a battery-powered development drill “as a first step towards establishing the potential of this new technology”.

Hemlo recently moved from a combined open-pit and underground owner-operated mine to an underground-only contract mining model as part of a plan to transition Hemlo into a Tier Two asset with a life of mine well into the future.

Barrick’s Turquoise Ridge gold operation is also evaluating new battery-electric technology, with the company confirming a battery-powered underground haul truck is being trialled at the mine.

Barrick tasks Barminco with turning Hemlo into Tier Two UG gold mine

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More than four months after Barrick Gold announced it intended to phase out open-pit mining and move to an underground contract mining model at its Hemlo operations in Ontario, Canada, a contract miner has been named.

Perenti confirmed its underground hard-rock contract mining subsidiary, Barminco, had received the nod from the gold miner, being issued a letter of intent to provide underground contract mining services at the mine, which has produced more than 21 Moz of gold over 30 years of operation.

Under the proposed three-year, circa-A$200 million ($131 million) mining services contract, Barminco will “bring industry-leading technology and productivity to Hemlo in support of Barrick’s goal to modernise and improve the performance of the mine and establish it as a Tier Two asset within its group”, ASX-listed Perenti said.

Barrick previously said the modernisation and refocusing plan at Hemlo was designed to turn it into a Tier Two asset with a life of mine well into the future.

Barminco’s scope includes undertaking mine development, production and haulage, using mining equipment provided by Barrick. Up until recently there was a significant degree of autonomy in the Hemlo fleet including trucks and LHDs from Sandvik and Epiroc.

Barminco said it anticipates employing more than 300 people at the operation, with works commencing in April.

Perenti Group Managing Director, Mark Norwell, said the contract award was another significant step in the group’s international growth strategy to enter attractive and stable mining jurisdictions.

“This is Barminco and Perenti’s first significant contract in North America and builds on our regional growth capabilities, after expanding into Botswana last year with an A$800 million contract. We look forward to supporting Barrick to deliver outstanding results at Hemlo,” he said.

Underground Chief Executive Officer, Paul Muller, said: “We are thrilled to be in a position to support Barrick to improve the performance of the Hemlo mine. We intend to work very closely with Barrick and all key stakeholders, including the incumbent workforce at Hemlo, the Pic River and Pic Mobert First Nations people and the Marathon community more generally to deliver a sustainable improvement in performance, thereby assuring the future of Hemlo.”

Harte Gold to go commercial at Sugar Zone mine in Ontario

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Harte Gold has been given the go ahead by the government of Ontario to start commercial production at its Sugar Zone mine, paving the way for full-scale output of 1,400 t/d in 2021.

This approval means the company is fully permitted to mine, process ore and pour gold on site at Sugar Zone.

Even though Harte has only just received provincial signoff for Sugar Zone’s commercial plan, it has been busy on site where it has already completed a 70,000 t advanced bulk sample, mined 30,000 t of ore under a Phase 1 Commercial Production permit and built an 800 t/d processing plant.

With this permit ticked off, the company can now proceed with its commercial production plan. This envisages a start-up of operations at 540 t/d at Sugar Zone, increasing to 800 t/d in the December quarter of 2019 and, subsequently, to 1,400 t/d from January 2021.

A preliminary economic assessment envisaged the total upfront capital cost at C$58 million ($45 million) and production, from 2019, of 80,700 oz/y at an all-in sustaining cost of $708/oz over an 11-year mine life.

This would see 904,000 oz of total recovered gold production over the mine life, approximately two thirds of the combined indicated and inferred resources announced back in February, Harte noted in the PEA.

In the latest press release, Harte Gold said full commissioning of the mill complex was nearing completion, while testing of the crushing and conveyance system was complete. Water had been successfully circulated through the mill and the power line to site was built, with all electrical equipment delivered and installed.

Underground development work, meanwhile, continues to exceed targeted rates, Harte said.

“For the month of July, 254 m of development was completed, or 8.2 m/d. Development completed to-date has opened up several areas in the Sugar Zone deposit, particularly in the near-surface Upper Zone area, to provide early high-grade stopes,” the company said. Redpath Canada is helping the company out with underground development.

The February resource statement showed indicated resources of 714,200 oz of contained gold averaging 8.52 g/t and 760,800 oz of inferred resources grading 6.59 g/t.