Tag Archives: Iron ore

Primero Group lands contract addition at Rio Tinto’s Koodaideri project

Mineral project development, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , ,

Multi-disciplinary engineering and contracting firm, Primero Group, says it has been awarded a material contract extension to the existing Koodaideri Non-Process Infrastructure (NPI) contract awarded in late 2019 by Rio Tinto.

Under the extension, the company will construct the Koodaideri Airport Terminal and Infrastructure, with the contract valued at around A$20 million ($14 million). This will involve the construction delivery of the works to be completed in parallel with the existing contract programmed for completion in 2021.

The contract value of the entire NPI contract now stands at circa-A$150 million, compared with the A$115 million under the original award. The difference represents additional “options selections” that Rio confirmed and included for implementation at the project earlier this year.

Primero’s workforce on the project will peak at approximately 180 personnel and site construction work is well underway, the company noted.

Construction on Koodaideri Phase 1 started in 2019 with first production expected in late 2021. Once complete, the $2.6 billion mine will have an annual capacity of 43 Mt, underpinning production of the company’s flagship iron ore product, Pilbara Blend, Rio says.

With this recent NPI contract addition, Primero’s financial year 2021 contracted order book now stands at approximately A$220 million, the company said.

Primero Managing Director and CEO, Cameron Henry, said: “It is pleasing to be awarded further core NPI work from such a great project partner and Tier 1 client as Rio Tinto. We continue to deliver to plan across all major project works and are increasingly optimistic about the operating and growth outlook for the next year and beyond.”

BHP readying rollout of autonomous trucks at Eastern Ridge

Automation, IoT, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Mining software, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , , , ,

BHP is looking to start the roll out of autonomous trucks at its Eastern Ridge mine site in the Pilbara of Western Australia in the next month, with the fleet of 20 Cat 793 haul trucks set to be fully converted to autonomous mode by the end of the year.

The company announced earlier this year that Eastern Ridge (also referred to as Newman East) would be the next mine to benefit from autonomous haulage. This came after a previous automation announcement related to the jointly-owned Goonyella Riverside mine, in Queensland. BHP has also agreed to acquire 41 new model Komatsu 930E-5, which are autonomous ready, for its in-development South Flank iron ore mine, but the company has not yet confirmed if it will use the autonomous capability at the site.

A BHP spokesperson confirmed the existing fleet of Cat 793s were set for automation retrofits, explaining that the roll out would occur from the end of June/early July.

Despite the restrictions in place to curb the spread of COVID-19, the spokesperson said the company was on track for full roll out completion by the end of year, as planned.

In the announcement back in February, BHP said the automation project at Eastern Ridge, which the company is currently using as its proving ground for innovation, was down to the significant safety benefits offered by the technology and its ability to complement the mine’s design, culture and existing infrastructure.

“Newman East is home to our innovation centre, so we’re already using technology there that helps us to be safer and more efficient,” Newman Operations General Manager, Marie Bourgoin, said. “Autonomous trucks were the next logical step.”

This shift will create more than 30 new permanent jobs at Newman East to run and maintain the trucks, according to Bourgoin, with the new roles tied to planning the truck routes and operating the autonomous systems from a control centre, which will initially be located at the mine.

It will also generate more than A$33 million ($23 million) in contracts for Western Australia businesses, with the work required to transition Newman to autonomous haulage including autonomous conversion kits, trailers, training content development and engineering and construction packages.

Newman East is one half of BHP’s Newman operations, which also includes Newman West, locally known as Mt Whaleback. No decision has been made to introduce autonomous trucks at Newman West, the company confirmed.

Visualising the future of particle measurements with 3DPM

Automation, Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Mining software, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The 3DPM vision system has had quite a journey. Since the first prototype was installed at LKAB’s Malmberget iron ore to help the miner optimise its pellet production, the system has helped ‘settle the argument’ between mine and mill at base metal mines in Europe and improve the quality of coke being fed to blast furnaces in Japan.

The future looks bright too, with the potential for the system to play a major role in the automation of mine process plants.

Users of 3DPM have seen the importance of having a high-quality vision system that can measure material from a few millimetres to as big as 300 mm in size at relatively high speeds on conveyor belts.

Matthew Thurley, Principal Scientist at Innovative Machine Vision and one of the inventors of the system, has seen the system evolve at the same time as the industry’s understanding of orebody characterisation has grown.

Sweden-based MBV Systems was involved from the beginning on the system, working in partnership with Thurley during his time at Lulea University. It was a three-way collaboration between the university, the SME, and mining companies that got the product to market.

3DPM stands for three-dimensional particle measurement. The system consists of high-performance hardware for 3D scanning of particles and state-of-the-art software for analysis of the size and distribution of particles on a conveyor belt.

“Each system is optimised regarding the hardware and software to best fit each individual installation site and customer preference,” MBV Systems said. “A few examples include OPC communication, heating options to allow functionality in freezing environments, bulk volume calculation, rock bolt detection, and alarm triggering on oversize material.”

Back in 2006, the system installed at Malmberget was very different.

Thurley said the physical hardware, mounted above a conveyor, was pieced together to function properly, but required integration of many individual parts which was hard to maintain.

Still, it provided the iron ore miner with a detailed particle size distribution down to mm-size classes of its high-grade iron ore pellets.

And, in the 14 years since first installation, the principle of the system has remained: to provide increased knowledge of particle size distribution to generate value in, for instance, crusher/mill control, blast furnace effectiveness, process optimisation, or process knowledge.

As more companies have become familiar with the system, the advanced features such as algorithms to detect fines and partially embedded particles have come to the fore. The hardware has been reinforced for rough environments with IP65 rating and the need for very low maintenance even when running 24/7.

This has meant the system has potential in projects focused on improved quality control, automation and process control; three topics the industry is looking at to improve its bottom line, increase its revenues and remove people from operations.

MBV Systems said: “Our customers, who are already highly automated, must continually make their operations more efficient and reduce costs in increasingly tougher international competition. MBV Systems’ machine vision systems constitute a decisive factor for higher productivity, improved efficiency and for complete quality control.”

LKAB started using the system more than 10 years ago. Over that timeframe, the system won many admirers.

Boliden is a big fan of 3DPM, with installations at its Garpenberg, Aitik and Tara operations.

Earlier this year, the miner decided to install another 3DPM system at Garpenberg, four years after the first system was delivered to the Aitik mine to help boost process knowledge and control strategies for crushers and grinding mills.

The way the Sweden-based miner has applied this technology makes for a great case study, according to Thurley.

At Tara, the system is being used for increased process knowledge – “settling the argument between mine and mill”, Thurley says – while, at Garpenberg, the vision system is being leveraged to detect boulders and rock bolts online in a safe way.

This shows 3DPM can be used for multiple purposes.

Such flexibility is down to the system’s ability to provide full size distribution measurements from 0-300 mm and the use of newer algorithms, with the accuracy dependent on the speed of the conveyor belt and the target size of the material under scrutiny.

One of the differentiating factors of 3DPM compared with other vision systems – many of which are now used within ore sorting projects – is the ability to provide a good 3D data profile of the surface of the rock mass. This helps distinguish between rocks and fines, for instance, even when the two are interwoven.

“With the system, we can classify fines and embedded rocks,” Thurley explained. “In other systems, fines may be mistaken for large ‘rocks’ and significantly skew the measured size distribution resulting in bad data and bad decision making.”

This is particularly important in operations that produce several products within one mine – for instance iron ore lump and fines – ensuring that the correct product ends up in the correct stockpile.

The vision system can be tailored to each application.

“At a pigment producer, for instance, we are looking for material that is 3 mm in size,” Thurley said. “In order to carry out that sort of classification, we use the latest technology to measure 3D points at 0.3 mm resolution.”

Typically, visualisation down to this size of material is not required in mining operations, where the company is really competing with batch ‘mine-to-mill’ ore characterisation studies carried out through sieving or some type of other manual process. Such classification can work well for that ‘sample’ but can be misrepresentative depending on the orebody’s heterogeneity.

“3DPM can, instead, provide an end-to-end analysis that can now start to be used as a decision-making tool,” Thurley said.

Analysis of the ore coming through just after blasting can help provide the reconciliation tool miners require to check how effective the blasting practice is, for instance, helping provide the “pre-crusher size distribution feedback much earlier in the value chain”, he said.

With the incorporation of new software and camera technology, the company is expecting more complex analysis to be carried out on bigger amounts of material, according to Thurley.

“These new technologies will allow us to analyse material on a conveyor belt going at 6 m/s where the previous generation was limited at around 2 m/s,” he said.

This could open opportunities at much bigger operations – some large copper or iron ore mines, for instance – as well as automated plants of the future.

It is not farfetched to see the system operating in the same blasting reconciliation position but providing crusher operators with the analysis required to optimise operations ahead of receiving the material.

Moving one step further, it could provide the same information to a system that operates autonomously.

“This could eventually lead to automatic control of the crusher,” Thurley said.

Aboriginal-owned firm strengthens Fortescue ties with Eliwana contract

Mineral project development, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , ,

Mallard Deemey Pty Ltd, a 100% Aboriginal-owned business, is to construct and install a laboratory, storage, and administrative facilities at the Eliwana asset in Western Australia following a contract award from project owner Fortescue Metals Group.

The award continues to build on Fortescue’s commitment to Aboriginal procurement with its Billion Opportunities program. Since inception in 2011, this program has awarded contracts and sub-contracts worth over A$2.5 billion ($1.7 billion) to more than 120 Aboriginal businesses and joint venture partners, the iron ore miner said.

Eliwana is due to include a 30 Mt/y dry ore processing facility and infrastructure. Production is expected to commence at the end of 2020 with a life of mine strip ratio of 1.1.

The contract for Mallard Deemey, jointly owned and operated by Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura member Donna Meyer and Yamatji member Robby Mallard, is valued at over A$11 million. It will lead to the creation of over 100 jobs, with a significant number of employees expected to come from the Pilbara and Carnarvon as well as Perth, Fortescue said.

Fortescue Chief Executive Officer, Elizabeth Gaines, said: “Supporting and investing in sustainable Aboriginal businesses is at the heart of our approach to ensuring Aboriginal communities benefit from the growth and development of our business.

“Our Billion Opportunities Aboriginal procurement program has provided a platform to demonstrate the skills and capability of Aboriginal businesses and the chance for Aboriginal people to build a future for their communities through economic opportunity.”

Mallard Deemey Director, Donna Meyer, said the contracts clearly showed the capability of Aboriginal businesses, challenging assumptions they could only work on projects of this size as subcontractors and where time schedules were less stringent.

“These contracts are a demonstration of Mallard Deemey’s strong capabilities and will also enable us to commit to our continued training and employment of local Aboriginal people, positioning our business very well for the future,” she said.

With Fortescue’s support, Mallard Deemey was previously engaged as a subcontractor for the deconstruction of the Wheatstone camp in Onslow, ahead of its relocation to Eliwana. Over 40% of the workforce who worked on the Onslow project were Aboriginal employees.

Monadelphous bolsters Pilbara iron ore order book

Equipment maintenance, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mining services, Precious metals, Steel and iron ore, Water management, , , , , , , , ,

Monadelphous Group has added another A$150 million ($101 million) worth of construction and maintenance work in the resources and energy sectors to its portfolio after being awarded contracts from the likes of BHP, Rio Tinto, Fortescue Metals Group and Newcrest Mining.

The company is set to continue its stay in the Pilbara of Western Australia having secured a contract under its existing BHP Western Australia iron ore (WAIO) asset panel framework agreement associated with the dewatering of surplus water at Mining Area C (Yandi mine, pictured).

Close by, it has received a three-year contract with Rio Tinto for the provision of maintenance services and minor projects on its Pilbara marine infrastructure, and one-year extensions to its two existing fixed plant maintenance and shutdown crane services contracts with Fortescue.

In addition, Monadelphous has been appointed to BHP’s WAIO Site Engineering Panel for a further two-year term, to provide civil, structural, mechanical, piping and marine services at its mine site and port operations in the Pilbara.

In Papua New Guinea, meanwhile, Monadelphous has sealed a new three-year contract to provide minor capital project services, including civil, mechanical, structural, piping, and blast and paint at Newcrest Mining’s gold mining operations on Lihir Island. The company has been providing services at Lihir Island since 2017.

Added to this is a four-year contract to continue providing mechanical and electrical maintenance and turnaround services for a customer’s midstream operations in the Queensland, Australia, coal seam gas market.

Paterson & Cooke floats new port concept by Zanaga Iron Ore

Environmental, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining project news, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , ,

Zanaga Iron Ore says a concept study on the viability of using a floating dewatering, storage and offloading (FDSO) port facility shows the potential for a $184 million reduction in capital costs for the 12 Mt/y Stage One development at the Zanaga iron ore project in the Republic of Congo.

Following an approach in 2019 from a leading engineering procurement and construction (EPC) company specialised in the development of floating mooring and operating facilities, in recent months the Zanaga project team has been actively investigating the potential to use an offshore floating port instead of the transhipping solution envisaged in the 2014 feasibility study, the company said. This transhipping solution involved Zanaga’s slurry pipeline terminating at the coast of the Republic of Congo, whereby the slurry material would be dewatered in a coastal based location north of Pointe Noire.

Zanaga is planned as a large scale iron ore mine, processing and infrastructure operation to produce 30 Mt/y of high-grade iron ore (pellet feed) concentrate over a 30-year life of mine, to be developed in two stages. Stage One consists of 12 Mt/y of pellet feed, with the Stage Two 18 Mt/y expansion to 30 Mt/y of pellet feed.

The feasibility study envisaged a slurry pipeline for transport of iron ore concentrate from the mine to the port facilities, with the port facilities and infrastructure for dewatering and handling of the iron ore products located within a proposed third-party constructed port facility.

According to the latest concept study, the floating port solution could provide a number of advantages both technically and economically over previous solutions.

“The solution involves extending Zanaga’s slurry pipeline straight out into the ocean, with significantly reduced land-based facilities,” the company said. “The pipeline would run along the ocean floor to a fixed mooring point where the pipeline would connect to the FDSO vessel.”

The slurry would be processed onboard by a dewatering plant and the pellet feed concentrate would be stored within the vessel. Offloading facilities would be built into the vessel to allow the FDSO to load cape size vessels directly. By utilising the FDSO, Zanaga’s materials handling steps would be reduced to only three phases, providing significant efficiencies and a more seamless operation, the company said.

The FDSO evaluation process has been led by Paterson & Cooke, leading experts in slurry pipeline design and engineering. P&C has completed a concept level report involving a comparison of the three port solutions available for the Zanaga project, namely transhipping, deep water port, or the new FDSO port, Zanaga said.

“The results of the investigation have been very positive from a technical and economic perspective,” the company said. “Potential has been indicated for a $184 million reduction to total capital costs of the 12 Mt/y Stage One project, resulting in a reduction of total capital cost from $2.219 billion to $2.035 billion.”

While the study was conceptual in nature, it compared favourably with the transhipping and deep water port options the company had previously weighed for the project, it said. The capital cost associated with the FDSO was $111 million, compared with $295 million for the transhipping option and $899 million for the deep water port.

On top of this, operating costs are expected to be maintained at around $6.50/t due to previously high transshipping costs being substituted by a lease cost to the EPC contractor providing the solution, it said.

Clifford Elphick, Non-Executive Chairman of Zanaga Iron Ore, said: “This evaluation exercise demonstrates the clear potential of a floating port facility to enhance significantly the economics of the Zanaga project through the reduction of upfront capital costs and enhanced internal rate of return.

“In addition, there is potential to achieve significant ancillary technical benefits such as reduced environmental impact, elimination of dredging, and significant flexibility on coastal route selection.”

On top of this development, Zanaga said the project team had made progress on evaluating the early production project (EPP) potential of the asset.

Having ditched plans to explore a logistics route through Gabon, it said the team was now evaluating a range of capacities from 1-5 Mt/y involving optimising process plant design and reviewing in-country logistics solutions for an upgraded truck and rail solution using upgraded road and rail infrastructure within the Republic of Congo.

“In terms of power supply, heavy fuel oil is available in RoC in sufficient quantities to support such a project and pricing has been obtained from the national oil company allowing the project team to evaluate the viability of such an option to support the EPP’s power consumption requirements,” the company said.

“In addition, potential hydropower sites have also been identified in the area of the future mine. One site located 70 km to the north on the Ogooué river site seems promising, with a potential capacity of 20 MW to 40 MW.”

A detailed study is underway to further evaluate the potential of the site, it added.

“The project team continue to evaluate the potential for the EPP to operate as a standalone project, or as an initial pathway to production during the construction period of the 30 Mt/y staged development project,” it concluded.

Trelleborg Performer Ceramic hoses cut maintenance intervals at iron ore mine

Bulk handling, Equipment maintenance, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Steel and iron ore, , , ,

Trelleborg’s fluid handling operation is improving uptime at the world’s largest underground iron ore mine thanks to the installation of its Performer Ceramic hoses.

Standing up to harsh grinding and comminution processes at the operation – which IM believes to be the LKAB-owned Kiruna mine, in Sweden – the Performer Ceramic hoses are still performing after one year, significantly lengthening the quarterly maintenance cycle required for previous hoses, according to Trelleborg.

Ludovic Dumoulin, Market Segment Manager for Industrial Hoses within Trelleborg’s Fluid Handling Operation, said: “Keeping production at the extraordinary pace required in today’s mines means that each link in the processing chain has to be extraordinarily strong. The Performer Ceramic hose is like nothing else on the market. It offers extended life compared to rubber hoses and is 60% lighter than conventional ceramic hoses.

“The development process for the hose took four years and it is now proving it’s worth in real mining situations.”

Dumoulin said after one year of operation in the iron ore mine, Trelleborg engineers have confirmed that the mine’s Performer Ceramic hoses still have a lot of life in them yet – “at least another year-and-a-half before they need to be swapped out; 10 times longer than the quarterly average”, he said.

He concluded: “Cutting maintenance intervals from once a quarter for standard hoses to once a year with Performer Ceramic hoses can obviously have a dramatic effect on the cost efficiency of a mine, significantly lowering total cost of ownership.”

In addition, installation of the Performer Ceramic hose, used for hydraulic suction or discharge of highly abrasive material, is easier than competitor products, according to Trelleborg. The hose can be cut in the same way as an ordinary rubber hose without using a ceramic saw, while Bloc-End couplings provide simple fitment. Special diamond-shaped tiles have a bending radius tighter than a rubber hose at just 200 mm for a 50 mm hose and 1,300 mm for a 200 mm hose, which is roughly one-fifth of the space required by a conventional solution.

The Performer Ceramic hose patented design is 92% ceramic with an embedded steel helix. The operating temperature range is between -30°C and +70°C.

Cundaline Resources to work on Iron Bridge magnetite project

Mineral project development, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , , ,

Fortescue Metals Group has awarded 100% Aboriginal owned company, Cundaline Resources Pty, with the contract for the West Canning Basin earthworks at its majority owned Iron Bridge magnetite project, in Western Australia.

The award, which continues FMG’s longstanding commitment to supporting local and Aboriginal businesses, will see the group carry out the earthworks, access preparation and rehabilitation services associated with the hydrogeology drilling program for the Iron Bridge project.

The Iron Bridge project will deliver 22 Mt/y (wet) of high grade 67% Fe magnetite concentrate product, according to FMG, with the first stage completed successfully by building and operating a full-scale pilot plant at the North Star mine site. This pilot project included the use of a dry crushing and grinding circuit, which FMG plans to leverage in stage two.

The second stage of the project comprises the construction of a large-scale process plant, and port infrastructure to support the production of 22 Mt/y (wet) of iron ore.

In FMG’s March quarter results, released late last month, the company said the $2.6 billion project was progressing on schedule and budget, with first concentrate production planned in the first half of calendar year 2022.

Key milestones in the three-month period included detailed engineering passing the halfway mark, procurement of major long lead process equipment committed and the first blast at the ore processing facility site, enabling bulk earthworks to commence.

Fortescue’s Chief Executive Officer, Elizabeth Gaines, said Fortescue’s Aboriginal procurement initiative, Billion Opportunities, has awarded over A$2.5 billion ($1.6 billion) in contracts and sub-contracts to Aboriginal businesses and joint venture partners since the program began in 2011.

“We are committed to building on this proud track record through our growth projects, Eliwana and Iron Bridge, which have already awarded over A$60 million in contracts to Aboriginal businesses,” she said.

“Importantly, Billion Opportunities is focused on building the capability and capacity of Aboriginal businesses, and it is very pleasing to see Cundaline, a business which commenced operations as a labour hire company, now expand into earthworks and mechanical maintenance contracting areas.”

Cundaline’s Managing Director, Brenden Taylor, said: “The West Canning Basin Earthworks contract is a milestone project and the first of a number of potential opportunities on the Iron Bridge magnetite project for Cundaline.

“We have worked hard to transition our company from a labour hire specialist to a contracting entity managing and delivering our own projects. I am particularly proud of my team for their professionalism and ‘can do’ attitude and not giving up during the tough times.

“Along this journey we have worked together with other Aboriginal businesses and I especially want to acknowledge Fortescue, through the Billion Opportunities initiative, for making a real difference for a local and Aboriginal business like Cundaline to continue to grow our capacity and capability into the future.”

Civmec mobilises personnel for Rio Tinto Mesa A contract work

Equipment maintenance, Mine operation news, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , ,

Civmec Ltd has added another work package on a major iron ore development to its books, with Rio Tinto awarding it a contract to help further develop its Mesa A operational hub in the Robe Valley of Western Australia.

The package comprises the supply, fabrication, modularisation, transportation to site, erection, modification, installation, and commissioning of structural, mechanical, piping, electrical and instrumentation, and communication work for the Mesa A Wet Plant, it says. Components include screening, surge bin and scrubbing facilities and associated conveyor systems, transfer towers, sub stations and all piping and cabling, including trenching for underground services.

Rio Tinto’s Robe Valley Sustaining iron ore project, in the Pilbara region, includes the development of three new mining deposits and the construction of supporting infrastructure required to continue operations of the two existing operational hubs at Mesa A and Mesa J. The project is part of the company’s plans to sustain production capacity at its Robe River joint venture.

Civmec’s contract award follows similar agreements with Fortescue Metals Group on the Eliwana project and a contract to fabricate and modularise key components for BHP’s South Flank project, both of which are also in the Pilbara.

Civmec Chief Executive Officer, Patrick Tallon, said: “Rio Tinto has always been a good client for us and we have a long history of supporting the safe, high quality and timely delivery of their projects in Western Australia and Queensland, across construction, manufacturing and maintenance.”

Fabrication, to be undertaken at the group’s Henderson facility, will employ around 200 people and will commence in the coming weeks, Civmec said. The on-site structural, mechanical and piping component will require some 240 people to mobilise to site at the peak of the project in the latter part of this year, while the electrical discipline will require some 100 people in early 2021.

Civmec’s relationship with Rio Tinto is not limited to new development projects, the company says. It extends across other Rio Tinto sites, with the group’s maintenance division continually supplying services to its operations.

The award of this significant construction project, combined with recent work orders for the maintenance division from Rio Tinto, have a combined value of circa-A$165 million ($106 million), with the group’s order book now standing at around A$895 million, Civmec said.

National Group’s NPE delivers Cat 994K wheel loader to Rio’s Marandoo iron ore site

Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , , ,

National Group says its National Plant & Equipment (NPE) subsidiary has delivered Australia’s first rental Cat 994K wheel loader to Rio Tinto’s Marandoo iron ore mine in Western Australia.

After arriving in Perth from the Caterpillar manufacturing facility in Decatur, Illinois, USA, the wheel loader began pre-assembly on February 17 by WesTrac at its Reid Road facility, in WA. From there, the oversized load was disassembled for transportation from Perth to the Pilbara, where final assembly took place on site at Marandoo before being handed over to Rio Tinto to begin work in early May.

Marandoo is one of Rio’s Pilbara iron ore assets to feature autonomy. Back in 2017, Cat and Rio Tinto signed an agreement to retrofit 19 Cat 793F mining trucks for autonomous operation at the site, making it the first fleet of Cat autonomous trucks deployed by Rio Tinto.

National Group said Cat large wheel loaders are well known as the ‘top of their class’ due to their sheer size and durability that ensures maximum availability through multiple life cycles. “The 994K doesn’t disappoint, with a net power of 1,297 kW, an operating weight of over 240 t and a bucket capacity range of 19.1 – 24.5 m³ for hard-rock conditions (up to 43.6 m³ for soft rock), making it the largest wheel loader currently manufactured by Caterpillar,” it said.

Mark Ackroyd, National Group Managing Director, said: “With optimised performance and simplified serviceability, the 994K allows mine sites to move more material efficiently and safely at a lower cost per tonne.

“They are the ideal machine for large mining companies such as Rio Tinto to maximise their efficiency and productivity and reduce the level of ongoing maintenance required.”

Geoff Bailey, WesTrac Executive General Manager of Sales, said: “WesTrac have worked closely with NPE for more than seven years and we’re proud to continue to support the business with industry-leading equipment and technology.

“The 994K can handle large payloads even in tough conditions, loading a matched Cat 789 or 793 haul truck in five to six passes, respectively. It’s a highly efficient option for our WA mining customers.”

Ackroyd said there was currently less than 10 994Ks in Australia, “so we are very excited to own a brand new model and to see it go to work with one of our key clients”.

As many businesses and industries come to a halt due to COVID-19 restrictions, National Group says it is preparing to deliver a range of other machinery to mine sites around Australia in the coming months.